Tank Talks By Ripple Ventures

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Sandeep Bhadra, Partner @ Vertex Ventures.On today's Talk, we ask Sandeep about his operator journey starting out in engineering and product management roles at Texas Instruments. Sandeep explains the lessons he learned around building next-gen technologies and trying to sell his visions internally while navigating around the politics at such a large company.Next we ask Sandeep about his transition to corporate development at Cisco Systems where he made over 5 acquisitions and invested over $400mm into strategic investments during his two years there.Moving on, we dig into Sandeeps transition to venture capital as a Principal at Menlo Ventures and the struggles he faced trying to stay focused while figuring out how to convince Partners at the firm to see things his way. We ask Sandeep why he decided to lead the series B investment into Signifyd and the lessons he learned after passing on the company at the series A.Next, we get into Sandeeps current role at Vertex Ventures and the firms focus on early-stage investments into enterprise SaaS companies. We ask Sandeep what he’s most excited about when it comes to Microservices and his views on cloud infrastructure companies and where he is looking to invest next.Finally, we ask Sandeep what he looks for when investing in cloud and cyber focused startups who have limited traction but massive market opportunities.This Tank Talk really makes you appreciate the vision and excitement investors like Sandeep bring to startups at the early-stage. You will also hear how Sandeep thinks about the future of cloud infrastructure and who he believes will win in the end.Book Recommendations:2666 - Roberto BolañoOn Beauty - Zaide SmithThe Three-Body ProblemLove in the time of CholeraSandeep’s words of inspiration - “Great teams build great companies, so treat your people well and you will be rewarded on the other side” This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Reid Christian, General Partner @ CRV (Charles River Ventures).On today's Talk, we ask Reid about his journey starting out on the investment banking and private equity side at RBC Capital Markets and Symmetric Capital in Boston. Next, we dig into his transition to venture capital with his role at Battery Ventures and the challenges he faced moving from the corporate banking side over to traditional venture capital. We dig into his lead investment into OpsGenie’s $10M Series A raise and his role in the quick acquisition that followed by Atlassian two years later for almost $300M.Up next, we ask Ried about his decision to join CRV as a Partner at the 50-year-old Venture fund and how the firm is investing in SaaS for the next 50 years. We discuss his predictions for SaaS over the next decade and what areas he’s most excited about that he has yet to invest in. Finally, we ask Reid about his firm's thoughts on holding investments post-IPO and the recent push towards Direct Listing and SPACs in the tech space.This Tank Talk really makes you appreciate the long-term vision firms like CRV have towards investing and their ability to stay focused on early-stage ventures while seeing half of their portfolio companies go on to be public or get acquired.Books Mentioned In The Show:-The Four - The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google- Startupland - How Three Guys Risked Everything to Turn an Idea into a Global Business- Good to Great - Why Some Companies Make the Leap...and Others Don'tReid’s words of inspiration - “There’s almost no better time to be an entrepreneur”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Lo Toney, Founding Managing Partner @ Plexo Capital.On today's Talk, we ask Lo about his operator journey starting out in product & marketing leadership roles at firms like Nike, eBay & Zynga and the lessons he learned around empathy and compassion. Next, we ask Lo about his transition to venture capital with his first job at Comcast ventures where he worked on the catalyst fund as part of their minority-oriented venture program.Moving on, we dig into Lo’s time as a Partner at Google Ventures where he focused on marketplaces, media, gaming & enterprise investments and the lessons he learned about portfolio construction. We ask Lo about how he came up with the idea for Plexo Capital while still at GV and how his mission evolved until the time he spun it out. Next we ask Lo for his thoughts on how emerging fund managers can balance long-term success vs short term gains in venture capital.We get Lo to share his thoughts on seed funds who lead rounds vs angel funds who follow-on and how funds can demonstrate their internal processes and value-add skill sets beyond just quantifiable metrics when pitching institutional LPs.Finally, we ask Lo how emerging managers can stand out from the pack when they are still in the early days of building a fund and what firms like Plexo Capital look for beyond mark-ups.This Tank Talk really makes you appreciate the passion and commitment Lo has applied to his life's work at Plexo Capital in helping under-represented entrepreneurs and fund managers navigate the complicated and often unfair world of venture capital.Books Mentioned In The Show:Why should white guys have all the fun?Lo’s words of inspiration - “persistence overcomes resistance”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Susan Su, Head of Portfolio Growth & Marketing @ Sound Ventures.On today's Talk, we ask Susan about her operator journey starting out in leadership roles in product and marketing at companies like Google and AppSumo in San Francisco. We dig into Susan's role as a venture partner and marketer-in-residence at 500 Startups where she launched and operated a 10-week program for startups and ask her about her proudest accomplishments during her time there. Moving on, we dig into Susan's time at Reforge where she built and led the growth marketing team and worked with companies like Facebook, AirBnB, Slack and Uber and the mistakes she made along the way.Next, we ask Susan why she decided to join Ashton Kutcher & Guy Oseary’s Sound Ventures and what excited her most about moving to the venture side. We discuss the common mistakes startups make with growth experimentation and what tools and resources are in her growth tech stack. Finally, we ask Susan what to look for when hiring for growth and the best interview questions for growth hires.This Tank Talk really makes you appreciate the challenges and mistakes startups face when trying to apply growth tactics and the experimentation that goes into building long term customer relationships along with enduring brands that live on forever.Books Mentioned In The Show:Thinking in SystemsAdvertising Secrets of the Written WordOgilvy on AdvertisingSusan’s words of inspiration - “It's crucial to lean into your creativity and have fun at it with growth”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today's Talk, we ask Anil about his journey starting out as a research scientist at global institutions like Draper Labs & Johnson & Johnson in Boston. We dig into Anil's role as head of the “brain on a chip” project funded by DARPA and MIT to study brain diseases. Next we dig into his time as head of external innovation at L’Oreal and the challenges he faced while looking at over 200 startups without making one venture investment.Next, we ask Anil about his journey to TDK Ventures and his role as investment director at the 85 year-old Japanese multinational electronics company. We discuss his focus on investing globally in frontier technology startups in areas ranging from Health & Diagnostics, to next Gen Transportation like flying cars and even Robotics, IoT devices and Material Sciences.We ask Anil how TDK Ventures balances investing in frontier tech that may one day replace TDK Corporate products as competitors vs. supporting TDK’s ability to adapt and grow. Finally, we ask Anil how he overcomes founders' concerns of partnering with a corporate investor whose goals may be misaligned. This Tank Talk really makes you appreciate the challenges corporate venture funds face internally while competing against traditional investors while at the same time taking big bets on investing in frontier technologies that may not pan out for decades while still supporting the short term goals of its parent company.Books Mentioned In The Show:-Great Feuds in Mathematics- Big Bang : The Origin of the Universe by Simon Singh- Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawkings- Science of everything: How things work in our worldAnil’s words of inspiration - “If people are not laughing at your goals, your goals are too small” by Azim Premji, Wipro ChairmanFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Villi Iltchev, Partner @ Two Sigma Ventures.On today's Talk, we ask Villi about his journey into technology investing after starting his career at HP on the corporate development side and then moving over to Salesforce during the last crisis. We ask Villis' about his time as Vice President of Corp Dev at Salesforce Ventures and about some of the amazing startups he invested in like BOX, Hubspot, Zapier and countless others.We dig into Villi’s experience moving from corporate venture into traditional venture roles as a Partner at August Capital where he made his investment into unicorn startup Gitlab as the Series B lead and his reasons behind that investment even after 100 Venture firms already passed on them. Next, we ask Villi to explain why Two Sigma Ventures was the best fit for him for his next journey in venture and how their quantitative approach to investing on the public side has shaped their investment strategy on the venture side. Finally, we ask Villi what he looks for when investing in emerging areas and how he manages timing risk and avoids being too early into an emerging market. This tank talk really helps you think about the ways in which venture investors are forced to think outside the box and into the future sometimes decades ahead in order to place bets on startups at the early stage today and how founders should approach these kinds of investors.Now please welcome today's guest to the Tank, Villi Iltchev.Books Mentioned In The Show:-The Brothers Karamazov- The Death of Ivan IlychVilli’s words of inspiration - “Have a truthful life, do things that are meaningful and do things that matter.” This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Elizabeth Yin, Co-Founder & Managing Partner @ Hustle Fund.On today's Talk, we ask Elizabeth about her journey in leaving Google during the last crisis to start Launchbit, an ad-tech platform that she eventually sold to BuySellAds and how she eventually made her way onto the investment side with 500 Startups. We dig into Elizabeth's time in running the 500 Startups Mountain View office and how she was able to select founders to back after reviewing over 20,000 pitch decks. Next, we discuss the reason she started Hustle fund with her partner Eric and what their mission is for the next 25 years. Finally, we ask Elizabeth to explain what hustle means to her as an early-stage investor and how she assesses hustle when meeting founders for the first and sometimes only time before deciding on backing them with a $25,000 investment.This tank talk really helps you think about what characteristics and qualities to look for when making early-stage investments.Books Mentioned In The Show:-The Lean Startup- The Hard Thing About Hard Things-Predictable RevenueElizabeth’s words of inspiration - “Building a startup is tough, so make sure you dig deep and decide why you want to do it, besides the money, because it can really be your north star when moving through difficult times”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Darrell Heaps, Founder & CEO @ Q4 Inc.On today's Talk, we ask Darrell about his journey as an Elite Mogul Skier on the World Cup stage and his transition to Founding and Leading Q4 Inc. for the last 15 years. We discuss the bumps and bruises Darrell experienced both on the mountain and in the boardroom. We also dig into Darrell's ability to overcome adversity as an Elite Athlete and how his competitive nature in sports has helped him build Q4 into a market leader in the investor relations space while raising over $90M in financing and completing 5 acquisitions. Finally, we discuss Darrell's plans for Q4 in the future and how his team's culture has played a vital role in managing these uncertain times during COVID.This tank talk really makes you appreciate the hustle, determination and no b******t attitude Darrell brings to his company each and every day.Books Mentioned In The Show:-Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice- That Will Never Work - the Story of Netflix-American King Pin - the story of Silk Road- Billion Dollar WhaleDarrell’s words of inspiration - “Don’t believe your own bull-s**t!”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Tony Conrad, Partner @ True VenturesOn today's Talk, we ask Tony about his humble beginnings of growing up in a rural farming community in Indiana and how he made his way around the world living in places like Paris, New Delhi & Jakarta. We dig into Tony’s experiences of Co-Founding two startups that both exited to AOL and what he looks for when backing founders. We also ask Tony why he backed specialty coffee brand Blue Bottle Coffee and how it became a billion exit for the fund. We also ask Tony about his passion for Community based investment like Wordpress, Voiceflow & Zero Fasting and the experience in watching Wordpress grow to power over 30% of all internet websites. Finally, we ask Tony about his incredible 16 year career at True Ventures and the firm's people-first approach to investing.This tank talk really makes you appreciate the empathy, passion and patience Tony brings to his investments and everyday life.Books Mentioned In The Show:-The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz- Bird Lives!-Shackleton's Boat JourneyTony’s words of inspiration - “Everyone should take a step back from their day jobs and make sure you are taking a more holistic experience as a human and figuring where you side on the societal and economic issues facing our world today and take a stand.”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guestMimi Lam & Drummond Munro, Co-Founders of Superette, Canada’s Most Awarded Cannabis Startup.On today's Talk, we ask Mimi & Drum about how they originally entered the Cannabis industry before teaming up to start Superette. We dig into how they came up with the unique concept for Superette’s brand and how they differentiated themselves in the already crowded retail cannabis space. We discuss their ability to recruit passionate and talented employees who are not necessarily interested in the cannabis industry and what that has done for company culture. Finally, we ask them how staying private has helped them navigate the volatile cannabis markets and if they have any plans to go public soon. This tank talk really makes you appreciate the passion and commitment Mimi and Drum have towards building the most loved and respected cannabis company in the world.Books Mentioned In The Show:-Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World- How to Change Your Mind: The New Science of Psychedelics-Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind-Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NikeDrum’s words of inspiration - “Stick to your vision and commit to that...its the only way to truly succeed”Mimi’s words of inspiration - “Have a vision, but focus on execution. It’s easy to have ideas, but how that shows up in the real world and how you build a company and a team around that is what matters.”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com