Discover/Weekly

This Week in VC Podcasts

Nov 17 – Nov 23, 2025

19 top clips from 5 episodes across 4 shows

Trending this week

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Clip of the week

The Pitch· Matt Truebetactical advice

How smart devices let nurse practitioners replace expensive allergy specialists

34:09 / 34:27

In order to get buy in from the payers, in order to do value based care deal, we're using devices as our sort of moat, but also a way to offer effective specialist care. So now you can trust maybe a nurse practitioner with remote supervision for patients that have a smart inhaler.

34:09 - 34:2718sRead the episode →

Top clips

The Pitch · Matt Truebe

contrarian take

Why most health testing panels are worthless according to this founder

Above Health's founder explains their differentiated approach to health testing, criticizing competitors who offer broad panels with irrelevant tests. Instead, they focus on precision health using targeted labs, questionnaires, and device data to actually improve patient outcomes.

7:18 - 7:3315s
precision-healthcompetitive-positioninghealthcare-testing

The Consumer VC · Akash Raju

Business Mechanics

There's anywhere from a 100 to 200 different types of fees that a brand can get hit with. For every single retailer or distributor that they work with, there's a fee to actually run a discount.

This reveals the shocking complexity of retail fees that most people don't know exists. The specific numbers (100-200 fees) make it concrete and quotable, while the counterintuitive insight that there's 'a fee to run a discount' challenges common assumptions.

2:14 - 2:5036s

The Pitch · Matt Truebe

founder story

Why no one wanted his food scale but health plans love his inhaler data

A founder shares how he pivoted from a food scale idea that had no market demand to an inhaler tracking device that users actually want. The key insight: even if consumers won't pay subscriptions, health insurance companies see clear value in the cost reduction potential.

16:59 - 17:1416s
product-market-fitbusiness-model-pivothealthcare-monetization

The Consumer VC · Akash Raju

Origin Story

Talked over 500 brands, and deductions were just one of those things that kept coming up. Every brand wants to focus on the most important thing, which is growth. But having to spend a lot of time to actually deal with deductions.

The founder's journey with specific validation (500 brands) creates credibility. The tension between wanting to focus on growth vs. dealing with deductions resonates with entrepreneurs.

4:24 - 4:4926s

The Pitch · Matt Truebe

founder story

Parent describes terrifying moment when child's allergy shot made symptoms worse

A parent recounts a frightening medical emergency when their child's allergy treatment backfired, causing oxygen levels to drop to critical levels. The clip captures the panic and uncertainty of not knowing whether to administer additional shots when the first treatment fails.

4:09 - 4:3223s
allergy-treatmentmedical-emergencypatient-safety

The Pitch · Matt Truebe

Origin Story

That's not bad for for a day's work. Right? Are you a surfer? No. But I come from a family of surfers. I did grow up in Orange County. I'm a nerd. It's because it's too many I build these things that millions of people use one day. That's just my thing.

Charming personal moment that reveals founder personality and ambition. The 'millions of people use one day' aspiration is quotable and shows scale thinking.

24:59 - 25:2424s

The Pitch · Matt Truebe

tactical advice

Why this health startup had to buy a clinic for zero dollars

A founder explains their strategic decision to acquire an existing allergy clinic rather than starting from scratch. They reveal it cost just equity to acquire from a retiring allergist and was required to secure a crucial partnership with LA County.

34:59 - 35:2525s
acquisition-strategyhealthcare-partnershipsmarket-entry

The Pitch

tactical advice

Starting a venture fund commits you to 10-12 years whether you like it or not

A venture investor advises aspiring fund managers to start with informal co-investing before launching a formal fund. The key insight is that once you raise a fund, you're locked into managing it for a decade or more, so it's better to test your interest through less structured arrangements first.

8:59 - 9:2223s
fund-formationco-investingcareer-advice

The Pitch

framework

This founder got 9 people to work full-time for a year with zero pay

A VC breaks down their investment framework, focusing on three key criteria: mission as a magnetic force that can drive extraordinary team commitment, and high execution velocity. The discussion highlights an extreme example of mission-driven dedication where nine people worked full-time without salary for an entire year.

4:39 - 5:0223s
investment-criteriamission-driven-teamsexecution-velocity

Sand Hill Road · Maria Palma

Bold/Contrarian

While much of the world understandably worries about the effect AI is gonna have on the workforce, here in San Francisco, the workforce is working on AI, which means they're actually taking up a lot of real estate and offices to do it. AI is creating jobs, at least here.

Perfect contrarian positioning with 'while much of the world worries' setup. Challenges the dominant narrative about AI destroying jobs with specific SF data point. Highly quotable and substantive.

2:22 - 2:4220s

The Pitch

personal lesson

When your spouse vetoes your investment decision and you know they're wrong

A VC shares a moment when her husband disagreed with her investment instincts about a platform opportunity, highlighting the tension between personal relationships and professional judgment in venture capital. She believed in the potential while he dismissed it as not viable.

12:27 - 12:4315s
investment-decisionsspouse-dynamicsplatform-investing

Sand Hill Road · Maria Palma

Business Mechanics

A lot of AI startups rely on API calls to models they don't control. Cheap API calls right now the same way there were $4 Uber rides back when Venture was propping up Uber. That can and will change.

Strong business insight about AI startup vulnerabilities. The Uber analogy makes it accessible and memorable. Warns about hidden risks in current AI business models.

17:18 - 17:4124s

The Pitch

personal lesson

VC passes on startup that gets into YC two months later

A VC shares the painful story of passing on a promising startup due to a poor team meeting caused by technical difficulties with remote team members in Africa. The startup was later accepted into Y Combinator, and the VC now regrets the decision as they watch the company's continued progress through investor updates.

14:11 - 14:3323s
due-diligenceremote-teamsinvestment-mistakes

Riding Unicorns · Lee Veitch

contrarian take

SuperAwesome rejected their board's push into programmatic advertising for kids' safety

SuperAwesome co-founder Lee Veitch explains why they chose not to enter programmatic advertising despite board pressure. He reveals how prioritizing child safety and maintaining strong brand relationships over potential revenue growth guided their product strategy.

8:54 - 9:3642s
product-strategychild-safetyboard-relations

Riding Unicorns · Lee Veitch

founder story

SuperAwesome founder reveals why Epic Games was the perfect acquirer after 13 years

Lee Veitch reflects on SuperAwesome's acquisition by Epic Games after 13 years of building the company. He explains why Epic was an ideal buyer, praising their principled approach to business and willingness to stand up to big corporations.

26:06 - 26:4438s
acquisition-strategycompany-cultureexit-strategy

Riding Unicorns · Lee Veitch

tactical advice

Why SuperAwesome said no to building Chrome for kids

SuperAwesome co-founder Lee Veitch explains why they considered creating a kid-safe browser but ultimately decided against it. He reveals the company's strategic self-awareness about their strengths in B2B versus B2C, showing how knowing what not to build is as important as knowing what to build.

9:29 - 10:0435s
product-strategyb2b-vs-b2ckid-tech

Riding Unicorns · Lee Veitch

tactical advice

How kid tech companies navigate COPPA and GDPR regulations

SuperAwesome co-founder Lee Veitch explains how the company leverages existing children's privacy regulations like COPPA and GDPR Article 8 to drive broader industry change. He discusses how established regulatory frameworks in the kids' digital space provide a foundation for compliance and advocacy efforts.

15:47 - 16:2134s
kids-privacyregulatory-compliancecoppa-gdpr

Riding Unicorns · Lee Veitch

tactical advice

How SuperAwesome connects brands with young audiences through data-driven safety

SuperAwesome's co-founder explains their two-step approach to helping brands safely reach young audiences. He describes how they first use data and insights to identify where kids are and where it's safe for brands to connect, then move into creating activations and content that kids actually engage with.

7:47 - 8:3043s
kidtech-platformsbrand-partnershipsaudience-targeting
The Pitch(10)Riding Unicorns(5)The Consumer VC(2)Sand Hill Road(2)
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