The Twenty Minute VC (20VC)
20VC: Max Altman on The New Seed War: Can Anyone Compete with Sequoia and A16z | Leaving $2BN on the Table with Reddit | Lessons From Backing Rippling at $25M Post | Why Climate Tech Is a Mirage and Disaster
AI Summary
Max Altman discusses the intensifying "seed war" where only giants like Sequoia and a16z can dominate early rounds, highlighting how many founders leave billions on the table by undervaluing deals such as Reddit's. He shares behind‑the‑scenes stories from backing Rippling at a $25M post‑money valuation and the chaotic, genius‑driven leadership of Parker Conrad. Altman also critiques the venture ecosystem as populated by low‑IQ "tourists" and warns that climate tech hype is largely a mirage, urging investors to focus on real, scalable impact.
Episode Description
Max Altman is Co‑Founder & Managing Partner at Saga Ventures, a US$125 M early‑stage fund. Before Saga Max was an investor with Apollo Projects, Hydrazine Capital and Altman Capital (where he helped deploy over US$500 M) into breakout names such as Rippling and Reddit.
AGENDA:
03:55 – Venture Capital Is FULL of Tourists With Single-Digit IQs
06:20 – Inside the Madness of Parker Conrad: Genius, Chaos, and WTF Emails
10:35 – The Rippling Deal That Changed Everything
12:40 – Living in Sam Altman's Shadow: The Confession
17:30 – $200M Fund Mistakes: Max's Brutal Lessons From Hydrazine
22:05 – The $2B Reddit Return… and the $2B Left on the Table
25:00 – Why Climate Tech Is a Total VC Mirage
28:40 – The New Seed War: Can Anyone Survive Sequoia & Andreessen?
46:55 – Max's Boldest Predictions
Show Notes
Info
The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch
The Twenty Minute VC (20VC) interviews the world's greatest venture capitalists with prior guests including Sequoia's Doug Leone and Benchmark's Bill Gurley. Once per week, 20VC Host, Harry Stebbings is also joined by one of the great founders of our time with prior founder episodes from Spotify's Daniel Ek, Linkedin's Reid Hoffman, and Snowflake's Frank Slootman.
If you would like to see more of The Twenty Minute VC (20VC), head to www.20vc.com for more information on the podcast, show notes, resources and more.
The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch
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20VC: Max Altman on The New Seed War: Can Anyone Compete with Sequoia and a16z | Leaving $2BN on the Table with Reddit | Lessons from Backing Rippling at $25M Post | Why Climate Tech is a Mirage and Disaster 0
Nov 21, 2025
Max Altman is Co‑Founder & Managing Partner at Saga Ventures, a US$125 M early‑stage fund. Before Saga Max was an investor with Apollo Projects, Hydrazine Capital and Altman Capital (where he helped deploy over US$500 M) into breakout names such as Rippling and Reddit.
AGENDA:
03:55 – Venture Capital Is FULL of Tourists With Single-Digit IQs
06:20 – Inside the Madness of Parker Conrad: Genius, Chaos, and WTF Emails
10:35 – The Rippling Deal That Changed Everything
12:40 – Living in Sam Altman’
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