Skip to content
All-In PodcastAll-In Podcast

E26: State of Venture Capital, plus fan questions on longevity, decentralization & quantum computing

View the State of VC deck here: https://rb.gy/wfan6j Follow the besties: https://twitter.com/chamath https://linktr.ee/calacanis https://twitter.com/DavidSacks https://twitter.com/friedberg Follow the pod: https://twitter.com/theallinpod https://linktr.ee/allinpodcast Intro Music Credit: https://rb.gy/tppkzl https://twitter.com/yung_spielburg Intro Video Credit: https://twitter.com/MikeSylvan Referenced in the show: Lifespan by David Sinclair: https://rb.gy/etzzmk Prenuvo: https://www.prenuvo.com Gumroad Equity Crowdfunding: https://republic.co/gumroad Backstage Equity Crowdfunding: https://republic.co/backstage Show Notes: 0:00 Bestie intro & poker talk 5:49 Fan question: Longevity & Biohacking, Chamath's health regimen 12:54 Fan question: Decentralization, separation of currency & state, will governments fight back against crypto? 22:48 Fan question: Quantum computing's potential impact, why heavy R&D technologies should are better suited for government funding rather than the private sector 33:33 Chamath's thesis behind deep tech investing 37:25 State of VC & how it's changing in terms of demographics, new access to capital, deal size & more 48:49 Trend of founders caring more about individual investors rather than firms, who is well-positioned & who is left out? 55:00 Why growth stage firms could become less relevant: undifferentiated capital, routing around dilution, brand matters more in the early-stage; how Pipe & Clearbanc are revolutionizing non-dilutive funding 1:04:00 Summarizing the changing landscape of venture capital, how startups can best position themselves in a full lifecycle, innovations in equity crowdfunding, opportunity for entrepreneurs #allin #tech #news

Jason CalacanishostDavid FriedberghostChamath Palihapitiyahost
Mar 19, 20211h 17mWatch on YouTube ↗

At a glance

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Venture Capital’s New Playbook: Longevity, Bitcoin, Quantum, and SPACs

  1. The episode blends fan Q&A with a deep dive into how venture capital is being reshaped by new technologies, new financing tools, and shifting power dynamics. The hosts discuss practical longevity strategies, the political and economic implications of Bitcoin and decentralized finance, and the realistic timeline and impact of quantum computing. They then analyze how venture capital has evolved: larger rounds, crossover investors, SPACs, non-dilutive revenue financing, and increased—though still insufficient—founder and investor diversity. The conversation ends by emphasizing how much easier it is today to start and finance a company, and urging aspiring founders to build real skills and reject a victim mindset.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Longevity is increasingly actionable through both lifestyle and new diagnostics.

Fasting, exercise, metformin, NAD+ precursors, and comprehensive scans (e.g., whole‑body MRI via Prenuvo, heart-flow CT with calcium scoring) can help extend healthspan and detect cancer or heart disease early, but require proactive, preventive behavior and some financial means.

Bitcoin embodies a potential ‘separation of money and state’—but governments will fight back.

As Bitcoin shifts from retail to institutional adoption, it is framed as an antidote to inflation and political money-printing, yet regulators in countries like India and China may restrict or ban it, especially where capital controls are central to state power.

DeFi could massively financialize real-world assets while tightening tax visibility.

Tokenizing homes, cars, art, and even careers could enable borrowing, trading, and fractional ownership at scale; because many of these assets exist physically, they can still be taxed, and blockchain records may reduce today’s ‘leakage’ in gray markets even if some purely digital assets remain anonymous.

Quantum computing is powerful but far from cracking modern cryptography.

Current machines have noisy qubits and are well under one logical qubit; estimates suggest a <5% chance of having enough logical qubits to break RSA‑2048 before 2040, while nearer-term value will come from simulating quantum systems for materials, chemistry, and pharma rather than breaking Bitcoin.

Venture capital has shifted to larger, later-stage bets fueled by crossover and SPAC capital.

Average round sizes are up 3x (5x in late stage), growth valuations have exploded (e.g., typical growth pre-money from ~$100M to ~$573M in a decade), and funds like Tiger, Coatue, and SoftBank aggressively ‘growth-stage’ invest, while SPACs have become the new crossover path to public markets.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

Arguably, someone is alive on planet Earth today that could live past the age of 200.

David Friedberg

Crypto is introducing the idea that the government cannot control the money supply—that’s the separation of money and state.

David Sacks

Quantum computing is like fusion… a way to burn an enormous amount of money over 20 or 30 years.

Chamath Palihapitiya

Any company that’s trying to raise hundreds of millions of dollars pre–Series A is presumptively fraud. There’s still too much R&D involved.

David Sacks

If you are not building the product in some way or selling the product in some way, then what are you doing at this startup?

Jason Calacanis

Practical approaches and emerging science in longevity and preventive healthBitcoin, decentralization of monetary value, and DeFi’s impact on states and taxationQuantum computing fundamentals, realistic timelines, and its relationship to crypto and materials scienceStructural changes in venture capital: round sizes, valuations, crossover funds, SPACsFounder and investor demographics, diversity gaps, and shifting founder profilesDisruption of traditional VC by solo capitalists, revenue-based financing (Pipe, Clearbanc), and equity crowdfundingGuidance for aspiring founders: optimal timing, continuous learning, and skill-building

High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.

Get more out of YouTube videos.

High quality summaries for YouTube videos. Accurate transcripts to search & find moments. Powered by ChatGPT & Claude AI.

Add to Chrome