Tacos and Tech Podcast

In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, we sit down with Matt Ober, Managing Partner at Social Leverage, to unpack the future of fintech, the evolving landscape of wealth tech, and what it means to build and invest with long-term conviction.

Matt shares his journey from hedge funds and quant trading to early-stage venture capital, with stops at Bloomberg, WorldQuant, and Third Point before joining Social Leverage. We talk about the firm's investing thesis, from Robinhood and Alpaca to the social side of investing with Stocktwits and the upcoming Stocktoberfest event in San Diego.

From deep dives on compliance tooling and wealth advisor rollups to the convergence of trading, crypto, and sports betting - this episode maps the edges of where fintech is headed next.

Key Topics covered:

• Matt's path from hedge fund data scientist to early-stage investor

• The origin story of Social Leverage and how its partners found each other

• Fintech then vs. now: what's changed and what hasn't

• Why wealth management is ripe for disruption

• Regulation, crypto, and the blending of gambling, investing, and community

• How Stocktwits still matters in a Robinhood world

• The magic of Stocktoberfest and how in-person density builds stronger networks

• What it's like building and investing from San Diego

Links & Resources

• Social Leverage

• Stocktwits

• Stocktoberfest - October 20-22, 2025

Connect with Matt

• LinkedIn

• X

  Fintech, Forecasts, and Stocktoberfest

In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, we sit down with Matt Ober, Managing Partner at Social Leverage, to unpack the future of fintech, the evolving landscape of wealth tech, and what it means to build and invest with long-term conviction.

Matt shares his journey from hedge funds and quant trading to early-stage venture capital, with stops at Bloomberg, WorldQuant, and Third Point before joining Social Leverage. We talk about the firm’s investing thesis, from Robinhood and Alpaca to the social side of investing with Stocktwits and the upcoming Stocktoberfest event in San Diego.

From deep dives on compliance tooling and wealth advisor rollups to the convergence of trading, crypto, and sports betting - this episode maps the edges of where fintech is headed next.

Key Topics covered:

* Matt’s path from hedge fund data scientist to early-stage investor

* The origin story of Social Leverage and how its partners found each other

* Fintech then vs. now: what’s changed and what hasn’t

* Why wealth management is ripe for disruption

* Regulation, crypto, and the blending of gambling, investing, and community

* How Stocktwits matters even more in a Robinhood world

* The magic of Stocktoberfest and how in-person density builds stronger networks

* What it’s like building and investing from San Diego

Links & Resources

* Social Leverage

* Stocktwits

* Stocktoberfest - October 20-22, 2025

Connect with Matt

* LinkedIn

* X

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Listen & subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, and other platforms.

Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News!

I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners and the Tacos and Tech Podcast.

My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier, journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter.

Before we dive in, we wanted to thank and ask our listeners to help us grow the show, leave a review and share with one other person who should be more plugged in with the SD Tech Scene. Thank you for the support and for helping us build the San Diego Startup Community!

10/3

Defense Tech Gathering debrief

Fred’s story on Harpoon’s Black Flag

Avenzo Therapeutics series B

Crinetics wins FDA approval

Biolinq receives de novo designation

Eli Lily new ribbon cutting

Alvys Series B

Airport opened T1

New Alaska Airlines lounge coming

Cal San Marcos Receives $10 million for STEM building

Sempra selling a $10B stake in Sempra Infrastructure

Curated Events List – For full list – check The Social Coyote

Startup Week Oct 6-10

Connect New Leadership Event

SD Defense Tech Gathering - Oct 23

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, host Neal Bloom sits down with Aleksey Matyushev, co-founder and CEO of Natilus, the San Diego-based aerospace company reinventing air freight and passenger travel with next-gen aircraft. With over $39 billion in orders and a growing footprint in South County, Natilus is bringing cutting-edge manufacturing back to San Diego.

Aleksey shares his journey from growing up near a Soviet airfield to becoming an aerodynamicist at Piper and Kratos. He walks us through the founding story of Natilus, early pivots from seaplanes to blended wing bodies, and how customer feedback (and cold emails) helped shape the company's strategy. Plus, we dive into capital efficiency, certification pathways, and how Natilus is carving out space in a market long dominated by Boeing and Airbus.

Key Topics Covered:

• The legacy of aerospace in San Diego and why Natilus is doubling down here

• Aleksey's path from Piper Aircraft to Kratos to Natilus

• Lessons learned from military-grade drones and commercial aviation

• The first MVP: a 30-foot autonomous seaplane built in 14 months

• Why cargo came first - and how airlines asked for passenger planes next

• The Kona and Horizon: aircraft designed for freight and people, optimized for fuel, volume, and cost

• Navigating testing, tooling, and certification with just $15M in capital raised

• Why wind tunnels, FAA approvals, and Brown Field are key San Diego assets

• How India became a fast-moving market for commercial orders

• The future of aviation as seen from South County, San Diego

Links & Resources

• Natilus

• Learn more about Rising Tide Partners

Connect with Aleksey & Neal

• Connect with Aleksey on LinkedIn

• Connect with Neal Bloom on LinkedIn

In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, host Neal Bloom sits down with Aleksey Matyushev, co-founder and CEO of Natilus, the San Diego-based aerospace company reinventing air freight and passenger travel with next-gen aircraft. With over $39 billion in orders and a growing footprint in South County, Natilus is bringing cutting-edge manufacturing back to San Diego.

Aleksey shares his journey from growing up near a Soviet airfield to becoming an aerodynamicist at Piper and Kratos. He walks us through the founding story of Natilus, early pivots from seaplanes to blended wing bodies, and how customer feedback (and cold emails) helped shape the company’s strategy. Plus, we dive into capital efficiency, certification pathways, and how Natilus is carving out space in a market long dominated by Boeing and Airbus.

Key Topics Covered:

* The legacy of aerospace in San Diego and why Natilus is doubling down here

* Aleksey’s path from Piper Aircraft to Kratos to Natilus

* Lessons learned from military-grade drones and commercial aviation

* The first MVP: a 30-foot autonomous seaplane built in 14 months

* Why cargo came first - and how airlines asked for passenger planes next

* The Kona and Horizon: aircraft designed for freight and people, optimized for fuel, volume, and cost

* Navigating testing, tooling, and certification with just $15M in capital raised

* Why wind tunnels, FAA approvals, and Brown Field are key San Diego assets

* How India became a fast-moving market for commercial orders

* The future of aviation as seen from South County, San Diego

Links & Resources

* Natilus

* Learn more about Rising Tide Partners

Connect with Aleksey & Neal

* Connect with Aleksey on LinkedIn

* Connect with Neal Bloom on LinkedIn

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Listen & subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, and other platforms.

Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News!

I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners and the Tacos and Tech Podcast.

My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier, journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter.

Before we dive in, we wanted to thank and ask our listeners to help us grow the show, leave a review and share with one other person who should be more plugged in with the SD Tech Scene. Thank you for the support and for helping us build the San Diego Startup Community!

9/19

Broader Defense Tech:

Harpoon x Firestorm Mixer Debrief

El Segundo Defense Tech Mixer Debrief

Firestorms Labs opens 60,000 SFT Facility in Mira Mesa

Biotech:

Treeline Biosciences emerges from stealth with $200M backed by ARCH Venture.

Arnatar Therapeutics focused on precision RNA therapies emerges from stealth.

Debut Bio raises and expands to Asia

Yatiri - acquired another startup

Luna Diabetes raises a Series A

Curated Events List – For full list – check The Social Coyote

Sept 26 - Defense Tech Gathering

Oct 3-5 - Startup Weekend

Oct 6-10 - SD Startup Week

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

This week on Tacos & Tech, Neal sits down with Rose Bowlus - lawyer, founder, and angel investor - whose journey from trading floors to startup boardrooms brings a rare blend of Wall Street experience and founder empathy.

Rose shares how her legal career evolved from the capital markets and energy sectors to launching her own firm, Rose Bowlus Law, where she now advises early-stage startups and funds. They talk legal tech, Web3, fintech moats, and what founders often overlook when raising capital. Plus, Rose unpacks her growing role as an investor, how she’s empowering other lawyers through her Angels in the Law network, and what she looks for in the next generation of legal innovation.

Key Topics

* Rose’s career path from Berkeley to in-house counsel to founding her own law firm

* Legal insights for fintech, Web3, and capital markets

* How regulation shapes - and lags - innovation in financial services

* Trends in legal tech adoption and where traditional firms are falling behind

* Her philosophy of “give first” investing and building a founder-friendly syndicate

* The origin story of Angels in the Law and the rise of lawyer-investors

* Why clarity is everything when supporting (or funding) founders

* Rose’s controversial taco take: Islands, North County edition

Links & resources

* Rose Bowlus Law

* Rising Tide Partners

* Women’s Venture Summit

Connect on LinkedIn

* Connect with Rose on LinkedIn

* Connect with Neal on LinkedIn

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, host Neal Bloom sits down with Eric Birkemeier, founder of ShredLights and now part of Meepo Electric Skateboards. Eric’s story is a wild ride - from 3D-printing in the SDSU ZIP Launchpad and selling Jordans out of thrift stores, to building a niche hardware company and ultimately exiting to a global electric skateboard brand.

They unpack how Eric turned an early failed Kickstarter into a business with over $1M+ in revenue (with zero ad spend!), the importance of discovering product-market fit through real customer feedback, and the emotional rollercoaster of running and eventually selling a hardware startup during a downturn. From bootstrapping to navigating COVID, tariffs, and copycats - Eric shares what it really takes to get to the finish line (and how the finish line is just another beginning).

Key Topics Covered:

* From basement builds to business: Eric’s early love for inventing and entrepreneurship

* The SDSU ZIP Launchpad, finding community, and the startup that wasn't a fit

* Why the wrong customers helped him discover the right market

* Pivoting from skate culture to the growing micro-mobility movement

* Scaling from 3D printers to overseas supply chains - and the lessons from doing it the hard way

* How Kyle and Eric’s founder relationship helped them navigate burnout, illness, and transition

* Building trust with manufacturers and how one trip to China changed everything

* Financial forecasting, staying lean, and prepping for an acquisition

* The gritty, real story behind selling a business - and what Eric’s learned about what comes next

Links & Resources:

* ShredLights

* Meepo Electric Skateboards

* Physics Girl on YouTube

Connect with Eric & Neal

* Connect with Eric Birkemeier

* Connect with Neal Bloom

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, host Neal Bloom sits down with Eric Birkemeier, founder of ShredLights and now part of Meepo Electric Skateboards. Eric's story is a wild ride - from 3D-printing in the SDSU ZIP Launchpad and selling Jordans out of thrift stores, to building a niche hardware company and ultimately exiting to a global electric skateboard brand.

They unpack how Eric turned an early failed Kickstarter into a business with over $1M+ in revenue (with zero ad spend!), the importance of discovering product-market fit through real customer feedback, and the emotional rollercoaster of running and eventually selling a hardware startup during a downturn. From bootstrapping to navigating COVID, tariffs, and copycats - Eric shares what it really takes to get to the finish line (and how the finish line is just another beginning).

Key Topics Covered:

• From basement builds to business: Eric's early love for inventing and entrepreneurship

• The SDSU ZIP Launchpad, finding community, and the startup that wasn't a fit

• Why the wrong customers helped him discover the right market

• Pivoting from skate culture to the growing micro-mobility movement

• Scaling from 3D printers to overseas supply chains - and the lessons from doing it the hard way

• How Kyle and Eric's founder relationship helped them navigate burnout, illness, and transition

• Building trust with manufacturers and how one trip to China changed everything

• Financial forecasting, staying lean, and prepping for an acquisition

• The gritty, real story behind selling a business - and what Eric's learned about what comes next

Links & Resources:

• ShredLights

• Meepo Electric Skateboards

• Physics Girl on YouTube

Connect with Eric & Neal

• Connect with Eric Birkemeier

• Connect with Neal Bloom

This week on Tacos & Tech, Neal sits down with Drew Wilson, longtime North County founder, designer, engineer, and community builder. From launching products solo to landing a GoDaddy acquisition, Drew’s track record speaks for itself. Now he’s back with a new company, Opacity, and relaunching his beloved creative conference, ValioCon, right in the heart of Oceanside.

In this episode, Drew shares his journey from early design days and Flash websites to building Plasso, navigating acquisition, and diving headfirst into GenAI-powered product development. He also gives us a behind-the-scenes look at what’s coming with Opacity, why he’s bullish on version control for designers, and how tools like Midjourney and Claude are shaping his build stack.

Key Points

* Building Plasso as a solo founder and selling to GoDaddy

* Going through YC while still working at GoDaddy

* Launching (and shutting down) a modern digital bank

* The origins of ValioCon and why it’s back after 9 years

* The inspiration behind Opacity and the future of visual coding

* Building products in the GenAI era — what’s actually different

* His go-to North County burrito and tales from Cave Week

Links & ResourcesLearn more about OpacityGrab your ticket to ValioCon

Connect with Drew & NealFollow Drew on Linkedin & XFollow Neal: LinkedIn & X

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe