This week, we are revisiting a conversation between Lightspeed partner Michael Mignano and Arvind Jain, the founder and CEO of Glean about the evolution of AI-assisted enterprise search.

Arvind shares what insights helped to start Glean's journey in 2019, how the company leveraged transformer-based models early on, and how Glean developed the market for this product. They also talk about competition, the technical aspects of integrating Glean across SaaS platforms, and the monumental impact of ChatGPT on the industry.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction

(01:15) Why Arvind Created Glean to Solve Enterprise Search Problems

(03:50) Technical Foundations: Building Glean with Transformers

(09:04) Product Market Fit and Early Challenges

(12:16) The Impact of ChatGPT and Market Evolution

(13:42) Glean's Architecture and Model Integration

(17:58) The Future of AI in Enterprises

(27:52) Leadership, Competition, and Company Culture

(35:48) Reflections and Lessons from Rubrik to Glean

(41:15) Lightning Round and Closing Remarks

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

How can AI make meetings better? That’s the simple question that inspired Granola, a productivity tool that can tell you what was actually discussed in that meeting last week and what the real next steps are. 

In this episode of Generative Now, host Michael Mignano, partner at Lightspeed, sits down with Granola co-founders Chris Pedregal and Sam Stephenson at their headquarters in London. They talk about how they first met, their early product bets, and how they decided to focus on solving one painful problem: the chaos that follows every meeting. They share the story behind their early experiments with GPT-3 and how that eventually evolved into a tool designed especially for people who find their days filled with back-to-back meetings. 

Chris and Sam explain why they avoided flashy AI features to focus on simplicity and habit-forming design, how they quickly found their product-market fit, and what it means to adapt quickly in the age of LLMs.

Episode Chapters

00:00 Welcome and Introduction

01:15 Finding the Right Co-Founder

01:51 Tools for Thought and AI

03:24 Identifying the Problem

04:38 Building the Solution

05:07 The Evolution of AI and App Layer

07:46 Challenges and Innovations

11:20 Business Model and Future Outlook

14:24 The Launch and Early Success

17:52 Theoretical vs. Practical User Needs

18:17 Stress and Software Design

19:28 Scaling with AI

22:05 Maintaining Quality and Taste

24:10 Building a Silicon Valley Startup in London

28:03 The Future of Granola

30:27 Early Feedback and Iteration

35:09 Privacy and Data Handling

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Can a pivot to AI actually save a company? In the case of Gamma, it did that and more. In this episode of Generative Now, host Michael Mignano, partner at Lightspeed, talks with Jon Noronha, the co-founder of Gamma, an AI-powered platform that helps users create interactive and engaging presentations, websites, and social media assets. 

Nearly four decades since the creation of PowerPoint, they talk about how Gamma is treading new ground in the presentation space. Jon discusses how Gamma almost failed until they made the bold decision to pivot to AI in 2023, and how that move brought them millions of new users around the world. They get into the company's initial struggle for product-market fit, the impact of generative AI models like ChatGPT and Stable Diffusion, and the strategic moves they made to adapt and thrive. Jon also shares where he thinks Gamma might go next.

Episode Chapters:

(00:00) Welcome and Introduction

(00:41) Founding Gamma and Initial Vision

(04:00) Challenges and Pivot to AI

(07:04) AI Integration and Breakthrough

(08:38) Expanding Beyond Presentations

(15:45) User Experience and Prompt Engineering

(20:11) Building Value Beyond AI

(21:14) Competing with Industry Giants

(25:03) The Future of AI Interfaces

(29:43) Voice Interaction and AI

(34:35) Gamma's Growth and Team Dynamics

(36:47) Anticipating AI Model Innovations

(39:05) Conclusion 

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Exceptional AI products begin with exceptional teams, but in 2025, AI staffing has never been harder. 

In this episode of Generative Now, Lightspeed partner Michael Mignano dives into the realities of AI recruiting and team building, sharing insights from some of today’s top AI leaders. You’ll hear from:

• Demi Guo, CEO and Co-Founder of Pika

• Mati Staniszewski, CEO and Co-Founder of Eleven Labs

• Bill Dally, Chief Scientist of NVIDIA

• Dan Shipper, CEO and co-founder of Every

• Amy Anton, Vice President of Talent, AI at Lightspeed

Together, they explore what defines a strong AI team, the evolving role of creative talent, how to scale without losing culture, and why generalists may thrive in an AI-powered workforce. The episode also touches on the shift from the knowledge economy to the allocation economy, and what that means for hiring in the AI era.

Whether you're an AI founder, operator, or just thinking about your next hire, this episode unpacks what’s working (and what’s not) in AI HR, staffing, and team design.

Chapters: 

(00:00) What’s Challenging about Hiring AI Teams?

(01:25) Demi Guo and Mati Staniszewski: Creative Talent in AI

(03:36) Dan Shipper: Finding Space to Experiment 

(08:05) Scaling AI Teams: Insights from NVIDIA

(10:52) Building Strong AI Teams: Advice from Lightspeed

(16:48) Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

There’s no doubt we have more choices for entertainment than at any other point in history. And yet, once a series ends, it can be difficult to find something you like just as much. But what if AI could give you a seemingly endless supply of quality content? In this episode of Generative Now, host Michael Mignano, partner at Lightspeed, sits down with Rohan Nayak, CEO and co-founder of Pocket FM, an audio platform that has pioneered the audio series format. 

Rohan talks about how he identified a gap in the audio entertainment space and how Pocket FM leverages  AI to optimize everything from audience retention to discovery to identifying hit shows. He also discusses how Pocket FM’s employment of AI has allowed for the making of an all-in-one content creation and consumption platform, where creators can use AI as a writing coach, editor, and productivity partner — all in one. The conversation offers a glimpse into the future of storytelling and how AI is reshaping the way content is created, discovered, and consumed.     

Episode Chapters:

(00:00) Introduction 

(02:23) Story of Rohan and Pocket FM

(06:02) Solving for a content gap

(08:42) Creating a new audio entertainment format

(11:06) Building Pocket FM

(17:17) Using AI in audio content creation

(21:11) Human and AI partnership in content creation

(24:07) Challenges of improving an AI writing model

(28:45) Using AI to identify blockbusters

(33:00) AB testing with content

(36:11) Training AI to create webtoons

(41:14) Evaluating and propagating content

(43:47) Matching content with users

(44:50) Future of Pocket FM

(48:02) Closing Thoughts

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

In this special mailbag episode of Generative Now, Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano tackles your questions from X and LinkedIn. He gets into AI's market expansion, startup defensibility, which verticals investors are watching, and how the most interesting new roles are being shaped by AI.  Plus, Michael shares what is exciting about consumer AI products right now.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction

(00:35) AI Opportunities: New vs. Existing Markets

(02:09) Will SaaS TAMs Expand or Contract with AI?

(02:59) Creating Defensibility for Consumer AI Startups

(05:29) Emerging Roles: Agent Engineers vs. Agent Managers (08:25) Best Verticals for Consumer AI

(11:39) What Acquisition Could Fix Apple's AI Lag?

(13:19) AI's Potential in Dispute Resolution

(14:38) The State of VC Funding in AI 

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

History may not repeat itself, but it certainly rhymes. Vibe coded games, like a flight simulator from @levelsio, are reminiscent of early iPhone app store games like Flappy Bird and Paper Toss. How else are consumer tech cycles evolving? Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano welcomes back investor Semil Shah for their quarterly check-in. They talk about the landscape of VC seed investing, the impact of AI on tech hubs like New York, LA, and the Bay Area, and whether accelerators like Y Combinator still have the same edge?

Flight Simulator: fly.pieter.com

Episode Chapters:

(01:22) LA vs NYC Tech Scenes

(02:54) AI's Geographic Pull

(05:37) Gaming as Future Consumer Tech

(08:35) Vibe Coding

(17:40) Seed Investing in the AI Era

(25:13) The Series A Crunch

(36:03) Rising Series A Standards

(41:14) Bootstrapping vs VC for AI

(45:26) Value of University Degrees

(55:32) YC's Expanded Cohorts

(57:52) Overlooked Seed Trends

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

This week, we’re revisiting a conversation with Scott Belsky, who recently announced a new role leading innovation at A24. Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano talks with Scott about the evolution of marketing with generative content, the future of personalization, and overlooked opportunities in the AI landscape. 

This conversation took place at the Robin Hood Opportunity x AI Summit. Robin Hood is the largest foundation fighting poverty in New York City.  The group has invested nearly $3.5 billion over 35 years and Robin Hood supports all five boroughs with food pantries, high-performing schools, job-training programs, shelters and more. The group has a venture-like approach; they scale programs that are working and find new programs to fill gaps.

Episode Chapters

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

Lulu Cheng Meservey puts founders in control of their narrative using one simple principle: Go Direct. This week, we’re revisiting our conversation with the CEO and Founder of Rostra, the go-to communications agency for Silicon Valley founders. Lulu joins Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano on the podcast to talk about her ​​modern communications playbook for founders of places like Ramp, SSI, Scale, Anduril, Suno, and The Free Press. They talk about why a comms strategy is just as important as a product strategy. Plus, Lulu shares her after action reports on Based Zuck, SpaceX, Tesla, and Waymo.

Episode Chapters:

(00:00) Introduction 

(01:29) Why Founder Led Communication Works 

(03:47) Challenges and Strategies for Founders

(06:49) Lulu's Career Experience

(08:34) Substack 

(12:11) Have a Clear Company Mission 

(18:01) The ‘Go Direct’ Manifesto

(23:59) Traditional Media in Communication Strategy

(24:40) Targeted Communication: Persuading Key Decision Makers

(25:54) Effective Use of Press and Media Outlets

(28:30) Lulu’s After Action Report: Tesla's Recent Event

(36:11) Apple's Strategy and Public Perception

(38:46) Waymo's Underrated Progress in Autonomous Vehicles

(40:17) Meta's Positive Feedback Loop and Based Zuck

(43:42) The Importance of Founder-Led Companies

(47:27) Final Thoughts

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

This week, we are revisiting a conversation between Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano and Johnny Ho, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Perplexity. Perplexity is the AI powered search engine that is rapidly growing and challenging the industry status quo. Johnny and Michael talk about his background as a competitive programmer, the business model of search, and Perplexity’s Publisher Program, where publishers earn a share of advertising revenue.

Johnny has been ranked number one in the world of competitive programming. He previously worked at Quora as a software engineer –  he accomplished all of this before graduating from Harvard.

Episode Chapters

(00:00) Introduction

(00:40) Johnny Ho's Engineering Background and IOI Achievements

(02:44) Transition to Product Strategy

(05:39) Perplexity: The Answer Engine

(11:06 )Technology Behind Perplexity

(15:47) Challenges and Future of AI Models

(19:41) Growth and Distribution Strategy

(23:54) Setting and Achieving Team Goals

(25:35) Perplexity's Business Model and Future Plans

(31:01) Challenges and Opportunities in AI and Search

(32:55) Publisher Program and Content Credibility

(39:59) Voice and Multimodal Experiences

(42:04) What's Next for Perplexity?

(43:12) Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Stay in touch:

• www.lsvp.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/

• Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co

• Email: [email protected]

The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.