Finding Founders Who Will Change the World with Wesley Chan

Wesley Chan is a true legend in Silicon Valley. He spent time at Microsoft and HP, and in 2002 he jumped to Google. There, he worked as Sergey Brin’s Chief of Staff and founded Google Analytics and Google Voice - all before then founding and leading the seed investing program at Google Ventures as GP. Under his tenure, GV was the first institutional check into companies like Plaid, Gusto, Lucid, and Robinhood. Wesley sits down with Nick Chirls, GP at Asylum Ventures,  and Beezer Clarkson, LP at Sapphire Partners, to discuss his investment philosophy and what motivates him. Wesley discusses his early days at Google being pushed to make products that change the world, finding founders who have a 100-year plan, and being driven not by the desire to prove other people wrong, but to prove himself right.

Learn more about Sapphire Partners: sapphireventures.com/sapphire-partners

Learn more about OpenLP: openlp.vc

Learn more about Asylum Ventures: asylum.vc

Learn more about FPV Ventures: fpvventures.com

Subscribe to the OpenLP newsletter for a monthly roundup of the latest venture insights, including the newest Origins episodes, delivered straight to your inbox.

CHAPTERS:

0:00-Introduction & the Burning Question3:11-Working for Sergey Brin: “If you’re not changing the world, you’re wasting your time.”

9:22-They're not there to screw the world, they're there to improve the world.

15:07-I'm not a university or your tuition money. We're giving you a check to go win.

17:05-Knowing just enough to be dangerous

27:58-The Exit Market: No one wants to test the market. LPs, hang on.

33:07-FPV’s take on AI

34:09-Founder success is the gift that keeps on giving