Layer Zero

Layer Zero
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Layer Zero is a podcast that goes beyond the surface with founders, builders, and VCs in tech, revealing the personal stories, motivations, and philosophies driving innovation. It’s where the “why” behind the “what” takes center stage. Hosted by Rishab Siddamshetty.

  1. JAN 20

    Product, People, and Principles with Shreyas Doshi

    I sat down with Shreyas Doshi, one of the world's top product leaders and startup thinkers known for shaping some of the most thoughtful perspectives on building and advising companies (Anthropic and Kalshi to name a few), to unpack what actually drives enduring startups beneath the surface. We talked about the mental models behind great products, why clarity of thinking matters more than speed, and how founders can design companies that compound over time rather than chase short-term growth. Shreyas shared his framework for evaluating ideas, aligning teams around conviction, and making decisions when information is incomplete. We also explored how startup culture has evolved, what founders consistently get wrong about product-market fit, and how the best companies stay grounded in first principles as they scale. If you want a sharper lens on building, leading, and thinking clearly in high-ambiguity environments, this episode is for you.

    35 min

  2. JAN 13

    Before the World Believes With Renowned Angel Jeremy Downs

    I sat down with Jeremy Downs, angel investor in Anduril, SpaceX, and Snap, and an early hire at PayPal, Uber, and Facebook, to talk about what it really means to spot category-defining companies before they’re obvious. Jeremy shared lessons from being inside some of the most important tech companies of the last two decades and how those experiences shaped his approach as an angel investor. We discussed how early teams build conviction, what separates generational companies from fast-growing ones, and how culture, timing, and product insight intersect at the earliest stages. We also explored how investor judgment is formed before metrics exist, why certain opportunities feel uncomfortable early, and what patterns Jeremy has seen repeat across breakout companies. If you’re trying to understand what it looks like to identify or build something truly category-defining before consensus forms, this episode is for you.

    15 min

  3. JAN 6

    From Founder to Investor: Building Must-Have Products with Uncork’s Andy McLoughlin

    I sat down with Andy McLoughlin, Partner at Uncork Capital and former founder who built and scaled Huddle, to talk about the transition from operator to early-stage investor and what he’s learned on both sides of the table. Andy shared lessons from founding Huddle and navigating a product exit, and how those experiences shape the way he evaluates startups today. We discussed why some of the most durable companies are built in “unsexy” markets, what separates must-have products from nice-to-haves, and how investors actually make decisions when conviction forms early. We also dug into Andy’s leadership philosophy, how founders can build products that truly stick, and how early-stage venture is evolving as new technologies reshape the market. If you’re building, exiting, or thinking about what makes a company indispensable, this episode is for you.

    26 min

  4. 12/16/2025

    Agentic Systems & the Next Era of Venture with Norwest’s Scott Beechuk

    I sat down with Scott Beechuk, Partner at Norwest Venture Partners, for a wide-ranging conversation on how AI, particularly agentic systems, is reshaping software and how venture is adapting to it. Before investing, Scott founded three companies and later served as an executive at Salesforce, giving him a rare operator-to-investor perspective on building and scaling technology businesses. In this episode, we explored how Scott thinks about agentic systems in enterprise software, what’s changing in the VC landscape as AI accelerates product cycles, and how his background as a founder informs the way he partners with teams today. We also talked about what durable companies will look like in an era where software can increasingly act on its own. If you’re interested in the future of AI-native software and how venture is adapting to it, this episode is packed with insight.

    27 min

  5. 12/09/2025

    The Race for Web Agent Dominance with Yutori AI’s Abishek Das

    I sat down with Abishek Das, Founder of Yutori AI, one of the fastest-scaling companies in the AI agent space. Yutori is building what many consider the most accurate web agents to date, leveraging a team of top researchers and engineers who are pushing the boundaries of autonomous reasoning and real-world task execution. The company has already raised $10M+ from some of the biggest names in AI, including Fei-Fei Li and Jeff Dean, a signal of just how serious their technical approach is. In this episode, Abishek and I dive into what it actually takes to build web agents that outperform existing frontier models, why accuracy and reliability matter more than flashy demos, and how Yutori’s research culture enables them to move at a velocity most companies can’t match. We also talk about the evolving agent ecosystem, what’s defensible in this wave of AI, and why the next breakthroughs will come from teams who deeply understand both systems and product. If you want to understand where AI agents are really headed and what it takes to build category-defining AI, this episode is a must-listen.

    23 min

  6. 12/02/2025

    Spotting Outliers with Niko Bonatsos: Snap, Discord & Mercor

    I sat down with Niko Bonatsos, one of the most respected early-stage investors of the past decade and an early backer of companies like Snap, Discord, Mercor, and many more breakout successes. Niko has built a career on finding unconventional founders long before the rest of the world sees what they’re capable of and helping them scale from the earliest days. In this episode, we talk about how he evaluates founders with non-traditional backgrounds, his philosophies on life and his journeys, and the patterns he’s seen across the biggest winners of his portfolio. If you want to understand how legendary early-stage investors spot generational companies before they break, this conversation is full of insights.

    24 min

  7. 11/25/2025

    The Future of Time Management with Clockwise Founder Matt Martin

    I sat down with Matt Martin, Founder & CEO of Clockwise, the time orchestration platform used by teams at companies like Netflix, Reddit, Atlassian, Lyft, and more. Clockwise has raised over $70M from Accel, Greylock, and top operators, but more importantly, it has fundamentally changed how teams structure their days and protect their focus time. In this episode, Matt breaks down the early product decisions that shaped Clockwise, how his team approached building software that actively manages your calendar, and why time management is shifting from a personal habit to a team-wide system. We dig into what makes Clockwise’s approach unique, how AI is reshaping productivity, and why the future of work requires entirely new tools for attention and coordination. If you’re interested in product building, productivity, or the future of work, this episode is packed with insights.

    25 min

  8. 11/18/2025

    The Future of AI Licensing & Building a Billion-Dollar Company with Trip Adler

    I sat down with Trip Adler, Founder & CEO of Created by Humans, and former CEO and co-founder of Scribd ($1B+ valuation), for a deep discussion about how creators should be compensated and protected in the age of AI. After building Scribd into one of the world’s largest document and ebook platforms, Trip is now tackling one of the most urgent questions in AI: who owns the rights to human-created work, and how should that content be used to train models? In this episode, we explore how Created by Humans is building a licensing marketplace for authors, what “AI rights” look like in practice (training, reference, transformation), and how Trip is drawing on his publishing and platform experience to bridge the gap between creators and AI companies. We also get into his journey building Scribd, the lessons he’s carried forward from building a billion dollar company, and how he thinks about mission, impact, and fairness in this new era. If you care about copyright, creators, and the future of AI, this episode is a must-listen.

    21 min
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About

Layer Zero is a podcast that goes beyond the surface with founders, builders, and VCs in tech, revealing the personal stories, motivations, and philosophies driving innovation. It’s where the “why” behind the “what” takes center stage. Hosted by Rishab Siddamshetty.

Information

  • Creator
    Layer Zero
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    36
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Layer Zero
  • Show Website
    Layer Zero