Why bet on Vlad and team

Sequoia Capital Partner Shaun Maguire returns to Sourcery for a conversation with Molly O’Shea on math superintelligence, physics, and the limits of human understanding.

Specifically, Shaun explains his and Andrew Reed’s investment in Harmonic, the new AI company founded by Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, and why math + reinforcement learning may unlock the next major breakthrough in artificial intelligence. Breaking down Harmonic’s differentiated strategy using Lean, formalized proofs, and reinforcement learning to train AI systems that reason rigorously about math, outperforming far larger labs with a fraction of the spend.

We also get into Shaun’s physics worldview from loopholes in the laws of nature, to time travel, vacuum energy, UAPs, Bayesian probability, information warfare and why he believes we understand far less about reality than we think.

The conversation expands into UAPs (UFOs), Palmer Luckey, probability, scientific humility, and how frontier intelligence, human or artificial, might reshape what’s possible in math, physics, and reality itself.

In an exclusive cut for X, Shaun discusses free speech, narrative power, and why platforms like X matter in an era of global information conflict (Sequoia invested $800M in the take-private) – making the case that much of today’s political and media chaos is the downstream effect of Cold War–era KGB psychological warfare tactics that never actually stopped — they just changed hands.

Shaun Maguire: https://x.com/shaunmmaguire 

Molly O’Shea: https://x.com/MollySOShea 

Sourcery: ⁠https://x.com/sourceryy 

𝐄𝐏𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐃𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒

https://youtu.be/7-kTsCkKfUw

𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐎𝐑𝐒

• Brex—The modern finance platform, combining the world’s smartest corporate card with integrated expense management, banking, bill pay, & travel. https://brex.com/sourcery

• Turing—Turing delivers top-tier talent, data, and tools to help AI labs improve model performance—and enables enterprises to turn those models into powerful, production-ready systems. https://turing.com/sourcery

• Deel—Deel is the global people platform that helps startups hire, manage, pay, and equip anyone, anywhere. Trusted by more than 35,000 fast-growing companies, Deel is the people platform that just works, so teams can scale without the chaos. Visit: https://www.deel.com/sourcery

• Public–Investing platform Public just launched Generated Assets, which lets you turn any idea into an investable index with AI. With Generated Assets, you can build, backtest, refine, and invest in any thesis with AI. Gone are the days of one-size-fits-all ETFs. https://public.com/sourcery

Follow Sourcery for the latest updates!

https://www.sourcery.vc/

Disclosure
Paid Endorsement. Brokerage services by Open to the Public Investing Inc, member FINRA & SIPC. Advisory services by Public Advisors LLC, SEC-registered adviser. Crypto trading provided by Zero Hash LLC, licensed by the NYSDFS. Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool by Public Advisors. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. See disclosures at public.com/disclosures/ga. Matched funds must remain in your account for at least 5 years. Match rate and other terms are subject to change at any time.