Signal South

Valor Ventures
  • 0.0 (0)
  • Entrepreneurship

Signal South is Valor VC's podcast about the leaders shaping the future of the world from the American South — the largest, fastest-growing, and most economically powerful single region in the United States. The South is home to 40% of the U.S. population, more than a third of Fortune 500 headquarters, and a third of US GDP. If the South were its own country, it would be the third-largest economy on earth, behind only the United States as a whole and China. Signal South interviews the leaders defining this powerhouse economy. Hosted by Lisa Calhoun, Founder and Managing Partner of prominent venture capital firm Valor Ventures, each conversation goes behind the scenes with the founders, investors, and power brokers building the future from the growth headquarters of the US economy. Bookmark us to never miss an episode.

Episodes

  1. 14 Sept

    Is the South VC's Next Big Move?

    On the Show Lisa Calhoun, Host — Founder & Managing Partner, Valor Ventures (Atlanta, GA) David Hall — Managing Partner, Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, Revolution (Washington, DC) Karl R. LaPan — Director, UF Innovate | Accelerate, University of Florida (Gainesville, FL) Chris Rhodes — Executive Director, UGA Innovation District, University of Georgia (Athens, GA) Companies and Organizations Mentioned in this Ep: Funds and investors: Revolution / Rise of the Rest Seed Fund · Valor Ventures · Atlanta Ventures · Georgia Research Alliance · UF Innovation Fund and Commercialization Fund · UGA follow-on investment fund and proof-of-concept fund Startups: Hermeus (Atlanta) · Stord (Atlanta) · FreightWaves (Chattanooga) · BuildForce (Rise of the Rest portfolio — building the electrician workforce behind the data center boom) · Haddy (Tampa — sustainable-materials 3D printing, founder Jay Rogers) · Autonoma (Auburn, AL — high-fidelity simulation with Delta and Cisco) · Aetos Imaging (Georgia Tech spinout — automating power-facility buildout with Southern Company) · Arpio (Durham, NC — cloud backup and disaster recovery for the AI era) · Precision BioSciences (co-founded by Chris Rhodes; NASDAQ IPO) Hyperscalers and the AI buildout: OpenAI ($20B campus, Savannah) · Google ($8B, LaGrange) · Amazon ($11B, Georgia) · Meta ($50B, Mississippi/Louisiana) · xAI Colossus (Memphis) Corporates: John Deere · AGCO · Delta Air Lines · Cisco · Southern Company · BMW · Disney · Bloomberg Universities and institutions: University of Georgia (Innovation District, College of Agriculture, Institute for Integrative Precision Agriculture, One Health, new School of Medicine, 600-student entrepreneurship program) · University of Florida (UF Innovate | Accelerate, College of Medicine, engineering, international soft-landings program) · Georgia Tech · Auburn University · Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport · South Downtown Atlanta

    Is the South VC's Next Big Move?

  2. 27 Jul

    Meet David Cummings, Builder of the South's Booming Startup City, South Downtown Atlanta

    David Cummings — arguably the most consequential serial entrepreneur-investor in the American South, founder of the 4th largest startup hub in the country Atlanta Tech Village, and investor or co-founder in 10 of the South's most iconic startups including SalesLoft, Calendly, and Pardot — sits down with Lisa Calhoun, Founding Managing Partner of Valor Ventures, weeks after the FIFA World Cup put half a million fans through the front door of the neighborhood he owns. What's next for Atlanta's founding neighborhood, now reinvented as a premier founder community campus? Listen in.

    Meet David Cummings, Builder of the South's Booming Startup City, South Downtown Atlanta

  3. 22 Jun

    How to Hook One of the South's Most Successful VCs, Gary Peat

    Five years ago, Lisa Calhoun recruited Gary Peat to Valor VC as general partner— one of the most experienced and successful venture capitalists in the South. In this episode of **Signal South**, he tells the whole story: how a Wall Street analyst became a seed-stage legend, and what he's learned across 25 years and 18 exits in this region. This is the conversation Southern founders need to hear. Gary breaks down what actually separates the companies that scale from the ones that stall. You'll learn: -the four data points he uses to vet a sales leader *before* you hire them, -why "ready to grow" beats a big idea every time, and -the painful lesson behind picking A-level talent over an A-level market. He's candid about the struggle: why a third of his biggest winners had to transition their founding CEO, and how he learned to coach founders into becoming top CEOs. Gary is clear about what he wants to see now — the sectors, the signals, and the kind of founder he'll chase across the South. If you're building here and wondering how to get on the radar of an investor like this, start with his own words. If you're pitching venture capital in the fastest growing region of the country, this is a must-listen conversation.

    How to Hook One of the South's Most Successful VCs, Gary Peat

  4. 1 Jun

    Even AI Haters Love This AI Built In Dallas, Texas | Signal South

    While the Class of 2026 was ripping diplomas and protesting AI, 80% of teens in rural Arkansas couldn't put Taylor Shead's AI down. One kid in rural Georgia played four hours past bedtime. Another switched her major from ultrasound tech to business after a single session. They're inviting friends. This is the first AI product Gen Z is evangelizing on its own--and it's backed by Valor, Draper, the Gates Foundation, Stride, and Slauson. Same generation. Different takes. Why? Taylor says the "consequence engine" she built with one of the world's most famous game designers is the difference, and why every other AI tool in education is teaching the wrong thing entirely Why is LAUSD — the district that just banned screens — writing a carve-out specifically for her game? Why is the National Governors Association is choosing to retrain adults whose jobs Meta just cut using her approach? What does it takes for people to move from "unprepared" to "prepared" for an AI future? You'll hear answers and outcomes in this deep dive conversation with host and managing partner at Valor VC Lisa Calhoun and Taylor Shead, CEO and founder of STEMuli and the founder honored by the United Nations as the #1 AI aligned with UN sustainable development goals. This is not the usual AI conversation, so buckle up and enjoy. BONUS: Taylor provides a free opportunity to use the platform for yourself in the middle.

    Even AI Haters Love This AI Built In Dallas, Texas | Signal South

  5. 6 May

    The Big Billionaire-Making Investment Bank (You’ve Never Heard Of) Is Right Here In The South.

    Lisa Calhoun sits down with Zane Tarence — IBM-trained software engineer, two-time founder, ex-VC, and the man who built Founders Investment Bank's tech practice into one of the top boutique banks in the country serving founders. Recorded in the South, by Southerners, for the operators building category-defining companies in Birmingham, Nashville, Dallas, Atlanta, Auburn, Charleston — and everywhere in between. This is a candid, sometimes uncomfortable conversation about what founders don't know about the capital markets, why holding "too long" may be the most expensive mistake in software, and why the South may be quietly assembling the most attractive operating environment for tech in the country. DISCLAIMER: To provide securities-related services, certain principals of Founders Advisors, LLC are licensed with Founders M&A Advisory, LLC, member of FINRA & SiPC. Founders M&A Advisory is a wholly owned subsidiary of Founders Advisors. Neither Founders Advisors nor Founders M&A Advisory provide investment advice.

    The Big Billionaire-Making Investment Bank (You’ve Never Heard Of) Is Right Here In The South.
  • 5 Episodes

About

Signal South is Valor VC's podcast about the leaders shaping the future of the world from the American South — the largest, fastest-growing, and most economically powerful single region in the United States. The South is home to 40% of the U.S. population, more than a third of Fortune 500 headquarters, and a third of US GDP. If the South were its own country, it would be the third-largest economy on earth, behind only the United States as a whole and China. Signal South interviews the leaders defining this powerhouse economy. Hosted by Lisa Calhoun, Founder and Managing Partner of prominent venture capital firm Valor Ventures, each conversation goes behind the scenes with the founders, investors, and power brokers building the future from the growth headquarters of the US economy. Bookmark us to never miss an episode.

Information

  • Creator
    Valor Ventures
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    5
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Valor Ventures
  • Show Website
    Signal South