The a16z Show

Latest Episodes:

Enabling Agents and Battling Bots on an AI-Centric Web Jul 04, 2025

Show notes

Taken from the AI + a16z podcast, Arcjet CEO David Mytton sits down with a16z partner Joel de la Garza to discuss the increasing complexity of managing who can access websites, and other web apps, and what they can do there. A primary challenge is determining whether automated traffic is coming from bad actors and troublesome bots, or perhaps AI agents trying to buy a product on behalf of a real customer.Joel and David dive into the challenge of analyzing every request without adding latency, and how faster inference at the edge opens up new possibilities for fraud prevention, content filtering, and even ad tech.Topics include:

Why traditional threat analysis won’t work for the AI-powered web
The need for full-context security checks
How to perform sub-second, cost-effective inference
The wide range of potential actors and actions behind any given visit

As David puts it, lower inference costs are key to letting apps act on the full context window — everything you know about the user, the session, and your application.

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David Mytton

Joel de la Garza

Check out everything a16z is doing with artificial intelligence here, including articles, projects, and more podcasts.

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Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

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Marc Andreessen on Startup Timing Jul 02, 2025

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What if now is the best time in decades to start a company?

In this episode, taken from Speedrun, a16z’s accelerator for early-stage founders, Marc Andreessen joins games General Partner Jonathan Lai to make the case that we’re entering a once-in-a-generation window for innovation. From the rise of AI to the cultural and policy shifts reshaping the global economy, Marc explains why the next four years present a rare opportunity for builders to seize the moment.

Along the way, they discuss market timing, platform shifts, and what sets successful founders apart - including lessons from Steve Jobs, insights into AI’s impact on storytelling and games, and why being “too early” can feel just like being wrong.

Timecodes

0:00 Lessons from Steve Jobs on Leadership & Innovation

2:27 The AI Boom: How It’s Changing Everything

5:52 Market Timing: The #1 Factor in Startup Success

8:13 Why the Next 4 Years Are Critical for Tech

11:30 AI & The Future of Gaming, Storytelling & Virtual Worlds

14:28 Why Some Startups Fail While Others Explode

17:11 The Role of Founders in the AI Era

Resources:

Find Marc on X: https://x.com/pmarca

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Katherine Boyle: How Tech Can Rebuild America Jun 30, 2025

Show notes

Why does seriousness feel radical today? a16z General Partner Katherine Boyle joins The LaBossiere Podcast to explore what it means to build for the national interest—and why that starts with purpose.

Katherine, part of the American Dynamism team at a16z, shares how we got to a place where public service became uncool, how tech can help rebuild trust in government, and why suffering, friction, and responsibility are essential ingredients for growth. From the collapse of civic duty to the rise of meme-driven politics, they dig into the cultural forces shaping America—and the opportunity to reclaim a sense of mission.

They also discuss why Silicon Valley is more idea than place, what journalists and investors have in common, and why being laughed at might be the clearest sign you’re on the right path.

Timecodes:

0:00 - Intro

4:48 The Decline in Public Service

7:47 Making Government Cool Again

10:07 Silicon Valley’s Aversion to National Security

13:15 Positive Sum vs Zero Sum Cultures

16:27 China, Authoritarianism, and Doing Hard Things

19:27 What Makes America Special?

23:03 Silicon Valley and the “Real Economy”

26:28 Investing in Mature Markets

29:08 Vanna White and The Wheel of Fortune

30:27 Journalism and Loneliness

32:52 - Time and Suffering

38:10 - Seriousness and Purpose

41:11 - Is Culture Downstream of Technology?

42:48 - Propaganda and Coolness as a Strategic Asset

44:40 - Florida, Texas, and Regulatory Arbitrage

47:51 - DC, Silicon Valley, and Florida

50:20 - What Should More People Be Thinking About

Resources:

Find Katherine on X: https://x.com/KTmBoyle

Find Alex on X: https://x.com/adlabossiere

Listen to more from The LaBossiere Podcast:

YouTube: ⁠https://bit.ly/3QDLQFt⁠

Apple: ⁠https://apple.co/478Be6M⁠

Spotify: ⁠https://spoti.fi/3sfiFiE⁠

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Where We Are in the AI Cycle Jun 27, 2025

Show notes

In this episode of ‘This Week in Consumer’, a16z General Partners Anish Acharya and Erik Torenberg are joined by Steven Sinofsky - Board Partner at a16z and former President of Microsoft’s Windows division - for a deep dive on how today’s AI moment mirrors (and diverges from) past computing transitions.

They explore whether we’re at the “Windows 3.1” stage of AI or still in the earliest innings, why consumer adoption is outpacing developer readiness, and how frameworks like partial autonomy, jagged intelligence, and “vibe coding” are shaping what gets built next. They also dig into where the real bottlenecks lie, not in the tech, but in how companies, products, and people work.

Resources:

Find Anish on X: https://x.com/illscience

Find Steven on X: https://x.com/stevesi

Watch Andrej Karpathy’s talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCEmiRjPEtQ

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Building Cluely: The Viral AI Startup that raised $15M in 10 Weeks Jun 25, 2025

Show notes

What if virality wasn’t a tactic — but the entire product?

In this episode, a16z General Partners Erik Torenberg and Bryan Kim sit down with Roy Lee, cofounder and CEO of Cluely, one of the most talked-about consumer AI startups of 2025. Cluely didn’t raise a mega round or drop a feature suite to get traction - it broke through by turning distribution into design: launching viral short-form videos, pushing polarizing product drops, and building in public with speed and spectacle.

We cover:

– Why virality is Cluely’s moat

– Building a brand-native AI interface

– The Gen Z founder mindset

– What most startups get wrong about attention

– Why creators are the new product managers

– Cluely’s long-term vision for ambient AI

Cluely is a glimpse at the next generation of startups, where the line between product and performance is disappearing.

Timecodes:

00:00 Introduction

01:07 Early Success

02:02 Roy's Journey: From College Kid to Tech Universe

04:37 The Turning Point: Harvard and Beyond

06:57 Building Cluey: The Early Days

08:27 The Viral Strategy: Mastering Algorithms

13:56 The 50 Interns Experiment

15:30 The Investment Journey: Roy and Bryan's Partnership

19:20 Momentum as a Moat: The Future of AI Companies

20:32 The Evolution of Product Strategy in the AI Era

21:19 The Importance of Speed and Adaptability

22:48 The Role of Distribution in Modern Startups

24:26 Roy's Journey and Product Development

25:25 The Power of User Data and Feedback

26:58 Innovative Marketing and Distribution Tactics

28:25 The Future of AI Integration and Translucent Overlays

32:15 Controversial Marketing and Authenticity

34:01 The Impact of Radical Transparency

36:42 The Changing Landscape of Professionalism

38:26 Concluding Thoughts and Future Vision

Resources:

Find Roy on X: https://x.com/im_roy_lee

Find Bryan on X: https://x.com/kirbyman01

Learn more about Cluely: http://cluely.com/

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Chris Dixon & Tyler Cowen on Crypto, AI, and Philosophy Jun 23, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, general partner Chris Dixon joins economist and author Tyler Cowen to explore the themes behind Chris’s book, Read, Write, Own: Building the Next Era of the Internet.

They trace the internet’s evolution from open, decentralized beginnings to today’s consolidated platforms—and ask: how can we build something better? From stablecoins, tokenized payments, and open blockchains to AI's impact on coding, media, and politics, this wide-ranging conversation dives deep into how technologies like crypto and AI could help redistribute power online and reshape the future of ownership and innovation.

The two also debate:

Whether banks and legacy institutions will adopt stablecoins
The long-term role of NFTs and digital property rights
How AI might rewrite venture capital, education, and economic planning
Whether we're heading toward a creative renaissance—or a world of AI-generated monoculture

Listen to similar conversations, listen to web3 with a16z: https://web3-with-a16z.simplecast.com/

Resources:
Listen to Conversations with Tyler: https://conversationswithtyler.com/

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Join a16z’s Crypto Substack:https://a16zcrypto.substack.com/

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Why We Invested In Cluely Jun 21, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, a16z general partner Bryan Kim joins TBPN hosts John Coogan and Jordi Hays to discuss the recent launch of Cluely , a consumer AI product. The conversation covers early traction, evaluating distribution and momentum, and how investors assess go-to-market strategies in emerging AI applications.

Resources:

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Watch TBPN: https://www.tbpn.com/

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The State of AI & Education Jun 20, 2025

Show notes

How is AI actually being used in classrooms today? Are teachers adopting it, or resisting it? And could software eventually replace traditional instruction entirely?

In this episode of This Week in Consumer AI, a16z partners Justine Moore, Olivia Moore, and Zach Cohen explore one of the most rapidly evolving — and widely debated — frontiers in consumer technology: education.

They unpack how generative AI is already reshaping educational workflows, enabling teachers to scale feedback, personalize curriculum, and reclaim time from administrative tasks. We also examine emerging consumer behavior — from students using AI for homework to parents exploring AI-led learning paths for their children.

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How Apple Became So Reliant on China & What it Means For Their Future Jun 18, 2025

Show notes

What if the rise of Apple also built modern China?

a16z’s Erik Torenberg is joined by board partner and former Microsoft Windows chief Steven Sinofsky to unpack how Apple’s pursuit of design excellence and supply chain scale catalyzed China’s manufacturing superpower status - and why that partnership is now under intense scrutiny.

Inspired by the book Apple in China (but not a book review), the episode dives deep into:

The early days of Apple’s shift to Chinese manufacturing
What experts got wrong in 1999 about trade, globalization, and China’s trajectory
How Tim Cook’s operational playbook reshaped the global tech industry
Behind-the-scenes stories from Microsoft’s own hardware battles and Surface launch
Why Apple’s entanglement with China may now be a strategic liability
What COVID revealed about fragile global dependencies — and where innovation goes next
How national policy, intellectual property, and AI intersect in the new industrial era

The episode opens with a few reactions to WWDC: Apple’s new UI, the iPad’s evolving role, and why Apple’s AI story still feels unfinished - before zooming out into one of the most consequential tech and geopolitical stories of our time.

TImecodes:

00:00 Introduction

00:37 Guest Introduction: Steven Sinofsky

00:49 WWDC Reactions and Apple's AI Story

02:27 WWDC Highlights: Liquid Glass and iPad Updates

05:16 Apple's AI Strategy and Market Dynamics

06:34 Meta's AI Moves and Market Implications

13:30 Apple's Manufacturing Evolution: From Garage to Global

20:50 The Rise of ODMs and Global Manufacturing

26:32 Microsoft's Struggle with Piracy in China

27:19 Apple's Revolutionary MacBook Air

29:30 Challenges in PC Manufacturing

31:05 The Rise of Chinese Manufacturing Skills

32:07 The Point of No Return for Apple and China

32:59 Global Trade and Intellectual Property Issues

37:04 COVID-19's Impact on Global Manufacturing

41:19 Future of Innovation and Manufacturing

47:10 Navigating Intellectual Property in the AI Era

48:55 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

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Adam Neumann: This is How You Build Iconic Companies Jun 16, 2025

Show notes

In this recent episode of The Ben & Marc Show, a16z co-founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz sit down with Adam Neumann—founder of WeWork and now Flow—to unpack one of the most unlikely comeback storie s in tech.

What began as a personal reckoning after a very public fall has become a bold new vision for how we live and belong. Flow isn’t just a real estate company—it’s an operating system for community, built on first-principles software, design, and soul.

Joined by a16z General Partner Erik Torenberg, the group goes deep on:

Why Adam’s childhood shaped his obsession with community
Adam’s fall from WeWork—and how he found a new path to redemption
How Flow is re-architecting real estate from scratch
Why loneliness is the greatest design challenge of our time

With reflections on dyslexia, the American dream, and the thin line between failure and greatness, this is a candid and wide-ranging conversation about redemption, vision, and building something that matters in this world. We hope you enjoy this deeply human conversation about the future of living.

Timecodes

00:00 Introduction

00:51 Adam's Early Life and Family Background

07:56 Military Service and Discipline

10:08 Transition to the US and Education

14:43 Entrepreneurial Journey Begins

17:49 The Concept of Flow and Vision

20:28 Meeting and Partnership Formation

25:22 Overcoming Challenges and Resilience

28:30 The Isolation Phenomenon

30:03 Navigating Post-Crisis Relationships

31:50 Real Estate Strategies During COVID