Listen "Howdy, Partner"
Episode Synopsis
Grant's Promotion to Partner, the State of Seed Investing, and Quantum vs Classical RisksToday’s episode is a day late but for good reason — Grant was recently promoted to Partner(!), so Hammad wanted to open the pod congratulating him, and let Grant share some thank you’s to those that have helped him reach this amazing milestone.We then shift to a topic that’s seemingly on everyone’s minds: why is early stage (seed) investing so competitive? And what will happen from here? Grant opens with an iconic Jerry Neumann post from 10 years ago, and connects it to two other posts on the differences in risks between early and late stage startups.This is one of our most wide-ranging episodes to date. We cover everything from quantum vs classical risks to lessons from Grant’s recent dinner with a founder of an iconic venture firm. Grant was also semi-caffeinated for this, which if you know him well, means you’re in for a high-tempo convo. Enjoy!“I like hitting the tennis ball.” —Novak Djokovic🔗 Show Resource LinksThe Purity of Obsession - Grant’s post on becoming PartnerHeat Death: Venture Capital in the 1980s - Reaction Wheel (Jerry Neumann)Slow Ventures’ State of VC 2025 DeckThere are No Stages, Just Early and Late - Yoni RechtmanClassical Risk vs Quantum Risk - Kanyi MaqubelaOdds of Success - Grant’s Ignition essay🎙️ Podcast LinksSpotifyApple PodcastsX (FKA Twitter)Subscribe🌀 About Motion BlurExploring what makes great companies and technologies work. Brought to you by Grant Gregory & Hammad Aslam. Grant is a Partner at Cantos where he focuses on physical world technologies. Hammad is a Partner at Kivu Ventures, Susa’s growth fund. Learn more about the hosts:Grant Gregory, @grant__gregory, EmbersHammad Aslam, @_hammad_aslamh, Susa VenturesIf you're interested in the real inside baseball of tech, entrepreneurship, and start-up investing, tune in every week for new episodes.Intro music credit: Will HarrisonThanks for reading and listening to Motion Blur! Subscribe to get notified for future episodes.
More episodes of the podcast Motion Blur
Video: The State of Adventure (Capital)
04/11/2025
Bonus Episode: One Year of Motion Blur!
04/11/2025
Will's Corner: Hardware Over Software?
31/10/2025
Dan Gray – What's Wrong with Venture?
19/09/2025
It's Good to Be Back
11/09/2025
Capital as a Moat
28/06/2025
Craving Commodities
20/06/2025
IO Awaits
31/05/2025
ZARZA We are Zarza, the prestigious firm behind major projects in information technology.