The Innovators & Investors Podcast

College is typically the second-largest investment a family will ever make, yet one in four freshmen fail to return for their sophomore year. In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with John Fees, Co-Founder and CEO of GradGuard, to unpack how embedded tuition and renters insurance are de-risking higher education for millions of students.

John walks through the 15-year journey of scaling GradGuard across more than 750 colleges and universities, the mechanics of university sales and "negative power," why distribution moats outperform product features, and practical frameworks for managing co-founder relationships.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• The core problem GradGuard solves: de-risking higher education investments.
• The real drivers behind student dropouts: medical, financial, and family interruptions.
• The program manager model: embedding tuition coverage directly into university portals.
• Expanding into student renters insurance to mitigate dorm liabilities and campus risks.
• The early pivot from student loan credit insurance to university-embedded distribution.
• Managing "negative power" and navigating university procurement hurdles.
• Why distribution moats beat product features against venture-backed and incumbent rivals.
• Navigating startup lows, co-founder alignment, and personal resilience.
• The "two to hire, one to fire" rule and early startup spending thresholds.
• How AI will influence university credentials, liberal arts, and future workforce demands.

Learn more about GradGuard work at: https://gradguard.com/

Connect with John Fees on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johntfees

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work?

https://finstratmgmt.com

How should venture investors and founders navigate elevated AI valuations and unprecedented startup growth benchmarks? In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez speaks with Kevin Jiang, Founder & CEO of Mangusta Capital.

Kevin breaks down how top-tier AI companies are scaling to $1 billion in revenue faster than ever before, how Mangusta Capital applies its "4 Ms" investment framework (Market, Model, Management, Money), and why a strategic partnership with the family office behind Luxottica offers portfolio companies a distinct cross-border advantage.

Show Notes References:

• Bay Area venture capital & AI funding data — Kristian referenced research backing up the concentration of venture capital and AI investment in Silicon Valley. Source: Carta, State of Private Markets: Q1 2026 — AI companies captured over 60% of all venture capital raised in Q1 2026, the highest share on record. - https://carta.com/data/state-of-private-markets-q1-2026/

Learn more about Mangusta Capital work at: https://www.mangustacap.com/

Connect with Kevin Jiang on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jiangkevin/

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work? https://finstratmgmt.com

In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez welcomes Garrett Marsilio, Partner at Delta-v Capital. Garrett shares how Delta-v breaks away from the high-burn venture capital model by investing in capital-efficient, profitable technology businesses. He breaks down how Delta-v uses proprietary AI agentic sourcing engines to find 50% of its deals, how they execute structured "Flight Plans" to drive post-investment value, and why aligning on exit strategies early is critical for long-term equity growth.

Key Topics Covered:

• The harsh math of VC returns and power law distributions.
• Capital efficiency vs. blitzscaling in software and tech services.
• How Delta-v uses AI agents for automated founder outreach and deal pipeline scoring.
• Delta-v’s core investment sectors: Vertical software, AI security, and technology services.
• Operational value creation through the "Delta-v Flight Plan" and programmatic M&A.

Resources Mentioned

• A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn (Amazon): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015XEWZHI
• Rocky Mountain Venture Capital Association (RMVCA): https://www.rockymountainvca.com/

Learn more about Delta-v Capital work at: https://deltavcapital.com

Connect with Garrett Marsilio on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrettmarsilio/

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work? https://finstratmgmt.com

On this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast: The Scout Series, host Gabrielle Marquez sits down with Oscar Levy and Antonin Parrot, co-founders of River Markets, the prime brokerage built for institutions and professional traders in prediction markets. Oscar and Antonin met at UC Berkeley, went on to careers as quants on Wall Street, and started trading prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket as a nights-and-weekends hobby before realizing the infrastructure gap they'd stumbled into was a real business. In this conversation, they break down why prediction markets are operationally unlike any other asset class, how River Markets built its execution moat, what it's like going through Y Combinator almost by accident, and the biggest lessons they've learned as first-time founders — from co-founder dynamics to hiring to staying focused on the next few moves instead of the endgame.

Books, essays, and tools referenced in this episode:

• "Zero to One" by Peter Thiel — cited by both founders as their most recommended read. Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Zero-One-Notes-Startups-Future/dp/0804165254
• Essays by Paul Graham — referenced by Antonin as an ongoing source of learning for running the company. Official archive: https://www.paulgraham.com/articles.html

Learn more about River Markets' work at: https://www.rivermarkets.com

Connect with Oscar Levy on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oscar-levy/

Connect with Antonin Parrot on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonin-parrot-a16625196/

Want to learn more about Gabrielle Marquez's work? https://finstratmgmt.com

In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez interviews Dr. Alan Pitt, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of VitalChat. Dr. Pitt reflects on his 25-year career as an attending neuroradiologist at the Barrow Neurologic Institute and shares how he transitioned into a serial physician entrepreneur. The discussion covers workforce optimization in hospitals, the economics of healthcare transfers, capital efficiency versus mega-fundraising, and the operational balance required between CEOs and CFOs.

Key Topics Covered:

• The structural incentives of American healthcare and workforce shortages.
• The story behind VitalChat and its open smart-room collaboration architecture.
• A clinical study detailing 1,000 annual unnecessary hospital transfers driven by anxiety.
• Why raising under $10M can outperform $100M+ raised by competitors.
• How AI is shifting startup moats from code generation to clinical context and active listening.
• Practical advice for physician founders and executive coaching.

Learn more about VitalChat work at:

https://www.vitalchat.com/

Connect with Dr. Alan Pitt on LinkedIn at:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanpitt/

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work?

https://finstratmgmt.com

In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez speaks with Grady Buchanan, Co-Founder and Managing Director at NVNG Investment Advisors. Grady shares his journey from managing endowment portfolios at WARF to constructing a $50M+ fund of funds designed to connect Midwestern corporations with national venture capital networks. The discussion covers LP alignment strategies, the nuances of corporate venture capital, and how active platform management accelerates tech adoption in legacy industries.

Discussion Points

• The evolution from hedge fund analysis to venture capital fund-of-funds allocation.
• Structural goals behind NVNG's corporate-backed venture model.
• Managing the distinct motives of financial VCs versus strategic family-office investors.
• Why geo-fencing venture investments can hinder portfolio returns.
• Overcoming corporate friction when integrating startup software and hardware technologies.

Learn more about NVNG Investment Advisors work at:

https://nvngia.com/

Connect with Grady Buchanan on LinkedIn at:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gradynvng/

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work?

https://finstratmgmt.com

In this episode of the Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Prabhav Jain, CEO of 11x, to discuss how AI agents are reshaping go-to-market strategy for companies of every size. Jain shares the philosophy behind 11x's growth platform, why focus matters more than feature breadth in an era where building software is cheap, and how his team balances rapid AI advancement with the organizational change management required to actually adopt it. The conversation covers AI-driven sales calls and the "uncanny valley" they've moved past, why human relationships remain a critical differentiator even as AI capabilities scale, the emergence of outcome-based pricing models, and Jain's candid take on the risk companies take by waiting too long to invest in AI transformation.

Learn more about 11x work at: https://www.11x.ai/

Connect with Prabhav Jain on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jainprabhav/

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work? https://finstratmgmt.com

In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Gabrielle Marquez speaks with Reid Cuming, Founder & CEO of Ground. Reid breaks down his transition from corporate restructuring at General Motors to product engineering leadership at Square, Stripe, and Chime, and his path toward building institutional Web3 infrastructure. Discover how Ground provides an API abstraction layer that allows fintechs, neobanks, and asset managers to seamlessly access on-chain yield, leverage, and liquidity without complex cross-chain engineering.

Learn more about Ground work at:

https://www.groundtech.co/

Connect with Reid Cuming on LinkedIn at:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/reidcuming/

Want to learn more about Gabrielle Marquez's work?

https://finstratmgmt.com

In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez speaks with Kathryn Reddy, Principal at .406 Ventures and recipient of the NVCA 2026 Rising Star Leadership Award. Kathryn breaks down .406 Ventures' Series A investment strategy across healthcare and enterprise technology, offering a deep dive into how private capital can address systemic US healthcare access disparities. From analyzing value-based pediatric primary care models to evaluating founder resilience and AI adoption curves, Kathryn shares practical strategies for navigating early-stage healthcare investments.

Learn more about .406 Ventures work at:

https://www.406ventures.com/

Connect with Kathryn Reddy on LinkedIn at:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathryn-taylor-reddy-638b0355/

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work?

https://finstratmgmt.com

How are private investment syndicates transforming venture capital and cap table diversity? In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, Kristian Marquez speaks with Jennifer Jeronimo, CEO of Gaingels, about the mechanics of building one of the largest inclusive investment syndicates in private equity. Jennifer shares her journey from executive leadership at JP Morgan to leading a global network that has deployed hundreds of millions into high-growth startups.

Learn more about Gaingels work at: https://gaingels.com/

Connect with Jennifer Jeronimo on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-jeronimo1/

Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work?

https://finstratmgmt.com