Venture with Grace

Venture with Grace

By Grace GongBusinessInvesting
Download on the App Store

Venture with Grace episodes

  • Junghee Ryu & Carl Choi, RLWRLD on AI Robotics Infrastructure

    Junghee Ryu is the Founder & CEO of RLWRLD, and Carl Choi is President of U.S. operations, together leading the company’s mission to build robotics foundation models and the infrastructure required to bring physical AI into real-world industrial environments. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~RLWRLD is developing vision-language-action systems and robotics foundation models designed for dexterous manipulation, enabling robots to perceive, reason, and execute complex tasks across manufacturing and logistics. Junghee, a KAIST PhD and serial deep-tech founder of Olaworks (acquired by Intel) and FuturePlay, brings deep expertise in AI systems, venture building, and robotics research. Carl, a former Partner at Alumni Ventures with prior operating roles across enterprise strategy and corporate development, leads U.S. expansion, partnerships, and go-to-market execution across robotics, AI, and industrial automation. Together, they are building the full stack for physical AI—from foundation models to real-world deployment infrastructure—bridging research breakthroughs with scalable industrial adoption.Topics

    • Building robotics foundation models and vision-language-action systems
    • Turning physical AI into deployable industrial infrastructure
    • How RLWRLD RFM achieves human dexterity for factory automation

    #Robotics #AI #PhysicalAI #DeepTech #Automation #IndustrialAI #Startups

    1 hr 7 min
  • Robin Daniels, Zensai Chief Business Officer on AI-Native GTM

    Robin Daniels is the Chief Business & Product Officer at Zensai, where he leads marketing, product, partnerships, and go-to-market strategy for the company’s AI-powered human performance platform built for the Microsoft ecosystem. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~A veteran operator across some of tech’s most recognizable growth companies, Robin has held executive leadership roles at Matterport, WeWork, Salesforce, LinkedIn, Box, Veritas, and Vera, building expertise across category creation, product innovation, growth strategy, and organizational leadership. Beyond operating roles, he is an advisor and LP at firms including byFounders and Stage 2 Capital, supporting AI-native startups on scaling revenue and go-to-market execution. Originally from Copenhagen and shaped by more than two decades in the U.S. and UK tech ecosystems, Robin is also the author of The Human Success Playbook, focused on how humans and AI can work together inside modern organizations.Topics

    • How Zensai AI doubles performance in Microsoft ecosystems at global scale
    • Lessons from scaling companies through IPOs and hypergrowth phases
    • The future of human performance, leadership, and AI collaboration at work

    #B2B #Leadership #EnterpriseSoftware #Startups #FutureOfWork

    1 hr 8 min
  • Mathias Biilmann, Netlify CEO on the Future of Modern Web Development

    Mathias Biilmann is the CEO and Co-Founder of Netlify, the modern web development platform used by millions of developers and thousands of enterprises to build, deploy, and scale composable web applications. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~A longtime developer tools entrepreneur and open-source contributor, Mathias is widely recognized for pioneering the Jamstack movement and helping redefine how modern websites and applications are built. Before founding Netlify in 2014, he created products including BitBalloon and Webpop, focused on simplifying web publishing and developer workflows. Today, he continues to shape the future of front-end cloud infrastructure, composable architecture, and AI-powered developer experiences, helping teams build faster, more scalable applications across the modern web ecosystem.Topics

    • Building Netlify and pioneering the Jamstack movement
    • The evolution of composable architecture and front-end cloud infrastructure
    • How AI is reshaping developer workflows and web development

    #WebDevelopment #Jamstack #DeveloperTools #CloudInfrastructure

    1 hr
  • Mada Seghete, Upside CEO & Co-Founder on Revenue Intelligence for B2B

    Mada Seghete is the CEO and Co-Founder of Upside, a revenue intelligence platform helping B2B companies understand and optimize what drives deal outcomes across marketing, sales, partnerships, and customer success. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Previously, she co-founded Branch, the mobile deep linking and measurement platform, where she served as CMO and helped scale the company to over $100M+ in revenue. Born in Romania, she studied Electrical and Computer Engineering at Cornell and earned her M.S. and MBA from Stanford. Today, she focuses on building AI-native revenue systems for modern go-to-market teams while also investing in and supporting women founders through XFactor Ventures and community initiatives including a global founders retreat.Topics

    • How Upside attribution turns B2B revenue chaos into predictable wins
    • Scaling Branch from mobile deep linking to $100M+ enterprise dominance
    • Building women founder retreats that drive venture outcomes at scale

    #RevOps #RevenueIntelligence #WomenInTech #B2B #FounderCommunities

    57 min
  • Calvin Chin, Managing Partner E14 Fund on Investing in Frontier Tech

    Calvin Chin is Managing Partner of E14 Fund, the early-stage venture fund affiliated with the MIT Media Lab, where he backs deep tech founders translating frontier research into scalable companies. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Previously, he was Founder & CEO of Transist, an incubator investing across the continents in impact-driven startups, and earlier founded Qifang, China’s first online student loan platform, recognized by the World Economic Forum as a Technology Pioneer. A World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and Fast Company “Most Creative People in Business” honoree, Calvin has spent his career operating at the intersection of research, entrepreneurship, and global capital flows, focused on turning technical breakthroughs into category-defining companies.Topics

    • Turning frontier research into venture-scale companies from MIT and beyond
    • Investing across U.S.–China innovation ecosystems: lessons and shifts
    • What actually matters when backing deep tech founders (beyond the science)

    #VentureCapital #DeepTech #Startups #Innovation #MIT #FrontierTech

    1 hr 1 min
  • Andrew Garvin, Metronome, Co-Founder & COO on Usage Billing

    Andrew Garvin is Co-Founder and COO of Metronome~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~The usage-based billing leader acquired by Stripe enabling AI companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, Confluent, and Anyscale to monetize complex SKUs, hybrid models, and sales-led motions with multidimensional metering—previously Fractional CFO to tech startups/VC funds, advisor to 8VC and Blend, Partner at Hybrid (crowd work platform), CFO at Mithril Capital ($1.4B Peter Thiel fund backing Palantir/Reddit/Auris), Director of Finance at Halcyon Molecular (EM genome sequencing), Principal at Clarium Capital ($8B macro hedge fund); Stanford GSB MBA with enterprise scale playbook.Topics

    • How Metronome powers Stripe usage billing without complex engineering builds
    • Growing Hybrid enterprise sales during crowd platform category creation
    • AI monetization readiness with multidimensional metering at Stripe scale

    #UsageBilling #Metronome #Stripe #Fintech #BillingTech

    58 min
  • Darren Moffett, LangChain VP of Sales on Enterprise AI

    Darren Moffett is Vice President of Sales at LangChain, leading go-to-market for the leading agent engineering platform powering production AI agents for enterprises—previously VP Sales AMER and Area VP Regional Sales at GitLab scaling DevSecOps adoption, Area VP US High Tech at MuleSoft driving enterprise integration leadership in Western Region; UC Davis History BA with proven track record building high-performing sales teams across developer platforms from open source to $100M+ ARR commercial motions. with prior enterprise leadership at Numerify, Cloudera, and xMatters (Area VP scaling incident response communications).~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 20+ year track record scaling DevOps, data analytics, and integration platforms at category leaders, now applying hyperscaler go-to-market expertise to LangChain's agentic AI ecosystem.TopicsHow LangChain scales production AI agents without prototype-to-production gapsGrowing GitLab AMER sales through DevSecOps platform adoption surgeDriving MuleSoft high tech enterprise integration during Western Region expansionDeveloper platform GTM readiness at LangSmith enterprise deployment scale#EnterpriseAI #LangChain #GitLab #MuleSoft #DevTools

    55 min
  • Alex Ren, Fellows Fund, Founding Partner on AI Investing

    Alex Ren is Founding Partner at Fellows Fund ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Backing frontier AI infrastructure with 20+ years across engineering, recruiting, and venture—seed investor in Sycamore Labs ($65M trusted agent OS), investor in Periodic Labs (OpenAI ex-VP science AI), Replit ($3B unicorn), Corgi ($108M AI insurance carrier), Dyna Robotics (DYNA-1 robotics foundation model), Scalar Field (AI trading terminal), BOND (Chief of Staff AI), alongside Abridge, GC AI, MAI Agents, Higgsfield AI, and Evidently; previously led TalentSeer AI recruiting, founded mobile app startup, autonomous vehicle researcher—UCAS Master's operator turned SF ecosystem investor building agentic execution systems.TopicsHow Fellows Fund sources AI breakout winners without traditional VC gatekeepersGrowing Periodic Labs talent exodus from OpenAI Meta DeepMind to science AIRobotics readiness with Dyna Robotics foundation models at $120M+ scale#AIVC #FellowsFund #SycamoreLabs #Robotics #DeepTech

    59 min
  • Zach Lloyd, Warp Founder & CEO on Terminals for AI-Native Developers

    Zach Lloyd is the Founder & CEO of Warp, the modern terminal reimagined for how developers actually work today—bringing structure, collaboration, and AI into a tool that has remained largely unchanged since the VT100 era. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Prior to Warp, Zach was a Principal Engineer at Google, where he led engineering for core products like Google Sheets and contributed to the broader Docs ecosystem used by billions globally. He later served as CTO of TIME and co-founded SelfMade, a venture-backed startup focused on empowering creators. Across roles, his throughline has been clear: building tools that meaningfully improve how people create and operate. With Warp, Zach is tackling one of the last untouched surfaces in the developer stack—transforming the terminal from a static interface into an intelligent, collaborative environment designed for speed, clarity, and AI-native workflows.Topics

    • Reinventing the terminal: from VT100 emulation to AI-native developer workflows
    • Why developer tools stagnate—and how Warp rethinks interface, speed, and usability
    • Embedding AI directly into core dev environments vs. layering on copilots

    #DevTools #Warp #GoogleSheets #DevEx #Terminal

    1 hr 2 min
  • Noam Schwartz, Alice CEO & Co-Founder on Securing AI Systems at Scale

    Noam Schwartz is the CEO & Co-founder of Alice, a trust, safety, and security platform purpose-built for the AI era—protecting models, autonomous agents, and user-generated ecosystems from emerging threats. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~He is also closely associated with ActiveFence, where he has led efforts to safeguard digital platforms for major technology companies and Fortune 500 enterprises, helping protect billions of users globally. Previously, Noam was VP of Business & Corporate Development at SimilarWeb, where he drove M&A and strategic partnerships, including the acquisition of his own startup, TapDog. Across his career—from founding early UGC platforms to scaling enterprise-grade safety infrastructure—Noam has consistently operated at the intersection of data, platforms, and risk. With Alice, he is now focused on a critical frontier: building end-to-end security and governance layers for AI systems, where model integrity, content safety, and agent behavior must be managed cohesively in real time.Topics

    • How Alice secures AI models without fragmented trust safety tooling
    • Growing ActiveFence client protection during GenAI UGC threat expansion
    • AI safety readiness with serial founder frameworks at enterprise platform scale

    #AISecurity #Alice #TrustSafety #SimilarWeb #DeepTech

    54 min

About Venture with Grace

From the publisher's feed

I host a top VC podcast called Smart Venture Podcast (SVPpro.com). Past guests include C-level/VPs of Google, Meta, Amazon, Sephora, Dunkin' Donuts, Chipotle, Pepsi, Instagram, Deloitte, Reddit, Lyft, etc. Managing Partners of top funds (many were featured on the Forbes Midas List) and unicorn founders (founders of Craigslist, Square, Loom, Cruise, etc.) Venture with Grace is my new spin-off series that features top LPs, GPs, solo GPs, Angel Investors, top AI founders, and other experts in tech and business to cover specific domain expertise.