In conversation with a venture capitalist

Todd Ruppert in conversation with serial entrepreneur and technology investor, Joe Lonsdale.[vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22Joe%20Lonsdale%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Founder%20and%20general%20partner%2C%208VC%20(United%20States)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22Joe%20is%20a%20serial%20entrepreneur%20and%20technology%20investor.%20While%20a%20computer%20science%20student%20at%20Stanford%20University%20he%20interned%20at%20PayPal.%20Upon%20graduation%20he%20left%20PayPal%20to%20work%20in%20a%20variety%20of%20roles%20with%20PayPal%20co-founder%2C%20Peter%20Thiel.%20In%202004%20he%20co-founded%20Palantir%20Technologies%2C%20a%20data%20analytics%20software%20firm%2C%20%20with%20Peter%20Thiel%20and%20others.%20Palantir%20went%20public%20in%20September%202020%3B%20it%20was%20valued%20at%20over%20%2440%20billion%20on%20April%2030%2C%202021.%20Joe%20left%20Palantir%20in%202009%20to%20co-found%20Addepar%2C%20a%20wealth%20management%20and%20data%20analytics%20firm%2C%20which%20today%20administers%20over%20%242%20trillion%20in%20assets.%20Other%20companies%20Joe%20founded%20include%20OpenGov%2C%20Esper%2C%20Anduin%20Transactions%2C%20Affinity%2C%20Epirus%20Systems%2C%20and%20Zanbato.%5Cn%5CnJoe%20has%20invested%20in%20numerous%20technology%2C%20biotechnology%2C%20healthcare%2C%20logistics%2C%20and%20other%20companies%20since%20leaving%20Palantir%2C%20most%20recently%20through%20his%20venture%20capital%20firm%2C%208VC%2C%20which%20he%20founded%20in%202015.%20All%20of%20his%20funds%20were%20oversubscribed.%20Notable%20portfolio%20companies%20include%20Elon%20Musk%E2%80%99s%20The%20Boring%20Company%20(where%20Joe%20is%20a%20member%20of%20the%20board)%2C%20%20Joby%20Aviation%2C%20Wish%2C%20Flexport%2C%20Anduril%2C%20and%20Asana%2C%20among%20others.%20%20Joe%20debuted%20on%20the%20Forbes%20%E2%80%9CMidas%20List%E2%80%9D%20in%202016%20(as%20the%20youngest%20member).%20In%202020%20he%20was%20ranked%2036th%20in%20Forbes%E2%80%99s%20list%20of%20%E2%80%9CTop%20Tech%20Investors%E2%80%9D%20and%20in%202021%20was%20ranked%2018th%20on%20Forbes%E2%80%99s%20list%20of%20%E2%80%9CThe%20World%E2%80%99s%20Top%20100%20Venture%20Capitalists.%E2%80%9D%5Cn%5CnIn%202018%20Joe%20founded%20the%20Cicero%20Institute%2C%20a%20policy%20group%20that%20delivers%20entrepreneurial%20solutions%20to%20public%20problems.%20He%20and%20his%20wife%20are%20also%20active%20philanthropists.%20In%202020%20Joe%20moved%20from%20California%20(where%20he%20was%20a%20two%20time%20scholastic%20state%20chess%20champion)%20to%20Austin%2C%20Texas.%20He%20is%20working%20on%20an%20experimental%20Beta%20City%20on%20the%20outskirts%20of%20Austin%2C%20which%20would%20rival%20Neom%2C%20the%20%24500%20billion%20new%20city%20that%20Saudi%20Arabia%20Crown%20Prince%20is%20building.%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2244387%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fjtlonsdale%2F%22%7D%5D” title=”Speakers” el_class=””][vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22Todd%20Ruppert%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Chair%2C%20INSEAD%20endowment%20(United%20States)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22R.%20Todd%20Ruppert%20is%20founder%20of%20Ruppert%20International%2C%20a%20firm%20with%20diversified%20interests%20in%20various%20fields%20globally.%20He%20is%20a%20board%20member%20of%20INSEAD%20Business%20School%2C%20Wilshire%20Associates%2C%20Shetland%20Space%20Centre%2C%20The%20Fine%20Art%20Group%2C%20and%20the%20Rock%20%26%20Roll%20Hall%20of%20Fame%2C%20among%20others.%20He%20is%20a%20venture%20partner%20at%20Greenspring%20Associates%2C%20a%20%2412%20billion%20venture%20capital%20firm.%20He%20is%20also%20an%20advisor%20to%20venture%20capital%20firms%20Antler%2C%20Fin%20VC%2C%20Sure%20Ventures%2C%20and%20Global%20Ventures.%20He%20is%20an%20advisor%20to%20private%20equity%20firms%20Access%20Holdings%2C%20Motive%20Partners%20and%20BroadLight%20Capital.%20He%20is%20also%20a%20serial%20early%20stage%20investor%20and%20advisor%20to%20numerous%20companies%20globally.%20Ruppert%20has%20over%2040%20years%20in%20the%20financial%20services%20industry.%20He%20retired%20from%20T.%20Rowe%20Price%2C%20the%20global%20asset%20management%20firm%20with%20over%20%241.5%20trillion%20under%20management%2C%20where%20he%20was%20CEO%20and%20president%20of%20T.%20Rowe%20Price%20Global%20Investment%20Services%2C%20co-president%2C%20T.%20Rowe%20Price%20International%2C%20and%20a%20member%20of%20the%20operating%20steering%20committee%20of%20the%20T.%20Rowe%20Price%20Group.%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2244384%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22%22%7D%5D” title=”Moderator” el_class=””][vc_empty_space height=”10px”]

Key takeaways

• VC investment involves working with the most talented individuals to build companies, which in turn hold the seeds of future companies.
• It involves being across key trends and their wider ripple impact – like, for example, how smart phones triggered ride sharing.
• Successful investment involves finding out what is newly possible that wasn’t five years ago.
• At 8VC recent investment in the biotech sector includes establishing a first-of-its-kind manufacturing and technology company dedicated to broadening access to medicines and protecting the supply chain against disruption.
• Lonsdale is also at the forefront of investing in financial services, increasingly transformed by data, the cloud and APIs.
• Addepar is a leading private wealth management technology company.
• Institutional investors should come together to create a prize to help finance and develop cutting edge carbon capture technology.

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