Complexity Investing & Semiconductors with NZS Capital (Extended Cut)

Of our 65+ sources for the TSMC episode, one stood above the rest: a wonderful Knowledge Project episode with Brinton Johns and Jon Bathgate of NZS Capital laying out the state of the semiconductor market. When coincidentally we met Brinton a week later, we knew fate was telling us we had to dig deeper. It turns out NZS has a lot more to teach Acquired than just about semis! Here we dive into their fascinating philosophy of "complexity investing", which was born out of their interactions with the world-famous Santa Fe Institute (of W. Brian Arthur and Increasing Returns fame!)... and of course we also throw in some semiconductor shop-talk for good measure. :) Full episode page at https://www.acquired.fm/episodes/complexity-investing-semiconductors-with-nzs-capital If you love Acquired and want more, join our LP Community for access to over 50 LP-only episodes, monthly Zoom calls, and live access for big events like emergency pods and book club discussions with authors. We can't wait to see you there. Join here at: https://acquired.fm/lp/ Sponsors: Thanks to SoftBank Latin America for being our presenting sponsor for this special episode. If you are an entrepreneur, employee, other investor or simply someone who's interested in learning about the best young companies in LatAm right now, get in touch with them at: https://bit.ly/acquiredsoftbanklatam , and tell them that Ben and David sent you! You can get in touch with their portfolio company Banco Inter and their CEO João Vitor Menin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/joãovitormenin/ Thank you as well to Modern Treasury and to Fundrise. You can learn more about them at: https://bit.ly/acquiredmoderntreasury (and you can find our reverse interview with them at https://www.moderntreasury.com/acquired ) https://bit.ly/acquiredfundrise Links: NZS Capital: https://www.nzscapital.com The Santa Fe Institute: https://www.santafe.edu NZS's white paper on Complexity Investing: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ca38f3216b6405d11e3d4b4/t/60131df6a8d27d63432ea5ff/1611865607574/Complexity_2021update-v9pt2.pdf Brinton & Jon on The Knowledge Project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6NUO_bymuA Twitter: Brinton: https://twitter.com/bjohns3 Jon: https://twitter.com/jbathgate Brad: https://twitter.com/bradsling *‍Note: Acquired hosts and guests may hold assets discussed in this episode. This podcast is not investment advice, and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. You should do your own research and make your own independent decisions when considering any financial transactions.*

Ben GilberthostDavid RosenthalhostBrinton Johnsguest

Nov 3, 20211h 59mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: November 3, 2021
Duration: 1h 59m
Channel: Acquired
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Of our 65+ sources for the TSMC episode, one stood above the rest: a wonderful Knowledge Project episode with Brinton Johns and Jon Bathgate of NZS Capital laying out the state of the semiconductor market. When coincidentally we met Brinton a week later, we knew fate was telling us we had to dig deeper. It turns out NZS has a lot more to teach Acquired than just about semis! Here we dive into their fascinating philosophy of "complexity investing", which was born out of their interactions with the world-famous Santa Fe Institute (of W. Brian Arthur and Increasing Returns fame!)... and of course we also throw in some semiconductor shop-talk for good measure. :) Full episode page at https://www.acquired.fm/episodes/complexity-investing-semiconductors-with-nzs-capital If you love Acquired and want more, join our LP Community for access to over 50 LP-only episodes, monthly Zoom calls, and live access for big events like emergency pods and book club discussions with authors. We can't wait to see you there. Join here at: https://acquired.fm/lp/ Sponsors: Thanks to SoftBank Latin America for being our presenting sponsor for this special episode. If you are an entrepreneur, employee, other investor or simply someone who's interested in learning about the best young companies in LatAm right now, get in touch with them at: https://bit.ly/acquiredsoftbanklatam , and tell them that Ben and David sent you! You can get in touch with their portfolio company Banco Inter and their CEO João Vitor Menin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/joãovitormenin/ Thank you as well to Modern Treasury and to Fundrise. You can learn more about them at: https://bit.ly/acquiredmoderntreasury (and you can find our reverse interview with them at https://www.moderntreasury.com/acquired ) https://bit.ly/acquiredfundrise Links: NZS Capital: https://www.nzscapital.com The Santa Fe Institute: https://www.santafe.edu NZS's white paper on Complexity Investing: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ca38f3216b6405d11e3d4b4/t/60131df6a8d27d63432ea5ff/1611865607574/Complexity_2021update-v9pt2.pdf Brinton & Jon on The Knowledge Project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6NUO_bymuA Twitter: Brinton: https://twitter.com/bjohns3 Jon: https://twitter.com/jbathgate Brad: https://twitter.com/bradsling *‍Note: Acquired hosts and guests may hold assets discussed in this episode. This podcast is not investment advice, and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. You should do your own research and make your own independent decisions when considering any financial transactions.*

SPEAKERS

Ben Gilbert
host
David Rosenthal
host
Brinton Johns
guest

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Acquired, featuring Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal, Complexity Investing & Semiconductors with NZS Capital (Extended Cut) explores nZS Capital explains complexity investing, resilience, optionality, and semiconductors today NZS Capital grounds its investing philosophy in complexity theory: markets and companies are complex adaptive systems with emergent behavior, making precise prediction unreliable and pushing investors toward adaptability and resilience.

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