We’re joined by Upfront Ventures partner Kevin Zhang to discuss the evolution of both Upfront as a venture firm and the LA tech ecosystem more broadly. We cover the journey from Upfront’s founding as “Global Retail Partners” in 1996 to its place today as the premier and largest tech investor in Southern California. We talk about rebranding the firm and choosing Upfront as a name, launching the Upfront Summit, what LA is "good and not good at", and Kevin’s thesis around gaming as a great place for venture investing.
Sponsors:
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The 2022 State of Crypto + Web3 with Solana's Austin Federa
Dissecting ProfitWell's Acquisition (with Patrick Campbell)
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Travel for the Creator Economy
Reverse Interview: Ben and David at Vanta
Composer (with CEO Benjamin Rollert)
TradFi vs. Crypto, Explaining BNPL, and What's Next in Fintech (with Bain Capital Ventures' Christina Melas-Kyriazi)
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10-K Diver: Building a Top Fintwit Account and Teaching Finance Principles to Everyone (Pseudonymously!)
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2021 Recap: Acquired x Not Boring x The Generalist
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Blue Origin and the 2021 Space Landscape (with Rob Meyerson)
Ben and David on "This Week in Startups" Holiday Special
Joseph Gordon-Levitt: A Fireside Chat
Update on Dad Life, MacBook Pros, and Acquired Video
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