Tacos and Tech Podcast

Latest Episodes:

A portfolio approach to angel investing Apr 21, 2026

Show notes

The 2026 San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC) kicks off with Angel Academy Session 1, hosted at SDSU's ZIP Launchpad. Neal Bloom walks a room of aspiring and returning angel investors through the fundamentals — what angel investing actually looks like, how the SDAC's group diligence process works, and why a portfolio approach matters more than picking one winner. With 135 startup applications on the table and a Decision Day set for May 29, the session lays out the full arc from learning to deploying capital.

Key Topics

* What angel investing is and why it's a learned muscle

* The SDAC's group diligence model: applications to investment

* Portfolio approach: deploying into 3–5 companies

* Why in-person founder pitches change the calculus

* The "Super Bowl" — May 29 Decision Day and what it means

* Fund structure: $200K–$2M raise range, SPV side vehicles

* Last year's fund: $440K deployed into three companies

Links & Resources

* San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC): https://sdangel.com

* SDSU ZIP Launchpad: https://ziplaunchpad.sdsu.edu

* Rising Tide Partners: https://risingtidepartners.co

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

The AI Strategy Gap Apr 14, 2026

Show notes

In this weeks episode, I sit down with Grayson LaFrenz and Chad Lohrli, two of the co-founders of Cadre AI, the San Diego-based AI strategy and integration firm helping mid-market companies turn AI hype into P&L impact. They get into why 99 out of 100 business leaders still can’t point to measurable ROI from AI, how Cadre’s pod model mirrors the playbook Grayson used to build Power Digital into a record-setting exit, and why change management - not technology - is the real bottleneck. The taco question made an appearance.

Key Topics

* Why most companies have no real AI strategy

* Grayson’s path from Power Digital’s PE exit to Cadre AI

* Chad’s journey from hackathons and SDX to co-founding Cadre

* How Cadre’s pod system verticalizes AI delivery

* The maturity index that exposes C-suite blind spots

* Why services businesses lose operating leverage at scale

* Building reusable AI blocks across clients

* Turning call recordings into an autonomous client intelligence system

* Why change management is harder than the technology

Links & Resources

Connect on LinkedIn

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Four Questions Before You Write the Check Apr 07, 2026

Show notes

Episode Summary

Neal Bloom takes the stage at the 2026 San Diego Angel Conference Knowledge & Networking Event at SDSU to walk a room full of aspiring and active angel investors through the four questions he uses to evaluate early-stage companies. Using live audience exercises - pitching Uber, Airbnb, and Palantir in one sentence, debating whether Viori was a pass or a miss - he turns startup evaluation from an abstract skill into something visceral and personal. This isn’t theory. It’s how the sausage gets made when real capital is on the line.

Key Topics

* The four-question framework for evaluating startups

* Why clarity is a test of the founder, not the investor

* One-sentence pitching exercises with Uber, Airbnb, and Palantir

* Venture scale outcomes vs. good small businesses

* Salt Couture vs. Reef vs. Vuori - three paths from the same starting point

* How EBITDA, CAC, and growth get valued differently across business types

* Excitement as signal, not hype

* The calendar test: would you spend one more hour on this company?

Links & Resources

* San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC)

* SDSU Fowler College of Business

* Evo Nexus

* NuFund

* Vuori

* Rising Tide Partners

Connect on LinkedIn

* Neal Bloom

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

This Week in San Diego Tech News Apr 03, 2026

Show notes

Listen & subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube.

Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News!

I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners.

My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier, journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter.

Before we dive in, we wanted to thank and ask our listeners to help us grow the show, leave a review and share with one other person who should be more plugged in with the SD Tech Scene. Thank you for the support and for helping us build the San Diego Startup Community!

April 2

Manifold Security Raised $8M

Rybodyn Raised $10 Funding

Shield AI Raises $2B

Condor Software Series A

Q1 2026 Funding Report

2026 Cool Companies

Curated Events List – For full list – check The Social Coyote

2026 SD Hardtech 50 Release Event - April 30

TechCon SoCal May 21-23

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Blueprint Equity’s $333M Bet on Early Growth Software Mar 31, 2026

Show notes

Blueprint Equity just closed a $333M Fund III - and they’re doubling down on a thesis that feels increasingly contrarian in today’s AI-fueled world.

In this episode, Neal sits down with Sheldon Lewis and Bobby Ocampo, co-founders and managing partners of La Jolla-based Blueprint Equity, to unpack their “early growth equity” strategy - investing in bootstrapped SaaS companies doing $1–7M in ARR and growing fast.

They share their journey from 2008 investment banking crash, near-billion-dollar exits, to building Blueprint from scratch. Along the way, they break down why they call themselves “anti-VC,” how AI is reshaping SaaS economics, and why raising less capital can actually create better founder outcomes.

If you’re building in SaaS - especially outside Silicon Valley - this is one to study.

Key Topics

* What is Early Growth Equity?

* From I Banking in 2008 to Building a Fund

* The PayLease Story

* Why They Call Themselves “Anti-VC”

* How AI Is Changing SaaS (But Not Killing It)

* Hands-On Portfolio Support

* Fund III: $333M Closed

* Why Great Companies Can Be Built Anywhere

Links & Resources

* Blueprint Equity

Connect on LinkedIn

* Sheldon Lewis

* Bobby Ocampo

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Podcast: Beyond One-Time Buyers with Matt Holman Mar 24, 2026

Show notes

Matt Holman, founder of Commerce Catalyst and Subscription Prescription, joins Neal to unpack what’s really happening inside modern e-commerce and subscription-driven CPG brands. From Utah’s fast-growing “Silicon Slopes” ecosystem to AI-powered personalization, Matt shares how founders are building durable revenue in a post-hype e-commerce world.

They explore the tension between acquisition and retention, why subscription is often misunderstood, and how community-driven ecosystems accelerate operator learning faster than content ever could.

In this episode, they cover:

* Why the best subscription brands win on acquisition first

* The difference between real personalization and surface-level tactics

* How AI is improving research, CX, and performance marketing

* Why e-commerce multiples compressed - and what that means for founders

* The power of Utah’s Commerce Catalyst community

* Balancing growth targets with long-term subscription LTV

Resources & Links:

* Commerce Catalyst

* Subscription Prescription

* Sign up for Matt’s Newsletter

Connect on LinkedIn

* Matt Holman

* Neal Bloom

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Podcast: Sleep, Science & Invisible Care Mar 17, 2026

Show notes

Susie Harborth joins the pod to share her journey from refugee immigrant and first-generation college student to biotech operator, ecosystem builder, and now founder-investor behind Inspirafund and Sencie.

After building early-stage life science companies, launching BioLabs in San Diego, and working across venture and banking, Susie is now placing focused bets in overlooked but meaningful spaces - starting with sleep, rest, and recovery in hospitality.

We dive into why sleep is emerging as a foundational performance lever, how design and “invisible care” shape human experience, and why Susie is building at the intersection of science, hospitality, and wellness. We also unpack her next venture concept, SuperHRO - an offboarding support platform for professionals navigating career transitions.

This episode is about investing with conviction, building from lived experience, and designing for how humans actually feel - not just how systems operate.

Key Topics

* Growing up in San Diego as a refugee immigrant and discovering venture capital during the dot-com era

* Why Susie chose to support scientists curing disease instead of becoming a doctor herself

* Building BioLabs and designing physical hubs for “maximum human collision”

* The difference between luxury and “invisible care”

* Why sleep is the most underleveraged performance tool in modern life

* The science behind circadian rhythms, REM quality, and cognitive performance

* Sleep tourism and the opportunity in hospitality wellness

* Launching Sencie and partnering with The Bower in Coronado

* Why some opportunities are too niche for traditional VC — but perfect for focused capital

* Introducing SuperHRO: rethinking HR and support during job transitions

Links & Resources

* Inspirafund - Personal investment platform backing overlooked, high-impact ideas

* Sencie - Sleep and well-being experiences for hospitality and travel

Connect On LinkedIn

* Susie Harborth

* Neal Bloom

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

This Week In San Diego Tech News Mar 12, 2026

Show notes

Listen & subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube.

Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News!

I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners.

3/12

* Seasats visit debrief

* BlueNalu tasting debrief

* SD Angel Academy Debrief

* $100 Genome by Element Bio

* New fundings:

* Candid Therapeutics reverse merger of $500M+

* Spinogenix

* Qureator

* NuFund Ventures Closes Most Successful Year Since 2021

* BAE Systems wins support contract for F-16

* Carlsbad proposed for undersea hub for cables between US and Australia

Curated Events List – For full list – check The Social Coyote

Longevity Innovation Forum 2026 March 11

San Diego AgTech Gathering March 19

March Mingle March 25

SD AI x Bio March 26

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Company Creation as a Commodity Mar 11, 2026

Show notes

Episode Summary

In this episode of the AI Builders Roundtable, the builders cross a line.

Instead of just discussing AI-native companies, they use one - Polsia AI - to start new businesses live on the show.

Neal, Craig, and Greg spin up real ventures, fund them, and watch agents begin executing tasks in real time. MVPs get scoped. Outreach campaigns get drafted. Websites get built. Autonomous execution starts.

What begins as a demo turns into a deeper conversation about ownership, liability, trust, agent-to-agent commerce, and what happens when company creation becomes a commodity.

This isn’t a thought experiment. It’s builders testing the edge.

Key Topics

* Launching AI-native companies live with Polsia AI

* Funding autonomous agents to build and operate startups

* When execution collapses toward zero

* Agent-run outreach, marketing, and MVP development

* Who holds liability when agents transact autonomously

* Micro-venture economics and short business life cycles

* Building for agents, not just humans

* Why emotional trust may become more valuable in an autonomous world

Links & Resources

Connect on LinkedIn

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Logistics Wins Wars Mar 10, 2026

Show notes

In this episode of Tacos & Tech, Neal Bloom sits down with Peter Goldsborough, co-founder and CTO of Rune, to unpack one of the most overlooked but decisive factors in modern warfare: logistics.

Peter shares how his background in software and defense tech led him to a simple realization-while billions have been spent on weapons and command systems, military logistics still runs on spreadsheets, whiteboards, and paper. The conversation explores why future conflicts will be won or lost on decision speed, not firepower, and how Rune is turning logistics into a real-time, data-driven decision system used by the Army and Marines today.

This episode dives into defense innovation, software in degraded environments, and why fixing logistics isn’t just a military problem-it’s a cognitive one.

Key Topics

* Why logistics decides wars

* The problem with spreadsheets and whiteboards in the DoD

* Turning logistics into a real-time decision system

* Defense tech speed vs legacy procurement

* Software for disconnected and high-stress environments

* Lessons from Ukraine and the Pacific theater

* When logistics becomes the bottleneck

* Building resilient software for the physical world

Links

* Rune

Connect on LinkedIn

* Peter Goldsborough

* Neal Bloom

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

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