The MAD Podcast with Matt Turck Matt Turck

In this episode, we sat down with Renen Hallak, founder and CEO of VAST Data, a $9 billion company that's shaking the foundations of data storage, databases and compute functionality.

Through the conversation, we explore VAST's perspective on AI infrastructure, the process of selling over a billion dollars worth of software, and the technical innovations behind disaggregated, shared-everything architecture.



VAST Data

Website - https://www.vastdata.com/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/VAST_Data



Renen Hallak

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/renenh/



FIRSTMARK

Website - https://firstmark.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/FirstMarkCap



Matt Turck (Managing Director)

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/turck/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/mattturck


(00:00) Intro(01:40) What is VAST Data?(02:56) The company was started in stealth mode. Why?(03:42) Did VAST get lucky with the gen AI explosion?(04:27) VAST Data founding story(05:57) How does the company work across 2 continents?(06:48) What made you think that you can disrupt the market?(09:23) VAST architecture explained(23:08) Moving from data storage to databases(25:01) What was the hardest thing to build?(26:32) How does VAST work with open source(26:54) A glimpse into the future products(28:22) The world without VAST: how it would've looked like(29:45) Who were VAST's first customers?(30:56) How do hedge funds use VAST?(32:08) VAST's sales strategy(34:04) Renen's transition from technical founder to CEO(36:01) How do you hire great people?(37:07) What was the hardest thing on your journey as a CEO?(38:43) $9B CEO daily routine(40:17) Difference between offices in NY and Israel(42:07) Renen's learnings from sales

🔗 2024 MAD Landscape: https://mad.firstmark.com

📃 PDF: https://mattturck.com/landscape/mad2024.pdf

📃 Blog post: https://mattturck.com/mad2024/


In this episode, we delve into the 2024 machine learning, AI, and data scene (MAD), examining an evergrowing array of over 2011 logos, the meteoric rise of open-source AI, and the anticipated advancements in AI agents and edge AI technology.

Gain valuable perspectives on the saturated AI market, the dilemmas and prospects open source AI presents, and the continuous evolution of the modern data infrastructure. This episode covers a distinctive mix of analysis, industry perspectives, and foresight into the technological future.




FIRSTMARK

Website - https://firstmark.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/FirstMarkCap


Matt Turck (Managing Director)

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/turck/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/mattturck


Aman Kabeer (Investor)

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/aman-kabeer/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/AmanKabeer11



(00:00) Intro

(02:06) What is MAD?

(07:58) Open sourcing AI

(12:29) How open source affects commercial AI?

(21:02) Is the AI hype cycle over?

(26:39) Was 2023 a head fake for Gen AI? What about 2024?

(28:05) VC's perspective on AI

(30:54) Emerging of AI stack

(37:36) What are the areas VCs are excited about?

(41:04) Will full-stack AI platforms kill SaaS?

(42:42) Modern Data Stack: is it dead or alive?

(47:17) What's next for the MAD Landscape?

In this episode, we sat down with Morgan McGuire, Chief Scientist of Roblox, and the mind behind the magic of the virtual universe. Together we explore the spectrum of creativity on Roblox, from no-code experiences to professional game development, dive deep into the cutting-edge AI tools Roblox is deploying, and how these tools are democratizing game development.


Tune in to embark on a journey into the heart of creativity, technology, and community with Roblox. This is not just about playing games; it's about creating the future, one experience at a time.



ROBLOX

Website - https://www.roblox.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/Roblox



Morgan McGuire

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/morgan-mcguire-660120210

Twitter - https://twitter.com/casualeffects



FIRSTMARK

Website - https://firstmark.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/FirstMarkCap




Matt Turck (Managing Director)

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/turck/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/mattturck



(00:00) Intro

(01:05) Roblox is not a game, but a platform

(10:03) How does Roblox leverage Gen AI?

(13:34) How did the company start working on AI?

(21:26) AI Code Assist

(26:30) AI Material Generator

(32:07) ControlNet

(38:36) StarCoder

(43:40) Who works at Roblox?

In this episode, we sat down with Benedict Evans, a leading voice in the tech industry and a former partner at Andreessen Horowitz.


Known for his sharp insights and forward-thinking analysis, Benedict shares his expert perspective on what generative AI means for the future of technology, business, and society at large.


Specifically, we dive deep into the evolving landscapes of generative AI, augmented and virtual reality, and the critical issue of AI bias.


Join us as Benedict Evans provides a nuanced analysis of cutting-edge tech and shares his insights and perspectives on the road ahead.


BENEDICT EVANS

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benedictevans/

Threads - https://www.threads.net/@benedictevans


FIRSTMARK

Website - https://firstmark.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/FirstMarkCap


Matt Turck (Managing Director)

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/turck/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/mattturck



(00:00) Intro

(01:06) The AI platform shift in 2024

(05:54) Gen AI in 2024 vs. PC-boom in the 80-s

(13:24) Until AGI happens, there will be vertical-specific apps

(15:12) Should companies have an AI strategy?

(21:04) Platform shift OR paradigm shift?

(23:55) How should we think about AGI in 2024?

(34:08) Is gen AI grossly overhyped?

(36:27) AI bias and the hidden problems in data

(44:56) Apple Vision Pro and the future of AR/VR

In this episode, we sit down with Gary Little, CEO of Foursquare, to discuss Foursquare's remarkable evolution from a social app to a leader in location intelligence. Gary discusses how Foursquare uses smartphone ubiquity to create a global map through crowdsourcing, covering 190 countries and over 200 million points of interest.

Learn about the challenges of managing complex, real-time datasets and how Foursquare employs machine learning and knowledge graphs to analyze foot traffic and device movements. The conversation also covers the critical role of privacy and data security in location tracking, especially in light of recent regulatory changes.

Gary explains Foursquare's platform strategy, drawing parallels with Amazon's AWS, to enable customers to process and utilize location data for their applications.

Foursquare
Website - https://location.foursquare.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/Foursquare

Gary Little (CEO)
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-little-0670ba4
Twitter - https://twitter.com/garylittlefsq

FIRSTMARK
Website - https://firstmark.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/FirstMarkCap

Matt Turck (Managing Director)
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/turck/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/mattturck

(00:00) Intro

(01:10) Brief history of Foursquare

(03:07) What makes Foursquare's location data unique?

(05:17) Foursquare Platform. What is it?

(08:07) A glimpse into the future of Foursquare

(10:00) More customers want to process the data themselves. Why?

(13:42) Data privacy of today vs 10 years ago. What has changed?

(16:41) Foursquare Graph: what does it do?

(19:17) How is Foursquare utilizing AI?

(22:17) How will AR/VR influence location intelligence?

In this episode, we dive into the fascinating world of AI art with Cris Valenzuela, CEO of Runway. Runway is a generative AI startup that co-invented Stable Diffusion, the deep learning technology that has captured the attention of the creative industry, including luminaries such as ASAP Rocky and Madonna's teams, by pushing the boundaries of digital creativity.



We explore how generative AI tools empower visual artists to unleash their imaginations without the need for Hollywood-size budgets. We also discuss the effect of AI on the entire creative industry, similar to how the camera changed things back in the day.



Join us for a glimpse into the future of creativity.



RUNWAY

Website - https://runwayml.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/runwayml



Cris Valenzuela (Co-founder & CEO)

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/cvalenzuelab

Twitter - https://twitter.com/c_valenzuelab



FIRSTMARK

Website - https://firstmark.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/FirstMarkCap



Matt Turck (Managing Director)

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/turck/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/mattturck



Foursquare

Website - https://location.foursquare.com

Twitter - https://twitter.com/Foursquare



(00:00) Intro

(00:55) What is Runway?

(03:09) Runway started before the GenAI boom. How?

(04:41) What do people get wrong about GenAI?

(07:18) How AI is going to change creative software?

(08:44) What is Gen-2?

(12:02) Runway's role in creating Stable Diffusion

(14:25) Gen-1: a model or a product?

(15:11) Runway's evolution from image generation to video

(18:18) Runway partnered with Getty. Why?

(19:52) How has the AI video generation ecosystem evolved?

(21:58) Adoption cyсle for AI video generation. Where are we now?

(24:45) Challenges of building a research-focused company

(26:25) How to build and maintain a soul in a startup?

(28:27) "It's like an invention of new art form" -