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Invest Like the Best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy

Conversations with the best investors and business leaders in the world. We explore their ideas, methods, and stories to help you better invest your time and money. Hear stock market and boardroom insights you can't find anywhere else. If you're a professional investor, CEO, entrepreneur, or business strategist, this is for you. Explore all our episodes and learn more at https://www.joincolossus.com
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Now displaying: June, 2022
Jun 28, 2022

My guest today is Ken Stanley. Ken is a Professor in Computer Science and a pioneer in the field of neuroevolution. He is also the co-author of a book called, Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned, which details a provocative idea that setting big, audacious goals can reduce the odds of achieving something great. We discuss that revelation in detail and how to apply it in our day-to-day lives. Please enjoy this great discussion with Ken Stanley.

 

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

 

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This episode is brought to you by Tegus. Tegus streamlines the investment research process so you can get up to speed and find answers to critical questions on companies faster and more efficiently. The Tegus platform surfaces the hard-to-get qualitative insights, gives instant access to critical public financial data through BamSEC, and helps you set up customized expert calls. It’s all done on a single, modern SaaS platform that offers 360-degree insight into any public or private company. As a listener, you can take Tegus for a free test drive by visiting tegus.co/patrick. And until 2023 every Tegus license comes with complimentary access to BamSec by Tegus.

 

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Today's episode is brought to you by Brex, the integrated financial platform trusted by the world's most innovative entrepreneurs and fastest-growing companies. With Brex, you can move money fast for instant impact with high-limit corporate cards, payments, venture debt, and spend management software all in one place. Ready to accelerate your business? Learn more at brex.com/best.

 

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Invest Like the Best is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Invest Like the Best, visit joincolossus.com/episodes

 

Past guests include Tobi Lutke, Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger, John Collison, Kat Cole, Marc Andreessen, Matthew Ball, Bill Gurley, Anu Hariharan, Ben Thompson, and many more.

 

Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.

 

Follow us on Twitter: @patrick_oshag | @JoinColossus

 

Show Notes

[00:02:36] - [First question] - The best way to change the world is to stop trying to change it

[00:06:26] - The kinds of goals his work addresses and the ones it doesn’t

[00:08:46] - Almost no prerequisite to any major invention was invented with that major invention in mind

[00:14:04] - Picbreeder

[00:17:21] - How looking for specific results often makes arriving at them a longer process

[00:24:00] - The importance of the individual in a web of invention and disruption

[00:28:30] - How generations progressed in Picbreeder when consensus mechanisms were inserted into the process 

[00:31:24] - Examples of stepping stones that were invented that became something even greater

[00:36:02] - What his research means for how we should conduct ourselves writ large

[00:44:17] - Thoughts on necessity being the mother of all invention

[00:50:08] - The ways that society is arranged is psychologically toxic

[00:55:14] - The role that constraints play in creative output and outcomes in general; Brett Victor - Inventing on Principle

[01:01:10] - What the constraints are that he sets for himself in AI development

[01:04:44] - To know what’s new you need to know what’s not new

[01:06:47] - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for him

[01:08:28] - How he would allocate resources to create more innovation in the world

Jun 21, 2022

My guest today is Lydia Jett, Managing Partner of SoftBank Investment Advisers. Lydia leads the team’s consumer, internet, and e-commerce investments and has worked with many of the most significant consumer platforms in the world, including as a board member of Coupang and Flipkart. We cover all aspects of e-commerce and explore Lydia’s evolution as an investor alongside Masa Son at SoftBank. Please enjoy my conversation with Lydia Jett. 

 

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

 

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This episode is brought to you by Tegus. Tegus streamlines the investment research process so you can get up to speed and find answers to critical questions on companies faster and more efficiently. The Tegus platform surfaces the hard-to-get qualitative insights, gives instant access to critical public financial data through BamSEC, and helps you set up customized expert calls. It’s all done on a single, modern SaaS platform that offers 360-degree insight into any public or private company. As a listener, you can take Tegus for a free test drive by visiting tegus.co/patrick. And until 2023 every Tegus license comes with complimentary access to BamSec by Tegus.

 

-----

 

Today's episode is brought to you by Brex, the integrated financial platform trusted by the world's most innovative entrepreneurs and fastest-growing companies. With Brex, you can move money fast for instant impact with high-limit corporate cards, payments, venture debt, and spend management software all in one place. Ready to accelerate your business? Learn more at brex.com/best.

 

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Invest Like the Best is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Invest Like the Best, visit joincolossus.com/episodes

 

Past guests include Tobi Lutke, Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger, John Collison, Kat Cole, Marc Andreessen, Matthew Ball, Bill Gurley, Anu Hariharan, Ben Thompson, and many more.

 

Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.

 

Follow us on Twitter: @patrick_oshag | @JoinColossus

 

Show Notes

[00:02:34] - [First question] - What curiosity thread she’s been pulling on thus far in her career

[00:05:17] - The biggest felt differences doing things one way for a decade and changing now

[00:07:08] - Learning about tailwinds and what the predominant ones are that exist today

[00:08:38] - How much room to go there is left in the world transitioning to e-commerce

[00:10:44] - Competitive frontiers that exist today in e-commerce

[00:12:14] - What drives companies that grow faster than their competitors

[00:13:15] - What areas the world’s most innovative e-commerce companies are focused on

[00:16:38] - Unique characteristics that they select for in ecommerce CEOs and founders

[00:17:44] - Which country she would send an American investor to in order to learn more

[00:19:03] - Upside down approaches to e-commerce that aren’t common in America yet

[00:20:15] - Subcategories and sub sectors she’s most drawn towards lately

[00:23:05] - Lessons learned about business models that don’t work in e-commerce

[00:27:47] - What western investors should know about Coupang 

[00:30:12] - Everything she’s learned about vertical integration

[00:33:01] - Everything she’s learned and cares about in regards to margins

[00:34:24] - Evaluating a younger company’s ability to drive margins in the future

[00:37:17] - The most extreme version of efficiency gain she’s seen deployed

[00:39:06] - Whether or not the public perception of SoftBank’s simplified approach is accurate

[00:41:27] - The role the size of assets plays at SoftBank

[00:47:42] - Focusing on efficiency and smart allocation first before trying to scale 

[00:50:33] - Companies as products that investors buy and defining what great looks like

[00:53:16] - The danger of premature optimization around a set of KPIs 

[00:55:46] - How important the specific founder is for their given e-commerce company

[00:58:18] - Why e-commerce companies tend to start from a worse place than offline ones

[00:59:45] - Ways that she’s changed from working alongside Masayoshi Son for a year

[01:03:31] - Who comes most to mind as a great investor    

[01:05:23] - The kindest thing that anyone has ever done for her

Jun 14, 2022

My guests today are Josh Wolfe and Chris Power. Josh will be a familiar voice to many of you and is the co-founder and General Partner of Lux Capital. Chris is the founder and CEO of advanced manufacturing start-up, Hadrian. Most of our discussion centers on the need to modernize the factories that supply our space and defense industries. But given the current market environment, we also talk about capital conditions and the responsibility to build products that really matter. Please enjoy this conversation with Josh Wolfe and Chris Power.

 

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

 

-----

 

This episode is brought to you by Tegus. Tegus streamlines the investment research process so you can get up to speed and find answers to critical questions on companies faster and more efficiently. The Tegus platform surfaces the hard-to-get qualitative insights, gives instant access to critical public financial data through BamSEC, and helps you set up customized expert calls. It’s all done on a single, modern SaaS platform that offers 360-degree insight into any public or private company. As a listener, you can take Tegus for a free test drive by visiting tegus.co/patrick. And until 2023 every Tegus license comes with complimentary access to BamSec by Tegus.

 

-----

 

Today's episode is brought to you by Brex, the integrated financial platform trusted by the world's most innovative entrepreneurs and fastest-growing companies. With Brex, you can move money fast for instant impact with high-limit corporate cards, payments, venture debt, and spend management software all in one place. Ready to accelerate your business? Learn more at brex.com/best.

 

-----

 

Invest Like the Best is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Invest Like the Best, visit joincolossus.com/episodes

 

Past guests include Tobi Lutke, Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger, John Collison, Kat Cole, Marc Andreessen, Matthew Ball, Bill Gurley, Anu Hariharan, Ben Thompson, and many more.

 

Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.

 

Follow us on Twitter: @patrick_oshag | @JoinColossus

 

Show Notes

[00:02:40] - [First question] - An overview of the precision manufacturing industry writ large

[00:08:28] - Why the manufacturing sector has so many great investment opportunities

[00:12:58] - Anduril Breakdown; What Hadrian in its final form will unlock for manufacturing

[00:16:08] - What the demand side looks like for manufacturers in its current state today 

[00:18:29] - How the nature of demand will shift for this style of manufacturing in the future

[00:22:51] - Important rare earth materials, supply chain constraints, and the revival of commodities 

[00:27:55] - The key set of jobs being done by mom and pop shops that could be innovated on and done within a Hadrian factory 

[00:30:35] - What is going on inside of a Hadrian factory and how they will evolve over time 

[00:32:10] - Prosecuting diligence on someone's ability to execute on their behalf

[00:37:14] - The PhD arrogance trap and how a Hadrian machine will be better in five years from now

[00:39:44] - Units of innovation and optimization driven by software 

[00:41:43] - Walkthrough of the bubble and anti-bubble concept and funding companies in today’s markets  

[00:48:08] - Breadth of ability versus focus and selling parts to buyers early on

[00:50:42] - Lessons learned and advice for understanding the focus problem 

[00:52:32] - Whether or not the climbing costs of experimentation is a bad thing

[00:56:39] - Fat startup vs. lean startups and making the hardest irreversible decision during Hadrian’s early days

[00:58:31] - Enduring more schlep work than less being a good signal

[00:59:06] - Chris’ thoughts on the future of Hadrian and defining the exciting and scary edges of the spectrum of outcomes

[01:03:36] - Josh’s thoughts on the future of Hadrian and defining the exciting and scary edges of the spectrum of outcomes

[01:07:22] - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for Chris

Jun 7, 2022

My guest today is Martin Casado. Martin is a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz where he focuses on digital infrastructure. Before joining a16z, Martin pioneered software-defined networking and co-founded Nicira, which was bought by VMware for $1.3 billion in 2012. Martin has studied, built, and invested in digital infrastructure his whole career and is the perfect person to discuss the most interesting aspects of the industry. Please enjoy this great conversation with Martin Casado.

 

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

 

-----

 

This episode is brought to you by Tegus. Tegus streamlines the investment research process so you can get up to speed and find answers to critical questions on companies faster and more efficiently. The Tegus platform surfaces the hard-to-get qualitative insights, gives instant access to critical public financial data through BamSEC, and helps you set up customized expert calls. It’s all done on a single, modern SaaS platform that offers 360-degree insight into any public or private company. As a listener, you can take Tegus for a free test drive by visiting tegus.co/patrick. And until 2023 every Tegus license comes with complimentary access to BamSec by Tegus.

 

-----

 

Today's episode is brought to you by Brex, the integrated financial platform trusted by the world's most innovative entrepreneurs and fastest-growing companies. With Brex, you can move money fast for instant impact with high-limit corporate cards, payments, venture debt, and spend management software all in one place. Ready to accelerate your business? Learn more at brex.com/best.

 

-----

 

Invest Like the Best is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Invest Like the Best, visit joincolossus.com/episodes

 

Past guests include Tobi Lutke, Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger, John Collison, Kat Cole, Marc Andreessen, Matthew Ball, Bill Gurley, Anu Hariharan, Ben Thompson, and many more.

 

Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.

 

Follow us on Twitter: @patrick_oshag | @JoinColossus

 

Show Notes

[00:02:43] - [First question] - The state of the digital infrastructure industry today 

[00:04:02] - The major stages and eras of cloud technology 

[00:06:30] - Overview of Dropbox’s story and the two major trends at the time of its emergence

[00:10:12] - Lost margin and lost market cap from big users of the public cloud 

[00:12:14] - Whether or not there is a headwind coming for public cloud providers

[00:14:07] - The base level primitives of the digital world and innovation within those areas

[00:17:33] - How entrepreneurs might go after the biggest public cloud providers

[00:19:37] - His view on API first companies and granular monetizable units in growing markets

[00:23:20] - Developer facing tools and what works well when going to market 

[00:25:34] - Lessons learned about successfully building relationships between a company and developers as a buying class 

[00:27:12] - The difference between a front-end and back-end developer and what is changing in their responsibilities 

[00:28:45] - What he looks for as an investor when he’s processing a new API first company

[00:30:31] - Common redflags and disqualifying observations for an API first company 

[00:31:59] - Pricing usage and building a revenue model around one of these businesses

[00:33:49] - Reasons why this proliferation is happening and important parts of the data stack

[00:36:35] - Frank Slootman Episode; Snowflake’s offering for their users, their explosive growth, and primitives in their sector

[00:39:06] - The history of digital security and potential opportunities as an investor

[00:40:19] - How digital infrastructure intersects with the real world and hardware world

[00:42:14] - What he’s most excited about that digital infrastructure might unlock in the future

[00:43:33] - How to screen out people for their potential to deliver transformative technology

[00:45:38] - What he’d like to know about the future that he isn’t sure of yet 

[00:47:45] - Things he’s most intrigued about by cryptocurrencies as an infrastructure person

[00:51:36] - Where he’s most bullish and bearish relative to his peers in digital infrastructure

[00:52:49] - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for him

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