The Syndicate

Charlie Hartwell (@ShiftIt_Inst) is an Operating Partner at the Bridge Builders Collaborative, a consumer health tech investment group that invested early in Pear Therapeutics, Insight Timer and Headspace, in addition to being a “Change Agent” focused on igniting consciousness, mindfulness, and creating a more connected human world.

In today’s episode we discuss:

* Where are headed with consumer health tech and consciousness

* Why Charlie’s afraid our collective ability to live together

* How mindfulness and meditation can help us get through this COVID crisis

* The role of psychedelics in shifting mental health

* Why meditation may just be the next best medic

* Which alternative health practices hold the most promise for the future of healthcare

* What Charlie thinks we should do for a more mentally-sound world

* Why we’re treating patients and health all wrong

* How investment dollars drive innovation

* Why the psychedelic movement of today is much more than a fad

* What’s the future of wearable tech

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Charlie Hartwell (@ShiftIt_Inst) is an Operating Partner at the Bridge Builders Collaborative, a consumer health tech investment group that invested early in Pear Therapeutics, Insight Timer and Headspace, in addition to being a “Change Agent” focused on igniting consciousness, mindfulness, and creating a more connected human world.

In today’s episode we discuss:

* Where are headed with consumer health tech and consciousness

* Why Charlie’s afraid our collective ability to live together

* How mindfulness and meditation can help us get through this COVID crisis

* The role of psychedelics in shifting mental health

* Why meditation may just be the next best medic

* Which alternative health practices hold the most promise for the future of healthcare

* What Charlie thinks we should do for a more mentally-sound world

* Why we’re treating patients and health all wrong

* How investment dollars drive innovation

* Why the psychedelic movement of today is much more than a fad

* What’s the future of wearable tech

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.

Cory Doctorow (@doctorow) is the best selling science fiction author, blogger, and technology activist. He is the co-editor of the popular weblog Boing Boing), a contributor to many magazines, websites, and newspapers and a special consultant to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (eff.org), a non-profit civil liberties group that defends freedom in technology law, policy, standards, and treaties. He holds an honorary doctorate in computer science from the Open University (UK), where he is a Visiting Professor; he is also an MIT Media Lab Research Affiliate. In 2007, he served as the Fulbright Chair at the Annenberg Center for Public Diplomacy at the University of Southern California. His novels have been translated into dozens of languages and are published by Tor Books, Head of Zeus (UK), Titan Books (UK) and HarperCollins (UK). He has won the Locus, Prometheus, Copper Cylinder, White Pine and Sunburst Awards, and been nominated for the Hugo, Nebula and British Science Fiction Awards. Several of his award-winning novels include:

* Little Brother

* Homeland

* Pirate Cinema

Cory also co-founded the open-source peer-to-peer software company OpenCola and serves on the boards and advisory boards of the Participatory Culture Foundation, the Clarion Foundation, the Open Technology Fund and the Metabrainz Foundation.

Listen and Learn:

* Possible geopolitical consequence of the COVID-19 epidemic

* New ways to consider the role of economics and market forces post Corona

* Why Cory thinks much of Europe will push further left after the world normalizes

* The reason Cory isn’t worried about a post-COVID new Patriot Act

* Why today feels a lot like post-WWII oligarchy capitalism

* The five new horsemen of the battle for individual privacy

* How to avoid self-destructive late-stage capitalism

* Why Coronavirus death and fallout may swing the future of US politics

* Why the US is WAY more socialized than citizens think

* How we could fund a successful Green New Deal

* What were the true impacts of Edward Snowden

* Are we headed toward a constant location-based tracking and surveillance

* What worries Cory most about today’s epidemic climate

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Cory Doctorow (@doctorow) is the best selling science fiction author, blogger, and technology activist. He is the co-editor of the popular weblog Boing Boing), a contributor to many magazines, websites, and newspapers and a special consultant to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (eff.org), a non-profit civil liberties group that defends freedom in technology law, policy, standards, and treaties. He holds an honorary doctorate in computer science from the Open University (UK), where he is a Visiting Professor; he is also an MIT Media Lab Research Affiliate. In 2007, he served as the Fulbright Chair at the Annenberg Center for Public Diplomacy at the University of Southern California. His novels have been translated into dozens of languages and are published by Tor Books, Head of Zeus (UK), Titan Books (UK) and HarperCollins (UK). He has won the Locus, Prometheus, Copper Cylinder, White Pine and Sunburst Awards, and been nominated for the Hugo, Nebula and British Science Fiction Awards. Several of his award-winning novels include:

* Little Brother

Tony Parisi (@auradeluxe) is a virtual reality pioneer, serial entrepreneur, and angel investor. He co-created several, 3D graphics standards, is Head of AR/VR Ad Innovation at Unity Technologies, and author several O’Reilly Media books on virtual reality and WebGL.

Today, Tony is has a leading spokesman for the immersive industry and was recently named one of Next Reality’s 30 People to Watch in Augmented Reality in 2019.

 

Listen and Learn:

* Where are we on the AR and VR adoption cycle

* What the future of AR/VR holds and why they will diverge

* How COVID-19 is pushing us towards an immersive future

* The big differences between consumer and enterprise VR adoption

* Why Facebook and Oculus are well-placed to dominate virtual reality

* Which sci-fi inspirations are most realistic for augmented and virtual reality

* What’s the future look like for the entertainment industry

* Why Tony isn’t all that worried about any future tech

* How tech life cycles are accelerating and what it all means

* Why we have reached a tipping point in consumer VR adoption

 

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Tony Parisi (@auradeluxe) is a virtual reality pioneer, serial entrepreneur, and angel investor. He co-created several, 3D graphics standards, is Head of AR/VR Ad Innovation at Unity Technologies, and author several O’Reilly Media books on virtual reality and WebGL.

Today, Tony is has a leading spokesman for the immersive industry and was recently named one of Next Reality’s 30 People to Watch in Augmented Reality in 2019.

 

Listen and Learn:

* Where are we on the AR and VR adoption cycle

* What the future of AR/VR holds and why they will diverge

* How COVID-19 is pushing us towards an immersive future

* The big differences between consumer and enterprise VR adoption

* Why Facebook and Oculus are well-placed to dominate virtual reality

* Which sci-fi inspirations are most realistic for augmented and virtual reality

* What’s the future look like for the entertainment industry

* Why Tony isn’t all that worried about any future tech

* How tech life cycles are accelerating and what it all means

* Why we have reached a tipping point in consumer VR adoption

 

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.

Miguel Arias Cañete was the European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy and led the EU negotiations of the Paris Agreement.

He’s now involved with the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation which has launched the Prize for Humanity, an annual €1m award for people or organizations from all over the world focused on mitigation of, and adaptation to climate change.

Miguel has served the Spanish Government as both the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries and Minister for Agriculture, Food and Environment before being selected to head his Party List in the European Parliamentary elections.

 

Listen and Learn:

* The unique challenges that went into crafting the Paris Accord

* What the US’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement means for climate policy

* How hard it is to ensure collective action on big problems

* China’s role in addressing the environment

* Why Miguel thinks the US will rejoin the Paris Accords

* How the EU is leading the effort on decarbonization

* What to think about nuclear energy

* The reason transportation is so hard to go green

* What happens if we don’t reach climate goals

* The problems of bureaucracy and why the EU is actually pretty efficient

* Which agritech areas are most important to reduce global warming

* How business can be used as a force for good

* Are we headed for a future of mass migrations

* Why democracy is a stronger governance system than centralized economies in the long run

* How China’s policy on coal could crush climate goals

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Miguel Arias Cañete was the European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy and led the EU negotiations of the Paris Agreement.

He’s now involved with the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation which has launched the Prize for Humanity, an annual €1m award for people or organizations from all over the world focused on mitigation of, and adaptation to climate change.

Miguel has served the Spanish Government as both the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries and Minister for Agriculture, Food and Environment before being selected to head his Party List in the European Parliamentary elections.

 

Listen and Learn:

* The unique challenges that went into crafting the Paris Accord

* What the US’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement means for climate policy

* How hard it is to ensure collective action on big problems

* China’s role in addressing the environment

* Why Miguel thinks the US will rejoin the Paris Accords

* How the EU is leading the effort on decarbonization

* What to think about nuclear energy

* The reason transportation is so hard to go green

* What happens if we don’t reach climate goals

* The problems of bureaucracy and why the EU is actually pretty efficient

* Which agritech areas are most important to reduce global warming

* How business can be used as a force for good

* Are we headed for a future of mass migrations

Morten Bove (@mbove) is the founder and CEO of Wohn Homes, a Danish startup revolutionizing modular, eco-friendly affordable housing designed with tokenized ownership for students. Morten also runs Block21, a blockchain-focused tech podcast on the future of decentralization.

In today’s episode we discuss:

* How recycled plastic can be used to make sustainable housing

* Why inequality is the driving factor in almost all social unrest

* What does the future of cities look like

* Why Morten is big on blockchain and tokenization

* What happens now that the ICO bubble burst, and where crypto is headed

* The big difference between European and US startups

* Why smaller countries make things simpler

* How to build better triple-bottom-line businesses (here’s a free guide for founders)

* How business can be used as a force for good

* Why it’s so hard for startups to raise funding (ps. here’s a free pitch deck guide!)

* The scary truth about surveillance and privacy

* Why Trump pulling out of the Paris accord wasn’t all bad

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Morten Bove (@mbove) is the founder and CEO of Wohn Homes, a Danish startup revolutionizing modular, eco-friendly affordable housing designed with tokenized ownership for students. Morten also runs Block21, a blockchain-focused tech podcast on the future of decentralization.

In today’s episode we discuss:

* How recycled plastic can be used to make sustainable housing

* Why inequality is the driving factor in almost all social unrest

* What does the future of cities look like

* Why Morten is big on blockchain and tokenization

* What happens now that the ICO bubble burst, and where crypto is headed

* The big difference between European and US startups

* Why smaller countries make things simpler

* How to build better triple-bottom-line businesses (here’s a free guide for founders)

* How business can be used as a force for good

* Why it’s so hard for startups to raise funding (ps. here’s a free pitch deck guide!)

* The scary truth about surveillance and privacy

* Why Trump pulling out of the Paris accord wasn’t all bad

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.

Carinne Chambers-Saini is the founder and CEO of DivaCup, an eco-tech startup focused on making feminine health more sustainable. She’s been awarded the EY Entrepreneur of The Year for Sustainable Products and Services, been recognized as one of Canada’s 40 under 40, and her company, Diva has ranked 138 on the 2018 GROWTH 500 list and 103 on the 2017 PROFIT 500 list, along with being recognized as one of Waterloo’s Top Employers for 2019.

Listen and Learn:

* How to design more eco-friendly products and businesses

* Why packaged goods and disposables are ruining our world

* Advantages of self-funding startups

* Why funding’s harder for female founders

* Ways Carinne would improve the education system

* The benefits of building a certified B Corp

* Why businesses need to be the ones to drive a better world

* How to build better triple-bottom-line businesses (here’s a free guide for founders)

* The reason Carinne’s more-than-worried about screen time for her kids

* Why social media is such a powerful force for good, and bad

* How DivaCup is addressing inequality in a big way

* What does the future of jobs look like

* Why focus trumps everything for founders and success

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Carinne Chambers-Saini is the founder and CEO of DivaCup, an eco-tech startup focused on making feminine health more sustainable. She’s been awarded the EY Entrepreneur of The Year for Sustainable Products and Services, been recognized as one of Canada’s 40 under 40, and her company, Diva has ranked 138 on the 2018 GROWTH 500 list and 103 on the 2017 PROFIT 500 list, along with being recognized as one of Waterloo’s Top Employers for 2019.

Listen and Learn:

* How to design more eco-friendly products and businesses

* Why packaged goods and disposables are ruining our world

* Advantages of self-funding startups

* Why funding’s harder for female founders

* Ways Carinne would improve the education system

* The benefits of building a certified B Corp

* Why businesses need to be the ones to drive a better world

* How to build better triple-bottom-line businesses (here’s a free guide for founders)

* The reason Carinne’s more-than-worried about screen time for her kids

* Why social media is such a powerful force for good, and bad

* How DivaCup is addressing inequality in a big way

* What does the future of jobs look like

* Why focus trumps everything for founders and success

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.

Gerald Kutney (@geraldkutney) is a climate scientist, professor, journalist/speaker, author and founder/consultant of 6esm, a C-level consulting firm focused on the bio-economy, renewable energy and the politics of the Kyoto Protocol and others like it.

Gerald’s a frequent contributor to the HuffingtonPost, Canada’s National Observer and is the author of the peer-reviewed: Carbon Politics and the Failure of the Kyoto Protocol – in search for an answer to the failure of the international community to act on climate change.

Listen and Learn:

* The main reasons the Kyoto Protocol failed

* What caused the climate denier movement and how to stop it

* How a carbon tax credit system is working well in Canada

* What propaganda is doing to political discourse

* How everyone can do their part to fighting climate change

* Did social media break democracy

* Unique ideas to change public perception of climate science

* How bad is the state of fake news and propaganda

* Why we still haven’t solved the collective action problem

* The importance of arguing against false beliefs

* Gerald’s thoughts on authoritarianism and inaction

* How tax breaks could incentivize innovation and investment in green tech

* The scary truth about geoengineering

* Why corporate campaign contributions are one of the biggest issues in America

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Gerald Kutney (@geraldkutney) is a climate scientist, professor, journalist/speaker, author and founder/consultant of 6esm, a C-level consulting firm focused on the bio-economy, renewable energy and the politics of the Kyoto Protocol and others like it.

Gerald’s a frequent contributor to the HuffingtonPost, Canada’s National Observer and is the author of the peer-reviewed: Carbon Politics and the Failure of the Kyoto Protocol – in search for an answer to the failure of the international community to act on climate change.

Listen and Learn:

* The main reasons the Kyoto Protocol failed

* What caused the climate denier movement and how to stop it

* How a carbon tax credit system is working well in Canada

* What propaganda is doing to political discourse

* How everyone can do their part to fighting climate change

* Did social media break democracy

* Unique ideas to change public perception of climate science

* How bad is the state of fake news and propaganda

* Why we still haven’t solved the collective action problem

* The importance of arguing against false beliefs

* Gerald’s thoughts on authoritarianism and inaction

* How tax breaks could incentivize innovation and investment in green tech

* The scary truth about geoengineering

* Why corporate campaign contributions are one of the biggest issues in America

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.

Chip Meakem is a co-founder and Managing Partner of Tribeca Venture Partners. Prior to co-founding Tribeca, Chip worked at both Kodiak Venture Partners and DFJ Gotham. Previous notable acquired investments include Appnexus, Ingenio and Q-Link.

Listen and Learn:

* How quantum computing will change the world forever

* What areas Chip sees as the biggest opportunities to invest in

* Why companies like Uber and DoorDash are such powerful democratizing forces

* What is the future of the ad economy

* Are you in a VC bubble, and what happens next

* Thoughts on triple bottom businesses and social entrepreneurship

* Why education inequality is the scariest thing about the US

* Which tech companies Chip would bet big on

* Thoughts on the trade war and its impact on startups and tech

* The unintended consequences of government regulation

* How technology can transform education for the better

* Why Chip isn’t a fan of encryption and believes platforms should police themselves

* How business can be used as a force for good

* Why Amazon may end up owning healthcare

* Why cybersecurity is such a big deal

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Chip Meakem is a co-founder and Managing Partner of Tribeca Venture Partners. Prior to co-founding Tribeca, Chip worked at both Kodiak Venture Partners and DFJ Gotham. Previous notable acquired investments include Appnexus, Ingenio and Q-Link.

Listen and Learn:

* How quantum computing will change the world forever

* What areas Chip sees as the biggest opportunities to invest in

* Why companies like Uber and DoorDash are such powerful democratizing forces

* What is the future of the ad economy

* Are you in a VC bubble, and what happens next

* Thoughts on triple bottom businesses and social entrepreneurship

* Why education inequality is the scariest thing about the US

* Which tech companies Chip would bet big on

* Thoughts on the trade war and its impact on startups and tech

* The unintended consequences of government regulation

* How technology can transform education for the better

* Why Chip isn’t a fan of encryption and believes platforms should police themselves

* How business can be used as a force for good

* Why Amazon may end up owning healthcare

* Why cybersecurity is such a big deal

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.

Andrew Winston is the founder of Winston Eco-Strategies, author of The Big Pivot and Green Recovery, and coauthored Green to Gold, the best-selling guide to what works — and what doesn’t — when companies go green.

He’s a globally recognized expert on green business and has appeared in WSJ, Time, BusinessWeek, NYTimes, and CNBC. His clients have included Bank of America, Bayer, HP, Pepsi, Boeing, and IKEA.

He’s a respected speaker, served as the Director of Corporate Environmental Strategy Project at Yale’s renowned School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and has a weekly column for Harvard Business Online. He was recently named a “Planet Defender” by Rock the Earth.

 

Listen and Learn:

* How to redesign the economy and stock market to incentivize a better future

* What are the biggest megatrends affecting our future

* Why eating less/clean meat is the biggest thing you can do to fight climate change

* Fixing the shareholder value incentive ruining our world

* Why short-termism is the route of the most evil

* What you should know about the Green New Deal

* Why the US doesn’t do enough for infrastructure

* The reason the US doesn’t solve the election turnout issues

* How close are we to point of no return on environment

* Andrew’s thoughts on the future of renewable energy and why it’s inevitable

* Why Andrew’s optimistic about fighting climate change

* What’s the role of government going forward

* Why we need circular economics and to tackle climate change now

* The danger of the devices and social media

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.Andrew Winston is the founder of Winston Eco-Strategies, author of The Big Pivot and Green Recovery, and coauthored Green to Gold, the best-selling guide to what works — and what doesn’t — when companies go green.

He’s a globally recognized expert on green business and has appeared in WSJ, Time, BusinessWeek, NYTimes, and CNBC. His clients have included Bank of America, Bayer, HP, Pepsi, Boeing, and IKEA.

He’s a respected speaker, served as the Director of Corporate Environmental Strategy Project at Yale’s renowned School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and has a weekly column for Harvard Business Online. He was recently named a “Planet Defender” by Rock the Earth.

 

Listen and Learn:

* How to redesign the economy and stock market to incentivize a better future

* What are the biggest megatrends affecting our future

* Why eating less/clean meat is the biggest thing you can do to fight climate change

* Fixing the shareholder value incentive ruining our world

* Why short-termism is the route of the most evil

* What you should know about the Green New Deal

* Why the US doesn’t do enough for infrastructure

* The reason the US doesn’t solve the election turnout issues

* How close are we to point of no return on environment

* Andrew’s thoughts on the future of renewable energy and why it’s inevitable

* Why Andrew’s optimistic about fighting climate change

* What’s the role of government going forward

* Why we need circular economics and to tackle climate change now

Jaya Rao is the co-founder of Molekule, a transformative SF based startup that’s raised $38M+ to tackle the clean air problem worldwide, starting in people’s homes to promote a healthier future. Prior to Molekule, Jaya focused with Stanford’s Public Sector InnovationLabs to work with citizens to redesign public transit.

Listen and Learn:

* The epidemic of air pollution worldwide

* How mold, toxins, and allergies lead to shortened lifespans and disease

* Why we need more women and diversity in tech and government

* Public transit from a public policy perspective

* Why the indoors is often many times more polluted than outside

* Which tech trends most worry Jaya and why

* The power and problems of the smart home movement

* What science-focused startups need to do differently to raise money

* Why competitive entrepreneurs and innovators are the answer to most problems

* The reason hardware is so hard to fund

* Why diversity leads to much better outcomes

* The importance of commercializing university innovations

* The state of health tech today

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.

Jaya Rao is the co-founder of Molekule, a transformative SF based startup that’s raised $38M+ to tackle the clean air problem worldwide, starting in people’s homes to promote a healthier future. Prior to Molekule, Jaya focused with Stanford’s Public Sector InnovationLabs to work with citizens to redesign public transit.

Listen and Learn:

* The epidemic of air pollution worldwide

* How mold, toxins, and allergies lead to shortened lifespans and disease

* Why we need more women and diversity in tech and government

* Public transit from a public policy perspective

* Why the indoors is often many times more polluted than outside

* Which tech trends most worry Jaya and why

* The power and problems of the smart home movement

* What science-focused startups need to do differently to raise money

* Why competitive entrepreneurs and innovators are the answer to most problems

* The reason hardware is so hard to fund

* Why diversity leads to much better outcomes

* The importance of commercializing university innovations

* The state of health tech today

Are you an accredited investor? Apply to join our angel syndicate if you’d like to access our deal flow.