"Can't Be Done"

Disruptive ideas are the ones that go viral, and the two hottest ideas in VC right now are cryptocurrency and VR. Today we’re taking a step back to articulate the major themes in both ecosystems, discussing Bitcoin’s exponential growth, the current FOMO among investors when it comes to cryptocurrency, and the debate around tokens as securities.

We’re also exploring what the best first use case of virtual reality might be, looking at B2B applications like collaboration and business training as well as fitness applications such as FITXR. Listen in to understand the debate around the correct distribution vehicle for VR and what the industry is doing to address its major problems.

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“I’m obsessive by nature … and when I meet someone that’s 100X of that in their own thing, but they’re also good at what they do, I feel very lucky.” Venture capitalist Semil Shah is looking for entrepreneurs with a combination of talent and drive, who out-class others in what they do and prioritize their obsession with building an enterprise.

Semil is an investor and writer based in Silicon Valley who created a small fund called Haystack. He has been an early investor in 70-plus companies such as Instacart, DoorDash, Hired, and OpenDoor. Semil is also Venture Partner with GGV Capital, and he was named to the 2017 Midas Brink List by Forbes. He fell into venture capital through his work as a writer and consultant to several firms on Sand Hill Road, including General Catalyst, Kleiner Perkins and GGV Capital.

Today we discuss the attributes of Semil’s writing that led VCs to utilize his work as a resource and current themes in the world of venture capital and entrepreneurship. Semil shares his early investing experience, what gets him pumped about financing a project, and how he applies the Saturday 2pm Test to potential investments. Listen in to understand Semil’s take on the role of seed capital versus series A money and his advice for up-and-coming VCs.

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In the US, someone develops Alzheimer’s disease every 66 seconds. Of the estimated 5.5 million Americans suffering from the disease in 2017, approximately 5.3 million are over the age of 65, while 200,000 have developed early-onset Alzheimer’s. In fact, this insidious disease in the sixth leading cause of death in the US. Without intervention, the number of people living with Alzheimer’s is projected to grow to 16 million by the year 2050. But today’s guest is not about to let things progress without intervention.

Jacob Hamman graduated from USC with a degree in architecture, where he honed his aptitude for design thinking and creative problem-solving. After seven years with the prestigious Los Angeles firm, Gehry Partners, Jacob pursued a master’s in design studies and technology with a focus on virtual reality from Harvard.

Jacob’s mom was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s three years ago. Caught off guard by the diagnosis, he set out to find a way to use VR to reverse the disease. Jacob founded the health technology company Zenjoi a year and a half ago with an intention to create peace of mind and improve quality of life for Alzheimer’s patients through dementia-based assistive technologies and a therapeutic VR experience.

As part of Boost VC Tribe 10, Jacob is working to bring the virtual reality that is helping his mom to the world, with the goal of eradicating Alzheimer’s in the next decade. We discuss how his design background lends itself to his work around virtual reality and what he came to understand about Alzheimer’s as he developed Zenjoi. Listen in to and learn what Jacob considers the key metric of success and why VR is the ideal medium for people experiencing cognitive decline.

Jacob’s background in design and technology

Why VR serves as the best medium for Alzheimer’s patients

http://www.zenjoi.com/

What if you could hit up Foot Locker for a pair of shoes that would allow you to dunk a basketball? Or stop by Walgreens to pick up a robot that would give your grandparents the mobility to continue living at home rather than moving to an assisted living facility? A startup called ROAM is working to create exoskeletons that would afford everyday people the ability to overcome their physical limitations, solving problems around mobility and capability. It may not be the Ironman suit you’ve been dreaming of, but the robotic exoskeletons in development at ROAM would put this groundbreaking human augmentation technology in the hands of everyday people.

ROAM Founder and CEO, Tim Swift, earned his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley, where he developed the technical foundations for many of the commercial exoskeletons in use today. An early employee at Ekso Bionics, Tim spent six years building robots with medical applications like stroke rehabilitation and paraplegic mobility, writing the software that allowed people to walk again. Problem was, these exoskeletons are 50-pound, $100K machines that only impact a select few people. He grew weary of watching people use the exoskeleton, and then get back into their wheelchairs and ‘roll out the door like it had never happened.’

Tim set out to rethink the way robots are built, making them out of fabrics and plastics so that they are smaller, lighter, cheaper—and ultimately accessible to the general population. He founded ROAM with the intention of developing a new type of exoskeleton that can go with people into the world, allowing them to run farther and faster, rehabilitate from injury, or simply maintain the mobility to sit, stand and climb stairs.

Today, Tim is on a mission to make people move more, and ensure that the body is not a barrier. On this episode, we address Tim’s journey to becoming an entrepreneur, the reasons why he left Ekso to create his own startup, and his vision of success ten years into the future. We cover the small community that inhabits the human augmentation space and how ROAM is helping people run 10% farther and faster. Listen in to understand how ROAM’s potential customers have become an integral part of the development process, and what the company is doing to put robots in the hands of real people.

http://www.roamrobotics.com/

Hamza Siddiqui has built the #1 social app on the oculus store, it just so happens to be for Poker. On this episode of "The Boost VC Podcast" we Hamza discloses how important data will be to the growth of VR, and that his favorite quote ever is one that I said to him a long time ago. So listen to the latest. Little known fact... we had to record it twice because... why not?

http://www.casino-vr.com/

Loic Ledoux is an awesome entrepreneur who has built a new story telling medium that puts you in the story. On this episode of "The Boost VC Podcast" we venture deep into the heart of an entrepreneur, with an amazing french founder. We also talk about Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality, but the most important thing you can get out of this episode is the who, what, when, where, why of starting a company... also you learn that Loic cannot juggle.

https://www.shadow.lol/

Have you ever thought, "how do I start a venture capital fund?" Well, Amitt did just that. We talk about starting a fund and the state of VR. Amitt also created one of the most notorious social games ever created... Farmville. You want to hear what he has to say. Listen to the podcast.

https://www.presencecap.com/

Have you ever thought, "It would be super cool to have my own pet dragon?" Well now you can! Vivian Tan and the team at Beast Pets have built an incredible VR experience to give you a pet dragon. We talk about startup a company, distribution in VR, and where the world is headed. You should listen.

http://www.beastpets.com/

The next 3 podcasts are VR focused, and to kick them off, we thought it would be appropriate to have the man who is at the center of all VR/AR, Tipatat Chennavasin, join us to discuss the industry. He is an investor with The VR Fund, and when VR is in the air, he is there. You are going to enjoy what he has to say.

http://www.thevrfund.com/

Do you know why someone would build a flying exoskeleton? Well Richard Browning, a former oil trader did it, so find out why. Also seeing him fly was literally the coolest thing ever for Adam. So check out this week's podcast to hear the whole story.

http://gravity.co/