Venture with Grace

Grace Gong
  • 4.8 (22)
  • Investing
  • Updated Daily

I host a top VC podcast called Smart Venture Podcast (SVPpro.com). Past guests include C-level/VPs of Google, Meta, Amazon, Sephora, Dunkin' Donuts, Chipotle, Pepsi, Instagram, Deloitte, Reddit, Lyft, etc. Managing Partners of top funds (many were featured on the Forbes Midas List) and unicorn founders (founders of Craigslist, Square, Loom, Cruise, etc.) Venture with Grace is my new spin-off series that features top LPs, GPs, solo GPs, Angel Investors, top AI founders, and other experts in tech and business to cover specific domain expertise. Watch this Live on LinkedIn/ YouTube: Grace Gong

  1. 2d ago

    Olga Megorskaya, Toloka AI CEO on Human Data, AI Training & Evaluation

    Olga Megorskaya is the founder and CEO of Toloka AI. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~She established the company in 2014 and has since transformed it from a crowdsourcing and microtasking platform into a leading provider of high-quality training data for large language models and generative AI systems. Olga Megorskaya is also the CEO of Mindrift.ai, Toloka's platform for sourcing domain experts for AI training projects. Under her leadership, Toloka has grown into a trusted data partner for major AI developers including Anthropic, Amazon, and Microsoft.TopicsWhy expert human data remains essential for training, evaluating, and improving frontier AI modelsBuilding scalable quality-control systems for AI training data, from crowdsourcing to specialized domain expertiseEvaluating AI agents for real-world performance, reasoning, and safety beyond conventional benchmarks#ArtificialIntelligence #AITraining #AIEvaluation #AISafety #MachineLearning

  2. 4d ago

    Eugen Alpeza, Edra CEO on AI Agents, Enterprise Workflows and Automation

    Eugen Alpeza is the Co-Founder and CEO of Edra, an enterprise AI startup building systems that reverse-engineer business workflows from tools such as Slack, ServiceNow, Jira, and Salesforce to create auditable knowledge libraries for AI agents. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Founded in 2025, Edra raised a $30 million-plus Series A led by Sequoia Capital, 8VC, A*, and HubSpot Ventures. Before founding Edra, Eugen spent seven years at Palantir Technologies, progressing through roles as Deployment Strategist, Enterprise Lead, US Commercial Lead, and Co-Head of Forward Deployed AI Engineering. His experience spans enterprise AI deployment, commercial strategy, and engineering, giving him a practical perspective on bringing AI into complex organizations. Earlier in his career, he worked as a Machine Learning Engineer at Skimlinks and a Data Scientist at Upwork. He holds a master’s degree in Computational Statistics and Machine Learning from UCL and a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Edinburgh.Topics Turning enterprise workflows and company data into reliable, auditable knowledge for AI agentsLessons from Palantir on deploying AI in complex organizations and translating technical capabilities into business valueBuilding enterprise AI products that automate work while preserving context, reliability, and organizational knowledge#ArtificialIntelligence #AIAgents #EnterpriseAI #AIInfrastructure #Startups

  3. 6d ago

    Darren Bechtel, Brick & Mortar Ventures Founder on Construction Tech

    Darren Bechtel is the Founder and Managing Director of Brick & Mortar Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on early-stage technologies modernizing architecture, engineering, construction, and facilities management. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Since founding the firm in 2015, he has backed more than 70 companies developing software and hardware for the built environment. In 2019, Brick & Mortar announced a $100 million fund backed by industry leaders including Autodesk, Cemex, Hilti, United Rentals, and Sidewalk Labs. Its portfolio includes PlanGrid, BuildingConnected, Fieldwire, Rhumbix, Levelset, and EverCharge. Before Brick & Mortar, Darren founded and led South Park Ventures and served as CEO of medical device company Encapsule Medical Devices. With a background spanning architecture, product design, engineering, and venture capital, he focuses on bringing technology and industry expertise together to make construction and infrastructure projects safer, more productive, and less costly. He holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering/Product Design and an MBA from Stanford University.Topics Why construction remains ripe for technology adoption across design, building, and infrastructure operationsInvesting in early-stage software and hardware that improve construction productivity, safety, and cost efficiencyHow venture capital and established industry leaders can accelerate innovation across the built environment#ConstructionTech #VentureCapital #BuiltWorld #ArtificialIntelligence #Infrastructure

  4. Oct 15

    Ali Partovi, Neo CEO on AI Safety, Investing in People, & "Confession"

    Ali Partovi is the CEO of Neo, a venture capital firm and mentorship community that brings together experienced technology leaders to support ambitious founders. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Neo has backed companies including Cursor and Kalshi, while Ali’s earlier angel investments include Airbnb, Dropbox, Facebook, and Uber. He is ranked #1 in the United States on the Forbes Midas Seed List. Ali co-founded Code.org, helping launch the Hour of Code initiative, and previously co-founded LinkExchange and iLike. He is also the co-founder of Sway, a platform focused on reimagining democracy through crowd voting. An entrepreneur and investor with a background in computer science from Harvard, Ali focuses on identifying exceptional founders early and helping them build category-defining companies.Topics How Neo identifies exceptional founders and builds a mentorship-driven venture capital communityInvesting in AI-native startups and recognizing breakout companies at the earliest stagesLessons from backing companies like Airbnb, Dropbox, Cursor, and Kalshi across different technology cycles#VentureCapital #ArtificialIntelligence #AIInvesting #Startups #Founders

  5. Oct 15

    Fred Parietti, Multiply Labs CEO on Robotics and Biomanufacturing

    Fred Parietti is the CEO and co-founder of Multiply Labs, a robotics company developing automated manufacturing systems for individualized medicines, including cell therapies. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Since co-founding the company in 2016, he has raised more than $25 million from investors including Casdin Capital, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, and Fifty Years. Multiply Labs has developed GMP-compliant robotic manufacturing technology for individualized pharmaceuticals and is building robotic systems designed to work with existing GMP instruments used in cell therapy production, helping manufacturers automate processes without significantly changing established protocols. Fred leads a team of more than 35 robotic engineers, pharmaceutical scientists, and FDA experts. He holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from MIT, where his research focused on advanced robotic systems and earned the Mechanical Engineering De Florez Design Award. His work spans more than 30 peer-reviewed robotics publications and 12+ patents and patent applications, with over 2,000 citations.Topics How robotics can scale the manufacturing of individualized medicines and cell therapiesAutomating cell therapy production while working within existing GMP processes and regulatory requirementsBuilding a robotics company at the intersection of advanced engineering, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and patient access#Robotics #Biotechnology #CellTherapy #PharmaManufacturing #HealthcareAI

  6. Oct 15

    Joo-Young Kim, HyperAccel CEO on AI Chips, LLM Inference & Efficiency

    Joo-Young Kim is the CEO of HyperAccel and an Associate Professor at KAIST, where his research focuses on specialized AI hardware and large language model inference. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~He founded HyperAccel in 2023 after spending more than seven years at Microsoft, contributing to the Catapult project, which developed FPGA accelerators for cloud data centers. His work included accelerating workloads such as data compression, encryption, video transcoding, and machine learning across Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure. At HyperAccel, he is developing the LLM Processing Unit (LPU), a specialized AI processor designed to run large language models with lower latency and improved cost and power efficiency. His career bridges academic research, hyperscale cloud hardware, and semiconductor entrepreneurship, with a focus on addressing the infrastructure bottlenecks that emerge as generative AI scales.Topics Why large language model inference requires a different approach to AI chip architectureDesigning specialized AI semiconductors to improve inference speed, energy efficiency, and operating costsTurning academic research and hyperscale cloud experience into a semiconductor startup#ArtificialIntelligence #AIChips #Semiconductors #LLMInference #AIInfrastructure

  7. Oct 12

    Jeffrey Lolley, Wilson Sonsini CIO on AI, Legal Tech and Cybersecurity

    Jeffrey Lolley is Chief Information Officer at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where he leads global technology strategy, AI adoption, data infrastructure, information security, and technology innovation across the firm. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~Before becoming CIO, he served as the firm’s Deputy CIO and CISO, following leadership roles as CISO at Wilson Sonsini and Hogan Lovells. He co-founded Hogan Lovells’ legal sector cybersecurity consulting practice and previously led IT security at Marriott International, overseeing security across 6,000 properties and $11 billion per year in credit card transactions. Earlier, he worked at AT&T Bell Laboratories and was part of the venture that became Verizon Cybertrust. Jeff also serves as an advisor to technology companies including Box and Dropbox and teaches cybersecurity, risk, and emerging technology at the University of Maryland.Topics Building AI-enabled technology infrastructure for the modern legal industryWhy data, governance, and cybersecurity are becoming the gating constraints on enterprise AI adoptionWhat two decades in cybersecurity reveal about AI trust, risk, and transformation#ArtificialIntelligence #LegalTech #Cybersecurity #EnterpriseAI #AIInfrastructure

  8. Oct 9

    Akshaya Srivatsa, Maxima CPO on Agentic AI and the Future of Accounting

    Akshaya Srivatsa is Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Maxima, an agentic accounting platform built to automate the month-end close, reduce errors and audit risk, and give accounting teams more time for strategic work. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators.Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers.AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more~~~~~~~~~~~~~At Maxima, he leads product, design, security, and post-sales while working directly with every signed customer. Previously, he was an Engineering Leader at WhatsApp, where he led teams responsible for messaging integrity across 50M businesses and 2B+ users, including machine learning systems for anti-spam, fraud, and messaging quality and WhatsApp’s large-scale OTP authentication system. Before WhatsApp, he spent more than three years as VP of Engineering at Bolt, where he helped build checkout, payments, and fraud prevention products from an early stage and led a team of 30+ engineers. Earlier in his career, he worked on large-scale distributed systems at Twitter and systems engineering at Marvell, and conducted research in inexact computing at Rice University.Topics Can agentic AI finally transform an accounting industry that has barely changed in two decades?What does it take to build AI agents that can handle complex, company-specific financial workflows reliably?What can product leaders learn from building high-scale systems at WhatsApp and Bolt?#Maxima #AgenticAI #AccountingAI #AI #Fintech

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4.8
out of 5
22 Ratings

About

I host a top VC podcast called Smart Venture Podcast (SVPpro.com). Past guests include C-level/VPs of Google, Meta, Amazon, Sephora, Dunkin' Donuts, Chipotle, Pepsi, Instagram, Deloitte, Reddit, Lyft, etc. Managing Partners of top funds (many were featured on the Forbes Midas List) and unicorn founders (founders of Craigslist, Square, Loom, Cruise, etc.) Venture with Grace is my new spin-off series that features top LPs, GPs, solo GPs, Angel Investors, top AI founders, and other experts in tech and business to cover specific domain expertise. Watch this Live on LinkedIn/ YouTube: Grace Gong

Information

  • Creator
    Grace Gong
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    671
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Grace Gong
  • Show Website
    Venture with Grace

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