VC10X
Early-stage VCs share stories, frameworks, and tips for founders navigating the startup journey.
VC10X - How Defy Owns 17% of Their Best Companies Without Following On Every Round
In this episode, Neil Sequeira, co‑founder and GP of Defy, explains how the firm deliberately stays small and uses a three‑bucket investment framework—prioritizing the founder over market and hard work—to secure an average 17% stake in its seven top‑valued portfolio companies. He shares the bold April 1 2020 capital call that deployed 20% of Fund 2 when venture funding fell 80%, and reveals the single early signal that predicts failed investments, emphasizing founder integrity. The conversation also covers Defy’s contrarian approach of doubling down on winners, the impact of AI on check sizes, and how contentious partner debates often surface the best deals.
FamilyOffice10x - He Invested in Sequoia, Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed, Anthropic, xAI, Stripe.. - Vishal Verma, Managing Partner, Edgewood Ventures
Vishal Verma, Managing Partner of Edgewood Ventures, discusses the evolution of his family’s single‑family office from its humble immigrant roots to a 30‑year venture investing powerhouse. He explains why the office allocates roughly 30% of its capital to private markets,...
VC10X - The Legal Landmines Hiding Inside Your Fund Docs - Yoni Tuchman, Partner, DLA Piper
In this episode, DLA Piper partner Yoni Tuchman walks listeners through the legal pitfalls that can cost venture capital general partners millions, focusing on mis‑drafted management fee clauses, distribution waterfall nuances, and key‑person provisions. He explains how fees are calculated—often...
FamilyOffice10x - How This Single Family Office (SFO) Invests in the Top GPs? - Slava Darkhaev, VP, Matrix Capital
In this episode, Slava Darkhaev, VP at Matrix Capital, explains how his family office evaluates and backs top venture capital general partners (GPs) and emerging managers. He emphasizes the importance of storytelling, genuine competitive advantage, and deep network immersion to...
Family Office Roundtable 2026 - $124 Trillion Wealth Transfer, AI, & Private Markets
In this Family Office Roundtable, Ron and Wendy discuss the massive $124 trillion wealth transfer from baby boomers to the next generation and how family offices are adapting. They focus on AI’s disruptive role, highlighting platforms like Opto that can filter...
VC10X - The Consumer AI Opportunity Nobody Is Chasing Ft. Ankur Sethi, Founder, Winner Capital
In this episode, Ankur Sethi, founder of Winner Capital, explains why he believes consumer AI is the present, not the future, and why it remains vastly underfunded compared to enterprise SaaS. He highlights the democratization of large language models that...
VC10X Micro - Why Safety Is No Long a Priority for AI Giants
The episode examines how AI giants like Anthropic and OpenAI are deprioritizing safety as they chase trillion‑dollar valuations, highlighted by Anthropic’s safety lead quitting and a $20 billion funding round at a $350 billion valuation. It explores the tension between capital‑market incentives...
LP10X - Advising $90 Billion in Institutional Capital - Nolan Bean, CIO, FEG Investment Advisors
In this 39‑minute conversation, Nolan Bean, CIO of FEG Investment Advisors, shares how institutional investors allocate over $90 billion across public and private markets, focusing on risk appetite, liquidity, and long‑term returns. He explains the four core risks institutions manage, why...
VC10X - From Zero to Fund One: Lessons From 1st Time Fund Manager
In this 39‑minute episode, Kevin Moore recounts his 15‑year journey from civil engineer to first‑time VC fund manager, highlighting why there’s never a perfect moment to launch a fund and how sales skills dominate a GP’s role. He demystifies LP...
VC10X - Engineering Liquidity in Deeptech - Brad Harrison, Founder, Scout Ventures
In this 45‑minute episode, West Point graduate and former Airborne Ranger Brad Harrison explains how Scout Ventures applies military‑grade SOPs and a 40‑revision investment process to back frontier deep‑tech startups at the nexus of national security and innovation. He details...
VC10X - Gamification of Consumer Apps - Phylicia Koh, GP, Play Ventures
Phylicia Koh, GP at Play Ventures, explains how gaming mechanics are becoming the operating system for consumer apps, with in‑app purchases in non‑gaming sectors now outpacing traditional gaming spend. She outlines Play Ventures' $142 M thesis focused on "playable apps" that...
VC10X - Inside a $1.5 Billion Japanese Fund’s Big Bet on India - Rajeev Ranka, Partner, Incubate Fund
In this episode, Rajeev Ranka of Japan's Incubate Fund explains their 100‑year investment horizon and how it shapes decisions like backing Captain Fresh during COVID and pivoting it from a domestic brand to a global seafood exporter. He argues that...
VC10X Micro - BigTech Energy War - The Next Battleground for AI Race
The episode explains how the AI boom has shifted the competitive focus from chips to electricity, prompting Big Tech firms to acquire or contract power assets—Google’s $4.75 billion purchase of Intersect Power, Microsoft’s Three Mile Island restart, and Amazon’s nuclear deals. It highlights...
VC10X - Stop Competing with Sequoia: Finding Alpha in Secondaries & Emerging Markets
In this episode, Maxim and Pavel of FinSight Ventures explain their "secondary‑first" approach, using secondary market purchases from employees and liquidity‑seeking funds to secure stakes in high‑growth companies like Anthropic, SpaceX, Stripe and Palantir, and they unveil a $50 million Generative...
VC10X Micro - Why Bond Yields Are Rising Again (And What It Means for Investors)
The episode explains why long‑term government bond yields are rising again in late 2025 despite central‑bank rate cuts, focusing on the 10‑year Treasury as a key benchmark. Higher yields increase the discount rate, pressuring valuations of long‑duration assets such as...