Ideas Elevated

Sumorwuo Zaza is the CEO and Co-Founder of NICKL, a software company focused on making it easy to access quality news and information. 

Prior to this he was Director of the International division at HuffPost. In that role he defined product strategy across content creation, distribution, and monetization for 17 international properties, and oversaw site launches in new markets.

In this episode, Zaza will share tips for any entrepreneur who’s considering applying for an accelerator program - especially those who are applying for the next class of the Comcast NBCUniversal LIFT Labs Accelerator, powered by Techstars!

Howard Gray is a startup advisor, leadership coach, and podcast host. He has founded and exited two companies, managed the tours of performing artists, and even has been a DJ himself. And while he was finding success across his many different skill sets, he started to recognize another skill he had: executive coaching. He’s crafted programs for execs at IBM, Mastercard, and General Electric. In this episode, Howard dives into one of the most common issues entrepreneurs grapple with: blind spots in their thinking and their storytelling.

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Randi Zuckerberg is an entrepreneur, author, Tony-award winning producer. She spent years in Silicon Valley as the director of market development for Facebook. Later, she founded the production company Zuckerberg Media. Randi has authored several books, performed in a Broadway production of Rock of Ages, and created Dot., a children’s television show exploring the power of technology. In this episode, you’ll hear about the early days of Facebook, Randi’s decision to start her own company, and how she has managed to fuse entrepreneurship with her lifelong passion for theater.

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John Maeda is one of the world's preeminent interdisciplinary thinkers on technology and design. In How to Speak Machine, he offers a set of simple laws that govern not only the computers of today, but the unimaginable machines of the future.

In this episode, John chats with our producer Kevin Chemidlin about the incredible benefits of growing computation. You’ll hear his advice on how to grasp concepts like AI and exponential growth, even if you’re a technological novice. 

And if you’re a tech startup, how long should you take before pitching an idea or product? John has some thoughts on that, too. 

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Ben Nemtin is a TV producer, motivational speaker, and New York Times bestselling author.

He co-founded and produced The Buried Life, an MTV documentary series that explores the art of fulfilling your wildest dreams in unconventional ways. Ben is a motivational speaker and an advocate for mental health awareness. In this episode, Ben discusses his own struggles with mental health, and how he learned to adopt a lifestyle devoid of fear. You’ll hear his advice on how entrepreneurs can change their mindset to accomplish feats they may have never imagined possible.

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Josh Kopelman co-founded First Round Capital in 2004 to reinvent seed-stage investing. Since that time, the firm has invested in over 300 emerging technology startups – becoming one of the most active venture capital firms in the country. Josh has consistently made the Forbes “Midas List” which ranks the top 100 tech investors, earning the number four spot in 2014.

Early in his career, in 1992, Josh co-founded Infonautics Corporation – and took it public on the NASDAQ stock exchange in 1996. Josh founded Half.com in July of 1999, and led it to become one of the largest sellers of used books, movies and music in the world. Half.com was acquired by eBay in July 2000.

In this episode, Danielle and Luke chat with Josh about which founders catch his attention, and how he selects startups for investment. You’ll hear his advice on pitching your company, how to stay honest with your investors, and how to create your own roadmap as a founder. 

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Tobias Peggs is CEO of Square Roots Urban Growers, hyper-local indoor farms spread across the boroughs of New York City and Grand Rapids. 

Tobias has been involved in the creation and growth of early-stage internet companies since the mid-90s.

Before Square Roots, Tobias was CEO of Boulder-based OneRiot. Tobias led OneRiot through its transition from consumer-facing search engine to socially-targeted mobile advertising platform – ultimately leading to acquisition by Walmart.

In this episode, Tobias chats with Luke Butler about how he plans to change the urban farming game across North America. You’ll hear about the latest advancements in the food industry, advice on partnering with the right companies, and tips on scaling your company, while making an impact on your community.

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Marc Randolph is a veteran Silicon Valley entrepreneur, advisor, and investor. As co-founder and founding CEO of Netflix, he laid much of the groundwork for a service that’s grown to 150 million subscribers, and fundamentally altered how the world experiences media. He also served on the Netflix board of directors until retiring from the company in 2003.

In this episode, Marc chats with Danielle and Luke about the story behind Netflix. You’ll hear about “That Will Never Work,” Marc’s appropriately titled story about how he made Netflix happen, grow, and eventually thrive. And, you’ll hear Marc’s thoughts on the dangers of glorifying entrepreneurship.

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Earlier this year, we were inspired by our community to launch a female founder and funder meetup group for women to ask each other off-the-record questions.

It’s become a popular place for insights on everything from founding to fundraising. Today, we’re giving you a seat at that table, in a roundtable discussion moderated by Danielle Cohn.

We’ll talk about the access and funding gap, what’s being done to overcome it, and lessons for all women in starting and growing a business.

You’ll hear from University Professor who runs an angel investment group, an CEO and expert on unconscious bias, and a bootstrapping entrepreneur.

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