Alex Benik is the founder of Encoded Ventures, an early-stage venture fund investing in the next generation of cloud, data, and security infrastructure. Before launching Encoded Ventures, Alex spent more than two decades at Battery Ventures, where he focused on enterprise infrastructure and cybersecurity investments and partnered with founders from early stage through IPO. Drawing on his deep technical expertise and long track record supporting category-defining companies, Alex now backs ambitious technical founders building the infrastructure stack for the AI era.

During this episode, we discuss:

• Alex’s transition from over 20 years at Battery Ventures to founding the solo GP fund Encoded Ventures
• Why large venture funds often struggle with true early-stage investing and how smaller funds fill that gap
• What draws Alex to seed and pre-seed investing, and the energy of being “first money in”
• The “favorite uncle, not the parent” philosophy for supporting founders
• What Alex looks for in founders
• Key lessons learned from launching a first-time venture fund
• Major trends in cloud data, security infrastructure, and AI-driven efficiency across the stack
• Why Boston remains an amazing tech hub

And more. Tune into this episode as we dive into all things investing!