with Matt Abrahams & smc90 Whether participating in a meeting, doing a panel, conducting a live event, presenting a talk, or even hosting a podcast, these are expert best practices for moderating and managing discussions across modes and mediums. (Including how to manage unruly discussions, anxiety, presence in virtual environments, and more.)

with @vpostrel @smc90 The story of textiles IS the story, history, and evolution of technology and science (across all kinds of fields, from biology to chemistry); of commerce (as well as management, measurement, machines); but most of all, of civilization (vs. just culture) itself. That's what Virginia Postrel's new book, The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World is all about. But it is in fact a story of innovation, of human ingenuity... which is also the theme of the a16z Podcast.

Just having data is not enough: it takes an entire system of tools and technology to extract value from data. a hallway style conversation between Ali Ghodsi, CEO and Founder of Databricks, and a16z general partner Martin Casado explore the evolution of data architectures.

with @tzhongg @conniechan Gen Z—those born between 1995 and 2010—now makes up 35 percent of the population and represent $143 billion dollars in spending power. This episode is all about how brands can better understand, collaborate with, and resonate with this hugely influential segment of consumers.  Our guest, Tiffany Zhong, is the 24-year-old CEO of Zebra IQ, a company that helps brands interpret the wants of Gen Z consumers and helps Gen Z creators turn their content into businesses.

with @gustavs @conniechan @smc90 We've talked a lot about podcasting, so where are we going with the future of audio, more broadly? Can we borrow from the present and future of video (e.g., TikTok) to see what's next in audio; can we borrow from the past of audio (i.e., radio) to see what's next for audio experiences (more blending of music, talk, podcasting)? Where do all these mediums converge and where do they diverge, when it comes to user experience, product design, recommendations, discovery, machine learning?

Today’s episode is a conversation about four big trends in the tech world. Any one of these trends would be notable on its own, but we cover all four in this hallway-style chat, as a16z General Partner Chris Dixon talks with Sep Kamvar (professor of Media Arts and Sciences at MIT and now cofounder of cryptocurrency platform Celo); and Elad Gil (investor and the cofounder of health technology company Color Genomics, and formerly at Twitter and Google). This is a wide-ranging survey of some of the major shifts in technology right now, but it’s really a meta-story of how innovation happens, which is most definitely not in a straight line. So here are the trends they cover: *crypto; *AI and machine learning (including GPT-3); *full stack startups (which Chris first wrote about in 2014); *and collaborative web/collaborative enterprise/social (including RTC or real-time communication within the browser), which is where the conversation begins.

with @annieduke @jeff_jordan All kinds of decisions, whether in life or business -- like marriage product management, what to eat or watch -- are a portfolio of investments. And obviously, not all decisions are equal; in fact, sometimes we don't even have to spend any time deciding. So how do we know which decisions to spend time on, which ones not to? What are the strategies, mindsets, tools to help us decide? How can we operationalize good decision hygiene into our teams and organizations? We cover all this and more in this early podcast with Annie Duke for her new book, How to Decide.

with @mira404 @illscience @seema_amble @laurenmurrow Millennials and Gen Z have been hard-hit by the one-two punch of the 2008 and 2020 financial crises. That experience has radically shaped their approach to finances and their mindset around credit and debt. This episode explores how fintech founders are now designing products tailored to the financial challenges of younger consumers, from managing and avoiding student loans to building credit to saving and budgeting apps. Historically, students have largely been overlooked by traditional banks. Due to a combination of economic forces, predatory lending practices, and uninformed decisions, millennials have more outstanding student loans—and owe more money—than any prior generation. According to a poll conducted this month by the data intelligence company Morning Consult, just 46 percent of millennials believe their student debt was worth attending college. Amira Yahyaoui wants to change that. She’s the founder and CEO of Mos, a platform that allows students to apply for every government college financial aid program with a single application. In this episode, Amira joins host Lauren Murrow and a16z fintech partners Anish Acharya and Seema Amble to discuss how fintech can cut through bureaucracy, downsize student debt, and optimize—and ultimately automate—consumers’ financial futures from an early age.

with @carolynbertozzi @lr_bio This is the second episode in our new show, Bio Eats World, a brand new podcast all about how biology is technology. This show now includes Journal Club, where we discuss groundbreaking research articles, why they matter, what new opportunities they present, and how to take the findings from paper to practice. Be sure to subscribe (and rate if you like) this show, and to learn more about the expanding a16z Podcast network, please go to a16z.com/podnetwork

with @kristenfortney @laurademing @vijaypande @omnivorousread This is the very first episode in our new show, Bio Eats World, a brand new podcast all about how biology is technology: Bio is breaking out of the lab and clinic and into our daily lives -- on the verge of revolutionizing our world in ways we are only just beginning to imagine. In this first episode, we talk all about the science of aging. Be sure to subscribe (and rate if you like) this show, and to learn more about the expanding a16z Podcast network, please go to a16z.com/podnetwork

with @eugenewei @smc90 TikTok's For You Page algorithm (which could yet be excluded from the deal given Chinese government recently revised export controls around source code) enabled it to grab massive marketshare in cultures and markets never experienced firsthand by the engineers and designers in China, beating out other dominant players in the United States. But well beyond the specifics and politics of this deal, what does its "algorithm friendly" product design tell us about “creativity network effects”, community, and the future of video?

Today’s episode, part two in our two-part series on the Creator Economy, focuses on the new potential revenue streams and fan-engagement models opened up by emerging decentralized technology. It's a new type of fan club, driven by crypto networks and aiming to give creators more power in the commercial sphere. Zoran Basich of a16z talked to two guests deeply immersed in these topics. Kayvon Tehranian is the founder and CEO of Foundation Labs, a platform for buying and selling limited edition goods. Think of it as a crypto marketplace that creates new revenue streams for creators, and financial incentives for buyers. Before that he was head of product at cryptocurrencies marketplace Dharma Labs, and he has long worked on making crypto more accessible to the mainstream. Jesse Walden is a former a16z partner who recently launched his own fund, Variant, which focuses on what he calls the ownership economy enabled by crypto. He also previously cofounded the startup Mediachain, which was acquired by Spotify, and is a former music promoter and manager whose focus was on helping artists stay independent. Kayvon and Jesse explain how the emerging crypto models differ from previous attempts to create new revenue streams for artists, and about the role of speculation and hype in creator markets. They also debate whether these new markets will largely be driven by financial motives, or whether cultural factors will be equally powerful in determining the growth of creator markets. And they offer advice to creators interested in exploring this new world, including important practical guidance on expectations and timelines.  Stay Updated: Find a16z on X Find a16z on LinkedIn Listen to the a16z Show on Spotify Listen to the a16z Show on Apple Podcasts Follow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg   Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This episode explores the process and economics behind creating an independent newsletter. In this candid conversation, host Lauren Murrow talks with four Substack writers—an artist, a technologist, a journalist, and a clinical researcher-turned-psychedelics scholar—about how to find and foster an audience, the calculus behind going paid versus unpaid, the pressure to produce, and financial benchmarks for making a living from newsletter writing.

Since Netflix started in the late 90s as a DVD-by-mail rental service competing with Blockbuster, it has completely reinvented itself... twice – first, when it went from DVD rental to video streaming platform, and then again when it went from licensing to producing original content. But what does it takes to create an organization capable of reinventing itself? Netflix CEO and co-founder Reed Hastings explains...

with @guyraz @smc90 For better or for worse, we tell the stories of entrepreneurs as one of the mythical hero's journey: that's there's a call, a test, a destination... But are we indulging in hero worship or failure porn? Where does and doesn't optimism come in for building? Storytelling IS business -- whether it's a company or a community or a product or a movement -- and is not just about the stories we tell others but the ones we tell ourselves.

with @pmarca @zoink A wide-ranging Q&A all about education, from the purpose, past, and present of education; the economics of education (student loans & the debt crisis, government funding, cost disease, accreditation capture); tradeoffs of "hard" and "soft" degrees; and whether or not to drop out and go straight to field or startup. What's the best advice for students and others contemplating change in their careers... how do you get noticed?

This episode examines the potential for misuse and fraud among those applying for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)—and how fintech and software provide overlooked tools to stop it.  Host Lauren Murrow is joined by Bharat Ramamurti, the original member of the COVID-19 Congressional Oversight Commission, which is tasked with evaluating the impact of coronavirus relief loans; Naftali Harris, the CEO of SentiLink, a software company that builds technology to detect synthetic fraud; and a16z fintech general partner Alex Rampell.

We know community is important -- whether for developer relations for your platform or just other types of communities -- but how do we measure the success of community initiatives and even artifacts (like events or schwag)? How do we know we're even measuring the right things? And when it comes to developer relations specifically, where should devrel sit in an organization (product, sales, engineering)? Who should you hire first? And how do you reconcile developer as customer vs. developer as community member?

with @pwang @martin_casado AI/ML development is like reining in the natural world, more like physics and even metaphysics, where data and models are fluid. But this not just a philosophical observation; it has real implications for the margins, organizational structures, and building of such businesses. Especially as we’re in a tricky time of transition, where customers don’t even know what they’re asking for, yet are looking for AI/ML help or know it’s the future. So what does this all mean for the software value chain; for open source collaboration and commodification; for a new type of AI/ML company; and for the future of software businesses?

This episode is all about education and technology, a topic that’s especially top of mind this week as students in much of the country return to school—virtually. The intersection of learning and technology has been accelerated by the pandemic, but the debate around education's "disruption," and what that means for educators doing the hands-on work of teaching, has been swirling for years. In this episode, a16z general partner Connie Chan and host Lauren Murrow are joined by educators and experts Josh Kim, the Director of Online Programs and Strategy at Dartmouth College, and David Deming, Professor of Education and Economics at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.