RÉSUMÉ
En 30 secondes
Brad Gerstner says his early venture investing taught him to consider market size and potential outcomes alongside the effort required. His view is not a guarantee of returns.
- 1Effort and scaleGerstner compares the effort of starting different kinds of businesses.
- 2Power-law outcomesHe suggests considering opportunities with potentially larger outcomes.
- 3A lesson from mistakesHe recalls spending time on ideas with limited possible scale.
À retenir
- Gerstner argues that building very different businesses can require comparable effort.
- He encourages investors to consider large trends and markets.
- His account reflects his own investment strategy.
TEXTE INTÉGRAL
Lire le texte remanié, chapitre par chapitre
01
The size of the opportunity
Gerstner discusses effort, market size and his early investment mistakes.
Brad Gerstner argues that starting a restaurant and starting a technology company can both demand major emotional and intellectual effort. He says investors should consider the market and the trends behind an opportunity.
He describes venture investing as a search for power-law outcomes and recalls spending much of his first decade on ideas that, even if successful, had limited possible scale. This is his perspective, not a promise of investment returns.
Sur la même chaîne
1:00:17EN
20VC with Harry Stebbings· 29 oct. 2026Podcast · 3 voixHarry Stebbings, Jason Lemkin and Rory O’Driscoll on AI financing and venture betsInvité : Jason Lemkin, Rory O’Driscoll · Anime : Harry StebbingsThe investors debate AI lab economics, spending on infrastructure, open-model risks and how to evaluate fast-moving private investments.
23:48EN20VC with Harry Stebbings· 26 oct. 2026Podcast · 2 voixSatya Nadella on Zero Trust for AI and Why Every Company Should Own Its IntelligenceInvité : Satya Nadella · Anime : Harry StebbingsThe Microsoft CEO argues that capable agents need security boundaries even as alignment research remains unsettled, and explains why firms should retain the value created by their own AI use.
1:13:26EN20VC with Harry Stebbings· 24 oct. 2026Podcast · 2 voixNaveen Rao on Energy, AI Hardware, Verification and the Future of RoboticsInvité : Naveen Rao · Anime : Harry StebbingsThe Unconventional AI founder argues that energy efficiency will shape AI hardware, while the growing volume of model output makes verification more valuable.
59:41EN20VC with Harry Stebbings· 22 oct. 2026Podcast · 3 voix20VC: Venture Fund Size, AI Valuations and the Changing Software MarketInvité : Jason Lemkin, Rory O’Driscoll · Anime : Harry StebbingsHarry Stebbings, Jason Lemkin and Rory O'Driscoll debate venture concentration, infrastructure risk, code review and the assumptions behind fast-growing AI companies.
1:19:50EN20VC with Harry Stebbings· 19 oct. 2026Podcast · 2 voixSameer Dholakia on AI Investing, Bessemer's Growth Strategy and Company CultureInvité : Sameer Dholakia · Anime : Harry StebbingsThe Bessemer partner explains his approach to pricing fast-growing AI companies, backing founders and building teams, while discussing the risks behind his optimistic forecasts.
1:03:05EN20VC with Harry Stebbings· 17 oct. 2026Podcast · 2 voixHarrison Chase on Building Reliable Agents, Model Routing and MemoryInvité : Harrison Chase · Anime : Harry StebbingsThe LangChain co-founder explains why agents remain difficult to control, where domain expertise matters, and how his team manages coding-agent costs.