Generative Now | AI Builders on Creating the Future

Lightspeed Venture Partners
  • 4.6 (10)
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Generative Now | AI Builders on Creating the Future

Generative Now is a weekly series from Lightspeed, highlighting the stories, strategies and insights behind today's most exciting AI companies and how they’ll change everything about the way we work. Inspired by the popular in-person Generative Meetups in places like New York, San Francisco, LA and Europe, host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano will speak with founders, engineers, designers and other leaders that are leveraging AI to take their product to new heights. Listen and follow Generative Now wherever you get your podcasts.

  1. PART 2: Matthew Hartman | The Value of Premium Content and the Shifting Economics of the Internet

    11 HR. AGO

    PART 2: Matthew Hartman | The Value of Premium Content and the Shifting Economics of the Internet

    We are back with PART 2 of our conversation with Matthew Hartman, a managing partner at the venture firm, Factorial Capital. Factorial partners with angel operators, with a focus on startups in the AI space. Host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano talks with Matt about the value of premium content, software on demand, and the shifting economics of the Internet. Plus, is this actually the moment for product managers? 00:00 Introduction 00:38 AI in B2B SaaS Products 2:58 www.nysignal.com 07:05 The Future of Advertising and AI 9:07 Attention Is All You Need 11:23 Entertainment and Productivity 19:02 Zero Coding Apps and Products 21:39 www.myrequestroom.com 24:28 Is it an AI wrapper or does it lack defensibility? Stay in touch: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

    30 min
  2. PART 1: Matthew Hartman | How Factorial Invests in the Future

    NOV 14

    PART 1: Matthew Hartman | How Factorial Invests in the Future

    This week, we are sharing PART ONE with Matthew Hartman, a managing partner at the venture firm Factorial Capital. Factorial partners with angel operators, with a focus on startups in the AI space. Host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano sits down with Matt to discuss how Factorial partners with technical founders to explore opportunities. They discuss OpenAI, Apple Intelligence, WebGPU, Suno, and much more. Join us next week for PART TWO of this conversation.  Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction (01:42) Factorial and Technical Founders (06:24) WebGPU (10:47) Future of AI and LLMs (15:47) AI and Calendars (18:16) Understanding Scout Funds (23:07) The Role of Angels in Investment (24:12) Focus on AI and New Tech Products (25:42) Transformers and Predictive Models (27:26) Making Music with Suno (33:27) The Future of Creative Tools (42:30) The Economics of Content Creation Stay in touch: ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠⁠⁠⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠⁠⁠⁠.

    43 min
  3. Lulu Cheng Meservey: Go Direct

    OCT 31

    Lulu Cheng Meservey: Go Direct

    Lulu Cheng Meservey puts founders in control of their narrative using one simple principle: Go Direct. Lulu is the Founder and CEO of Rostra, the go-to communications expert for Silicon Valley founders of places like Ramp, SSI, Scale, Andruil, Suno, and The Free Press. Lulu joins Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano on the podcast to talk about her ​​modern communications playbook for founders and why a comms strategy is just as important as a product strategy. Plus, Lulu shares her after action reports on Based Zuck, SpaceX, Tesla, and Waymo.  Episode Chapters: (00:00) Introduction  (01:29) Why Founder Led Communication Works  (03:47) Challenges and Strategies for Founders (06:49) Lulu's Career Experience (08:34) Substack  (12:11) Have a Clear Company Mission  (18:01) The ‘Go Direct’ Manifesto (23:59) Traditional Media in Communication Strategy (24:40) Targeted Communication: Persuading Key Decision Makers (25:54) Effective Use of Press and Media Outlets (28:30) Lulu’s After Action Report: Tesla's Recent Event (36:11) Apple's Strategy and Public Perception (38:46) Waymo's Underrated Progress in Autonomous Vehicles (40:17) Meta's Positive Feedback Loop and Based Zuck (43:42) The Importance of Founder-Led Companies (47:27) Final Thoughts Stay in touch: ⁠⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠⁠ X: ⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠⁠⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠⁠⁠.

    48 min
  4. Toshit Panigrahi: Navigating the Future of Content Monetization

    OCT 24

    Toshit Panigrahi: Navigating the Future of Content Monetization

    Toshit Panigrahi, CEO and co-founder of TollBit, joins Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano for this week’s episode of Generative Now. TollBit is a platform that enables publishers and content creators to extract revenue from AI companies that use their data. Toshit and Michael discuss how advancements in AI are already reshaping the economics of the internet, TollBit’s innovative “bot paywall” for publishers, and how to incentivize content creation in this constantly evolving landscape. Toshit previously spent nearly a decade at restaurant software company Toast, where he helped build many consumer products as well as Toast’s contextual ad business. Toshit earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science and minored in business administration at Boston University. Episode Chapters: (00:00) Introduction (01:40) Toshit’s Background at Toast (05:08) Building an Ads Business at Toast (07:15) AI and Content Monetization (10:52) The Birth of TollBit (12:53) Opportunities and Challenges for Publishers (16:17) The Role of AI in Content Strategy (20:52) The Importance of SEO in the Age of AI (22:04) Introducing the Bot Paywall (23:45) Market Dynamics vs. Regulation (25:03) Challenges in AI Licensing (27:28) The Future of Content Creation and Monetization (33:18) Unlocking the Full Potential of AI Agents (36:15) Current Publisher Collaborations with TollBit (41:38) The Future of Advertising and Content Valuation (44:55) Conclusion and Final Thoughts Stay in touch: ⁠⁠www.lsvp.com⁠⁠ X: ⁠⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠⁠generativenow.co⁠⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠⁠.

    45 min
  5. Andrew Mason: Craft and Control in AI Content Creation with Descript

    OCT 17

    Andrew Mason: Craft and Control in AI Content Creation with Descript

    Descript CEO and founder Andrew Mason joins Lightspeed Partner and Host Michael Mignano on the podcast to talk about the future of content creation with AI tools. Michael and Andrew talk about the evolution of Descript as an AI product designed for podcast and video creators, navigating a world of synthetic content, and Descript’s new features including Descript Rooms and Underlord. Andrew talks about raising a $50 Million Series C led by OpenAI Startup Fund and how seeing an early version of ChatGPT inspired confidence in Descript’s foundational vision and goal to simplify media production.   Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction (00:09) Introducing Descript Rooms (01:10) Descript's Versatility with Media Creation (04:22) Social Clips and Longform Content (07:15) Craft and Control in AI in Content Creation (13:16) Descript AI Tools, OpenAI, and ChatGPT (17:30) Multimodality and Improving Quality (26:17) Trust and Adoption of AI Features (29:29) Detour and Groupon (37:31) Closing Thoughts Stay in touch: ⁠www.lsvp.com⁠ X: ⁠https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/⁠ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: ⁠generativenow.co⁠ Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see ⁠lsvp.com/legal⁠.

    40 min
  6. PART 2: Generative Quarterly with Semil Shah | ASI, AI Agents and The Future of Work

    OCT 10

    PART 2: Generative Quarterly with Semil Shah | ASI, AI Agents and The Future of Work

    This week, we are back with part two of Generative Quarterly with Semil Shah and Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano. Semil is a founding General Partner of Haystack and a Venture Partner at Lightspeed. Semil and Mike pick up their conversation on consumer AI technology, starting with innovative consumer tech like Friend AI by Avi Schiffmann. Mike and Semil consider the impact of Artificial Super Intelligence on the future of work, debate the future evolution of software on demand, and ask if we need AI agents to help us solve our boredom?  Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction (00:31) Consumer AI Tech (03:05) Autonomous AI Agents Versus Copilots  (04:19) Matt Levine: Robots Make Good AI Junior Analysts  (05:53) Future of Training Entry Level Consultants (07:55) Artificial Super Intelligence as a Drop in Coworker (09:38) Will We Have Our Own Agentic Consultants? (11:50) Software On Demand (16:32) AI Generated Music and Content  (20:31) Conclusion  Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

    21 min
  7. PART 1: Generative Quarterly with Semil Shah | Consumer AI Tech, Seed Investing, and Apple

    OCT 3

    PART 1: Generative Quarterly with Semil Shah | Consumer AI Tech, Seed Investing, and Apple

    Semil Shah is back for another episode of Generative Quarterly with Michael Mignano, Lightspeed Partner and host of Generative Now. Semil is a founding General Partner of Haystack and a Venture Partner at Lightspeed. Semil and Mike discuss the seed investing landscape, challenges and opportunities in building consumer tech, and competition between Apple and Google. Episode Chapters (00:00) Welcome and Introduction (00:37) Shohei Ohtani and Baseball (03:25) State of Seed Investing (11:04) Semil’s Advice on Pitching Venture Capitalists (14:26) VC Fund Dynamics and AI Hype Machine (18:42) Miami’s Tech Scene (19:18) Building the Next Big AI Consumer Product: Hype vs Reality (26:52) Apple’s New iPhone: Where is the Apple Intelligence? (32:17) Google Android (34:04) Conclusion  Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

    35 min
  8. Johnny Ho: Perplexity’s Opportunity to Reinvent Search

    SEP 26

    Johnny Ho: Perplexity’s Opportunity to Reinvent Search

    Johnny Ho, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Perplexity, joins Lightspeed Partner and host Michael Mignano for this week’s episode of Generative Now. Perplexity is the AI powered search engine that is rapidly growing and challenging the industry status quo. Johnny and Michael talk about his background as a competitive programmer, the business model of search, and Perplexity’s Publisher Program, where publishers earn a share of advertising revenue. Johnny has been ranked number one in the world of competitive programming. He previously worked at Quora as a software engineer –  he accomplished all of this before graduating from Harvard.  Episode Chapters (00:00) Introduction (00:40) Johnny Ho's Engineering Background and IOI Achievements (02:44) Transition to Product Strategy (05:39) Perplexity: The Answer Engine (11:06) Technology Behind Perplexity (15:47) Challenges and Future of AI Models (19:41) Growth and Distribution Strategy (23:54) Setting and Achieving Team Goals (25:35) Perplexity's Business Model and Future Plans (31:01) Challenges and Opportunities in AI and Search (32:55) Publisher Program and Content Credibility (39:59) Voice and Multimodal Experiences (42:04) What's Next for Perplexity? (43:12) Conclusion and Final Thoughts Stay in touch: www.lsvp.com X: https://twitter.com/lightspeedvp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lightspeed-venture-partners/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightspeedventurepartners/ Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: generativenow.co Email: generativenow@lsvp.com The content here does not constitute tax, legal, business or investment advice or an offer to provide such advice, should not be construed as advocating the purchase or sale of any security or investment or a recommendation of any company, and is not an offer, or solicitation of an offer, for the purchase or sale of any security or investment product. For more details please see lsvp.com/legal.

    44 min
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4.6
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About

Generative Now is a weekly series from Lightspeed, highlighting the stories, strategies and insights behind today's most exciting AI companies and how they’ll change everything about the way we work. Inspired by the popular in-person Generative Meetups in places like New York, San Francisco, LA and Europe, host and Lightspeed Partner Michael Mignano will speak with founders, engineers, designers and other leaders that are leveraging AI to take their product to new heights. Listen and follow Generative Now wherever you get your podcasts.

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