Our guest today is Maxime Barbier, co-founder and CEO of Timeleft.

They are organizing dinners for strangers. Imagine a sort of blind date with 5 other people while eating good food. Spicy!

Timeleft is now live in 320+ cities across 65 countries. Every Wednesday, more than 25,000 people gather in restaurants worldwide to share a meal and experience the joy of genuine human connection and they went from 0 to 16m Eur run rate in 18 months.

During this episode we discuss the return to "irl", the effects of social media and why you should go on a Timeleft experience.

Enjoy!

A comprehensive guide to personal cybersecurity, emphasizing the evolving threat landscape from mid-2024 to mid-2025, marked by unprecedented data exposures like the 16-billion credential "GOAT" leak.

We highlight the shift in risk from corporate servers to individual user devices, largely due to infostealer malware.

The document details major data breaches across various sectors, identifying common attack vectors such as supply chain vulnerabilities, insider threats, and the sophisticated evolution of ransomware.

Crucially, we outlines a modern password and authentication strategy, advocating for long, unique passphrases, the ubiquitous adoption of multi-factor authentication (MFA)—prioritizing hardware keys and authenticator apps—and the essential role of password managers as a "digital vault" for secure credential management.

Finally, we underline the importance of proactive breach monitoring through services like "Have I Been Pwned?", cultivating phishing awareness, diligent software updates, and securing home and public Wi-Fi networks to build robust digital resilience.

Two weeks ago, I was in New York for the Venture Intelligence day (organised by Vestberry) moderating a panel with some pretty savvy VCs — among them Left Lane Capital a spinoff from Insight Partners with $2B AuM, Galaxy Ventures with $1.5B AuM, and Angelini Ventures with $300M AuM.

The topic? Platform 2.0 — how VCs are going beyond capital to actually support founders.

We talked talent, playbooks, community, business development, growth — and what it really means to be ‘value-add’ in 2025.

This episode is the result of that trip. A deep dive into how the smartest firms are supercharging portfolio support — and what the future of venture capital looks like.

Curious how your VC firm can provide more valueadd? Visit valueadd.network and let's have a chat.

An in-depth look at the complex and often turbulent relationship between Elon Musk and Donald Trump, focusing on its historical context and a significant public dispute in June 2025.

We chart the evolution from initial skepticism and pragmatic advisory roles to periods of strong public support and financial contributions, culminating in a dramatic falling out over a legislative bill.

We analyze the strategic use of their respective social media platforms, X and Truth Social, as battlegrounds for influence, highlighting their differing reaches and implications.

Ultimately, we explore the underlying motivations of ego, business interests, and political ambition that drive their interactions, along with the financial and broader political ramifications of their highly public conflicts.

Salar al Khafaji - founder and CEO of Monumental.

At Monumental they are developing a suite of autonomous, electric robots which can work around the clock so everyone can afford a high-quality house or apartment in a beautiful city or village.

Last year they’ve raise a 23M Eur round from Hummingbird, Northzone, Plural and other investors with the mission to make construction primarily software-defined and work towards a future where beautiful, bespoke buildings are built within a single day with minimal labor.

Prior to Monumental, Salar built and sold the data company Silk to Palantir.

During this episode we discuss about the construction market and how it is the only industry the productivity has decreased, his mistakes from his first business Silk, and the biggest current bottleneck at Monumental.

Enjoy!

We provide an extensive overview of the global construction market, highlighting its significant economic impact and projected growth to over $16 trillion by 2030.

We detail the substantial contribution of the construction sector to global GDP and employment, emphasizing its role as a key economic driver.

We also focus on the European construction market, outlining its regional importance and growth, alongside the pervasive influence of technological innovation, including BIM, 3D printing, AI, and robotics, in transforming industry practices.

Specific attention is given to bricklaying robotics startups like Monumental and FBR, showcasing their advancements in automation to address labor shortages and enhance efficiency and safety within the industry.

Trends – Artificial Intelligence - compiled by Mary Meeker "queen of the internet", Jay Simons, Daegwon Chae, and Alexander Krey of BOND.

This episode reveals a data-driven picture of acceleration across multiple dimensions – technical, financial, social, physical, and geopolitical.

You can find the full report here.

Jan-Hendrick Boelens co-founder and CEO of Alpine Eagle.

Munich-based and backed by leading investors including General Catalyst and IQ Capital, Alpine Eagle is building the world's first air-to-air counter-drone system.

Prior to Alpine Jan-Hendrick was chief engineer at Airbus, and CTO at Volocopter and Quantum Systems.

During this episode we discuss how technology can help protect democracies in the face of global instability, why Europe needs and single defence market and the dependency on China in the supply chain.

Enjoy!

An overview of the European defense market, excluding Russia, highlighting a significant and accelerated increase in investment driven by the changed geopolitical landscape, primarily following the conflict in Ukraine.

We detail the current size and projected growth of defense spending by EU and key European NATO nations, emphasizing the commitment to and achievement of NATO spending targets as a percentage of GDP, with several countries exceeding the 2% benchmark.

We also outlines the key drivers of this transformation, including geopolitical imperatives and strategic alignment within NATO and the EU, alongside emerging trends like technological advancements in AI, cybersecurity, and advanced platforms, as well as industrial and procurement dynamics aiming for greater collaboration and strategic autonomy.

Finally, we discuss investment opportunities in leading European defense companies and attractive market segments, while also addressing the strategic considerations and risks for investors, such as production scalability, supply chain vulnerabilities, fiscal sustainability, and evolving ethical concerns.

Explore the transformative force of Artificial Intelligence (AI), outlining its historical evolution from foundational concepts to modern advancements like generative AI and large language models.

We detail the primary drivers fueling AI's growth, including technological enablers like increased computing power and big data, as well as economic and societal factors.

Furthermore, we analyze the vast opportunities AI presents across key industries such as healthcare, finance, and transportation, alongside its potential to drive economic growth and offer societal benefits.

Finally, we critically examine the significant threats and challenges accompanying AI, emphasizing ethical considerations, potential socio-economic impacts, security vulnerabilities, and inherent technical limitations.