The Full Ratchet (TFR): Venture Capital and Startup Investing Demystified

Latest Episodes:

Investor Stories 494: Passing on Outliers, Misjudging Founder Quality, and Holding Too Tightly — Lessons from Notable, Superset, and Fika (Solomon, Vaidya, Chen) Sep 24, 2026

Show notes

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital
Vivek Vaidya of super{set}
John Chen of Fika Ventures

We asked guests to tell the most important lesson they've learned in their career.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

Investor Stories 493: Founder CEO Removal, Acquisition Pressure, and Co-Founder Conflict — Lessons from Investors at Volition, Notable, and Fika (Cheng, Solomon, Chen) Sep 17, 2026

Show notes

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Larry Cheng of Volition Capital
Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital
John Chen of Fika Ventures

We discuss major conflicts that guests have faced and how they resolved them.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

517. Fear and Greed in AI, The Rise of Kingmakers, and Is Seed the Sucker Round? (John Chen) Sep 14, 2026

Show notes

John Chen of Fika Ventures joins Nick to discuss Fear and Greed in AI, The Rise of Kingmakers, and Is Seed the Sucker Round?. In this episode we cover:

Differences Between Bay Area and LA Founders
Lessons from Emergence and Building Fika
Investing in AI Native Services and Copilots
Challenges and Opportunities in Seed Investing
Founder Profiles and Career Paths

Guest Links:

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

Investor Stories 492: Best Questions from Grant Emery, Ben Black, and Glenn Solomon: Market Truths, Enduring Value, and Founder Conviction (Demaree, Black, Solomon) Sep 10, 2026

Show notes

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Grant Demaree of Onebrief
Ben Black of Akkadian Ventures
Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital

We asked guests to share the best question they've ever been asked by an allocator.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

Investor Stories 491: What Visionary Leaders at Jackpocket, Vercel, and Microsoft Do Differently(Peter Davis, Solomon, Vaidya) Sep 03, 2026

Show notes

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Mark Peter Davis of Interplay
Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital
Vivek Vaidya of super{set}

We asked guests to discuss the most visionary founder that they've worked with and what makes them so special.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

516. AI Cost Structures and Pricing, Proprietary Data Sets That Create Moats, and a Clear Method for Determining Which Problem to Solve First (Vivek Vaidya) Aug 31, 2026

Show notes

Vivek Vaidya of super{set} joins Nick to discuss AI Cost Structures and Pricing, Proprietary Data Sets That Create Moats, and a Clear Method for Determining Which Problem to Solve First. In this episode we cover:

Challenges and Considerations in Selling Companies
Building Companies and the Importance of Selling Ahead
Navigating AI-Native Products and Cost Structures
Valuation and Pricing of AI Companies
Data as a Moat in the AI Era
Distinguishing Between Frontier Labs and Startups
Open Source and Data Security in AI Products

Guest Links:

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

Investor Stories 490: Investors from Volition, Acadian Ventures, and Interplay Ventures on Building Competence, Operating Experience, and Investing with Purpose (Cheng, Black, Peter Davis) Aug 27, 2026

Show notes

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Larry Cheng of Volition Capital
Ben Black of Akkadian Ventures and Powerlaw Corp
Mark Peter Davis of Interplay

We asked guests for the most important piece of advice that they'd share with folks early in their venture career.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

Investor Stories 489: Missing Airbnb, Zocdoc, and Prediction Markets — Lessons from the Deals Investors Passed On (Demaree, Peter Davis, Solomon) Aug 20, 2026

Show notes

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Grant Demaree of Onebrief
Mark Peter Davis of Interplay
Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital

Each investor highlights a situation where they decided not to invest, why they passed, and how it played out.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

515. 3 Multi-Billion-Dollar Exits in 1 Year, Lessons from Airbnb, HashiCorp, Slack, and Square, The VC Case for Staying Small, and the Battle Between Open-Weight vs. Closed Models (Glenn Solomon) Aug 17, 2026

Show notes

Glenn Solomon of Notable Capital joins Nick to discuss 3 Multi-Billion-Dollar Exits in 1 Year, Lessons from Airbnb, HashiCorp, Slack, and Square, The VC Case for Staying Small, and the Battle Between Open-Weight vs. Closed Models. In this episode we cover:

Identifying Unique Investment Opportunities
The Impact of Fund Size on Investment Strategy
Challenges of Overfunding and Market Dynamics
Growth and Real Success in the AI Era
The Role of Hyperscalers and Frontier Labs
Public Market Sentiment and IPO Considerations
Future of Venture Capital and Notable's Strategy
Investing in Anthropic and Market Dynamics

Guest Links:

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

Investor Stories 488: Losing Conviction, Overpaying for Discounts, and Selling Too Early — Lessons from Volition, Acadian, and Interplay (Cheng, Black, Peter Davis) Aug 13, 2026

Show notes

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured:

Larry Cheng of Volition Capital
Ben Black of Akkadian Ventures and Powerlaw Corp
Mark Peter Davis of Interplay

We asked guests to tell the most important lesson they've learned in their career.

The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.

We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.

Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

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