Masters of Scale

Serena Williams doesn't just defy convention on the court. She’s also applying her competitive mindset to entrepreneurship and venture investing, recently rebranding her firm from Serena Ventures to StarFire Ventures. Serena joins Bob Safian to discuss how she identified the 16 unicorns now in her portfolio, what she looks for in founders, and how partnerships with companies from Nike to Ro fit into her broader vision. Recorded live at the Reckitt Catalyst event in Palm Beach, Serena also opens up about balancing business with family life—and why she still feels the pull of the tennis court.

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In this recent episode of Possible, Reid Hoffman sits down with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella fresh off Microsoft Build 2026. The conversation goes wide: how AI is reshaping work, business, and society—and why the transformation sweeping through software development today is only a preview of what's coming for all knowledge work. Satya makes the case that human capital and "token capital" are now deeply intertwined, that companies—not just countries—must build their own AI capabilities, and that the organizations best positioned to thrive are those that can leverage their unique expertise inside intelligent systems. Reid and Satya also explore Microsoft's enterprise AI vision, Reid's work with Manas on AI-powered scientific discovery, lessons from past technological revolutions, and why demonstrating real, tangible benefits may be the most important thing the industry can do to earn—and keep—the public's trust.

You can catch and subscribe to more Possible here: https://www.possible.fm/

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Jim Collins is the author of some of the most important business books of all time, like Good to Great and Built to Last. For his latest project, instead of profiling iconic companies, he zoomed in on extraordinary individuals we can learn from. He joined host Jeff Berman to reveal how icons like Grace Hopper and John Glenn illustrate lessons on how to navigate the cliffs and fog of life. 

Find out more about the book: jimcollins.com

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Few companies have a better real-time read on the American economy than Delta, and few CEOs are more willing to say what they actually think. Ed Bastian returns to Rapid Response to share what Delta's booking data is telling him that the headlines aren't, why he's not convinced by AI until it moves his top line, and how he decided to yank congressional travel perks during the government shutdown. He also explains what it takes to stay optimistic when fuel costs are spiking, the Strait of Hormuz is in the news, and the world keeps finding new ways to be unpredictable.

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Therapist Esther Perel wants us all to build stronger relationships at work. Her coveted advice is the centerpiece of her books, TED talks and podcast “Where Should We Begin?” During the pandemic, she launched a conversational card game. In 2025, she joined host Jeff Berman to talk about why she released another edition, Where Should We Begin? At Work, designed specifically for coworkers. They also go deep on why stronger relational intelligence is essential for businesses, how AI is rewiring our brains, and more.

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In the last year, Canva redefined itself from the ground up. Co-founder and Chief Product Officer Cameron Adams joins Rapid Response live from the Cannes Lions festival to explain why the so-called SaaSpocalypse never kept him up at night, how Canva shifted from a design company to an AI company without losing what made it great, and why being only 1% of the way there is actually the most exciting place to be. Adams also shares the specific steps anyone can take to get real impact from AI tools rather than just falling down the rabbit hole, and makes the case that in a world of commoditized models, your organization's unfair advantage is the only thing that matters.

Eager for more of Cam? Take a moment to listen and download his own podcast, Prompted!

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Tractors are smarter than you think. John Deere, the nearly 200-year-old company, is combining sensors, data, and machine learning in highly advanced vehicles and software to reinvent how the world grows food. On this Pioneers of AI episode, John Deere CTO Jahmy Hindman breaks down how AI is making farms faster, smarter, and more sustainable. Plus he shares his vision for a fully autonomous farm.

Learn more about Pioneers of AI: http://pioneersof.ai/

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Telling a clear story about your product is an essential entrepreneurial skill. Chef Marcus Samuelsson is an expert at this in his beloved restaurants (Hav & Mar and Red Rooster) and through his broader entrepreneurial efforts.

Samuelsson joined host Reid Hoffman in 2024 to share how embracing a diversity of stories has been an essential ingredient to his businesses.

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Gap was never uncool. It just disappeared. CEO Richard Dickson joins Rapid Response to explain how he's bringing it back, using the same pop culture playbook he used to resurrect Barbie at Mattel. He breaks down why he tracks "brand love" metrics on a dashboard hourly, why Sydney Sweeney's viral jeans ad was actually good news for the whole industry, and why the biggest risk a brand can take is playing it safe. 

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Mark Pincus is a serial tech entrepreneur and investor best known as the co-founder of Zynga. He joins host Reid Hoffman to reveal the insights at the center of his new book: Life at the Speed of Play. The godfather of mobile gaming talks with Hoffman about building products people love, learning fast from your mistakes, and handling screen time for his own kids. 

The book: https://www.lifeatthespeedofplay.com/

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