AcquiredAcquired Live at Radio City Music Hall (Presented by J.P. Morgan)
CHAPTERS
Backstage nerves, New York vibes, and the “mystery show” premise
Ben and David open with a candid, comedic pre-show conversation about selling out Radio City without revealing the format or guests. They reflect on early live events and how far the show has come, setting a theatrical, Broadway-like tone for the night.
Radio City kickoff: turning a live podcast into a two-act CEO show
The hosts reveal the concept: two acts featuring conversations with iconic New York CEOs, with an intermission and a new, Radio City–specific format in Act Two. The production (music, stage energy) emphasizes this as a “show,” not a normal live recording.
Jamie Dimon’s reset: getting fired at Citi and rebuilding from scratch
Jamie Dimon recounts the 1998 Citigroup ouster and how it reshaped his path. He shares personal details from the day he was fired, the aftermath, and how he evaluated what to do next—including entertaining major alternative roles.
Fixing Bank One: systems chaos, board dysfunction, and culture overhaul
Dimon describes arriving at troubled Bank One and confronting fractured systems, declining performance, and an unusually large, divided board. He explains how he asserted operating discipline immediately and began rebuilding execution capability and accountability.
The Dimon risk doctrine: stress testing, incentives, and “don’t blow up”
Dimon lays out his philosophy of managing “fat-tail” risk, conservative accounting, and building resilience over maximizing near-term returns. He connects this worldview to history, leverage cycles, and the importance of incentives that don’t reward bad behavior.
Merger into JPMorgan Chase: business logic, execution, and the “Tiffany name”
The conversation moves to Bank One’s merger with JPMorgan Chase and Dimon’s eventual CEO succession. He emphasizes the merger’s strategic fit, the ability to execute integration, and why brand alone doesn’t save a bad deal.
2006–2009 crisis playbook: subprime pullback, Bear Stearns rescue, WaMu win
Dimon recounts early warnings before the financial crisis, then walks through the Bear Stearns emergency weekend and the later Washington Mutual acquisition. He contrasts Bear’s systemic necessity and messy aftermath with WaMu’s cleaner economics and strategic branch footprint.
Modern risk debates: private credit, asset valuations, and cyber as the big threat
Dimon assesses present-day systemic risks, arguing private credit is growing fast but likely not 2008-scale systemic. He flags elevated asset prices and emphasizes cyber risk—especially in national infrastructure—as the most consequential vulnerability.
2023 bank failures and First Republic: concentrated deposits and hidden duration risk
The hosts bring the story to SVB and First Republic, focusing on deposit concentration and interest-rate risk masked by accounting. Dimon explains why these failures cascaded quickly and how JPMorgan integrated and hedged First Republic rapidly after acquisition.
Act Two begins: Andrew Ross Sorkin’s quiz setup and Times “late-night desk” vibe
After intermission, the show pivots into a late-night talk show format. Andrew Ross Sorkin joins, teases Ben and David with a New York Times trivia quiz, and sets up the next CEO guest reveal.
Meredith Kopit Levien on the NYT comeback: subscriptions, bundles, and portfolio strategy
NYT CEO Meredith Kopit Levien gives an update since Acquired’s 2021 NYT episode: subscriber growth, a broader product bundle, and a more offensive posture culturally. She explains the strategic logic behind building/buying adjacent products that reinforce engagement and retention.
NYT vs AI: human journalism, product leverage, and the OpenAI/Microsoft lawsuit
Levien positions journalism as fundamentally human while viewing AI as a tool that can increase accessibility and reporting power. She defends the Times’ legal posture on model training, emphasizing fair value exchange, creator rights, and controlled partnerships.
Act Two games: custom Acquired Wordle and live audience trivia showdown
The show leans into interactive entertainment: a bespoke Acquired-themed Wordle with Levien, then an audience trivia segment. Surprise cameos and shout-outs culminate in revealing Acquired’s most-listened episode and bringing Howard Schultz into the moment.
Barry Diller’s career arc: Hollywood files, ABC freedom, Paramount hits, and Fox with Murdoch
Barry Diller traces his path from William Morris’s file room to ABC’s high-responsibility culture, then to Paramount’s turnaround and hit-making run. He reflects on founding Fox with Rupert Murdoch, praising Murdoch’s entrepreneurial risk-taking while rejecting “bet the company” as a general strategy.
QVC to IAC and the tech-media inversion: interactivity, portfolios, and Netflix’s dominance
Diller explains how QVC revealed interactive commerce and prepared him for the internet era, leading to IAC’s long history of building and acquiring major consumer internet brands. He closes with a blunt assessment of modern entertainment: tech platforms (especially Netflix) control the ecosystem and traditional studios can’t match their resources or business models.
Closing, curtain call, and post-show banter
Ben and David thank guests, sponsors, crew, and the audience, emphasizing the surreal milestone of playing Radio City. The night ends with onstage appreciation, quick reflections on favorite moments, and a playful post-credits question about Dimon’s political future.
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