Omar Hamoui, Partner at Sequoia Capital, on the early days of AdMob, a call from Steve Jobs and the secret sauce to Sequoia’s success
Omar Hamoui, now a Partner at Sequoia Capital, shares the unlikely origin story of AdMob and reveals what makes one of Silicon Valley's most successful venture firms actually work. His perspective on venture capital as a 'low ego job' challenges the industry's typical bravado, while his account of receiving an unexpected call from Steve Jobs illustrates how quickly the mobile advertising landscape shifted in the early smartphone era.
Key takeaways
- •Venture capital requires extreme humility because even the best investors get most deals wrong.
- •Steve Jobs personally reached out to early mobile companies as Apple recognized the strategic importance of the app ecosystem.
- •Success in venture capital comes from removing ego and focusing entirely on pattern recognition and founder support.
- •The early days of mobile advertising were defined by unexpected pivotal moments that shaped entire industries.
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Best moment
You have a phone call? And I was like, okay. Who is it from? And she said, Steve Jobs. And I was like, I don't, I don't think so. Are you serious? She's like, yeah, no, it's Steve Jobs.
“Oh, my because I I completely never saw his email.”
I was just in an office normal day having a normal meeting, I think, and then our office manager came by and she's like, you have a phone call? And I was like, okay. Who is it from? And she said, Steve Jobs. And I was like, I don't, I don't think so. Are you serious? She's like, yeah, no, it's Steve Jobs. You're like, are you sure? Are you sure it isn't in the hall like pranking me right now? Exactly. Well, actually the story behind that in the hall is that our email system, he actually emailed me two weeks earlier earlier, and our email system put it in in spam because you don't get emails from Steve Jobs. So I just ignored him on email, so then he just called the office. Oh, my because I I completely never saw his email.
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