The Long View

Jesse Marble

The Long View with Jesse Marble is a podcast for builders and founders. The ones who know the game is fast but isn't won in a quarter. Every episode, I sit down with founders, investors, athletes, authors, operators, leaders who've been through it, the sleepless stretches, the bets that looked stupid until they didn't, the unsexy work that compounds when nobody's watching. We talk about conviction, survival, and what it actually looks like to build something that lasts. No hacks. No highlight reels. Guards down.

Episodes

  1. Jul 29

    Episode 4: The American Dream Runs on Startups

    Donna Harris is the Founder and CEO of Builders + Backers, the world's first AI-powered venture studio helping entrepreneurs everywhere turn ideas into real companies. Over her career as a six-time entrepreneur and top-ranked seed-stage investor, she co-founded 1776 in Washington, DC, served as Managing Director of the Startup America Partnership, and is now General Partner of 1776 Ventures — giving her a front-row seat to what actually separates thriving startup ecosystems from ones that stall out. In this episode we discuss: What's actually broken in the startup ecosystemThe truth about alternative funding options beyond venture capitalHow AI is reshaping the future of venture buildingWhy so much "startup success" is an illusionLessons from Tulsa on what makes an ecosystem workWhy human judgment is the one thing AI can't replace Find Donna on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dharrisindc/ Enjoy! Timestamps:0:00 Intro04:24 Building the Startup Ecosystem in D.C.07:22 Reflections on Startup Success and Challenges09:58 Navigating Alternative Funding Options19:25 The Role of AI in Shaping the Future of Startups22:27 Evaluating Venture Building Models25:08 The Reality of Startup Growth and Expectations31:06 The Illusion of Startup Success33:17 The Reality of Entrepreneurship35:42 Rethinking Economic Development38:34 Successful Ecosystems: Lessons from Tulsa41:07 Myths in Entrepreneurship44:00 Leveraging AI Tools for Startups48:36 The Human Element in an AI World

About

The Long View with Jesse Marble is a podcast for builders and founders. The ones who know the game is fast but isn't won in a quarter. Every episode, I sit down with founders, investors, athletes, authors, operators, leaders who've been through it, the sleepless stretches, the bets that looked stupid until they didn't, the unsexy work that compounds when nobody's watching. We talk about conviction, survival, and what it actually looks like to build something that lasts. No hacks. No highlight reels. Guards down.