E63: Chris Rizik on The Rise of Midwest LPs

Chris Rizik, CEO of Renaissance Venture Capital sits down with David Weisburd to discuss Renaissance’s unique approach to venture. In addition, they discuss how large corporations participate in venture, when to admit a loss vs. doubling down and signals of a strong fund manager. (0:00) Introduction to Chris Rizik and Renaissance Venture Capital (1:19) LP base and corporate-startup interaction (4:18) Overcoming Midwest investment challenges and the concept of Undemo Day (6:16) The rise of Midwest unicorns and focus on consistent VC returns (9:32) GP mistakes and emotional investment decisions (10:17) Sponsor: Deal (14:09) VC industry insights: Operator turned VC and the apprenticeship model (18:31) Success stories and sponsor message from 10X Capital Podcast newsletter (19:31) Identifying potential in fund twos and lessons from starting a VC firm (23:23) Deal sourcing strategies and building startup ecosystems (26:10) Chris Rizik's personal projects and wrap-up