Latest Interviews
Showing 1441–1455 of 1,932 interview transcripts.
Clear all filters- Goldman Sachs22 min
Jean Case: Author, "Be Fearless"
Gene Case, Chairman of the National Geographic Society and CEO of the Case Foundation, recounts her career trajectory from a scholarship student to a pivotal figure in the early internet sector who secured a critical $3 million settlement to launch America Online. Critiquing the current lack of venture capital diversity and startup consolidation in the United States, she advocates for a risk-tolerant philanthropic approach that funds "people and ideas that can change the world." Drawing on her book *Be Fearless*, Case emphasizes five principles for navigating change, urging leaders to prioritize bold, disruptive action over the protection of endowments to address pressing social challenges.
- Goldman Sachs30 min
Evan Thomas: Author, "First: Sandra Day O’Connor"
Evan Thomas, Sandra Day O'Connor
Appointed by President Reagan as the Supreme Court's first female justice, Sandra Day O'Connor leveraged her background as a state legislator and political network builder to become the decisive swing vote in roughly 330 major cases. Her judicial philosophy emphasized strategic compromise and bridge-building, yielding landmark rulings that prohibited gender discrimination in state institutions, refined the "undue burden" standard for abortion rights, and upheld affirmative action. O'Connor transformed the Court's internal culture into a cohesive body through weekly lunches and served as a critical mentor to future female justices, proving that practical negotiation could achieve significant legal progress without rigid ideological activism.
- Goldman Sachs25 min
Julie Sweet: Chief Executive Officer of Accenture
Accenture North America CEO Julie Sweet leverages her legal background and a culture of continuous learning to drive an innovation-led business model, currently prioritizing "natural curiosity" among her 500,000 global employees. Following strategic pivots from a historic earnings miss to a 2014 branding error, she has championed organizational agility and deep diversity initiatives to foster an inclusive environment. Sweet further guides the firm's digital transformation by emphasizing AI adoption, blockchain pilots, and 5G readiness while advising future leaders to master storytelling and embrace calculated risks.
- Goldman Sachs32 min
Ret. US Marine Corps General and Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly
General John Kelly outlines a strategic approach to North Korean denuclearization and trade with China that leverages President Trump's deal-making instincts to manage complex international relations despite significant geopolitical hurdles. Simultaneously, the administration is restructuring domestic policies on drug trafficking and border security by advocating for physical barriers, advanced surveillance technology, and comprehensive demand reduction programs to address rising opioid crises and illegal immigration. Kelly asserts that these initiatives operate within an orderly White House environment that prioritizes diverse internal advice while utilizing direct communication channels to bypass traditional media constraints.
- Goldman Sachs26 min
Rosalind Brewer: COO and Group President, Starbucks
Roz Brewer, the first Black and female leader of Sam's Club, transitioned from organic chemistry to executive leadership at Kimberly-Clark, Walmart, and Starbucks, where she famously championed the business value of diversity despite facing public backlash. As Starbucks CEO during a 2018 racial bias crisis, Brewer personally apologized to arrested patrons and orchestrated the closure of 8,000 stores for mandatory internal bias training, a response that solidified her reputation for decisive crisis management. Following her tenure at Starbucks, Brewer joined the Amazon board of directors and continues to advocate for the normalization of Black women's presence in high-level corporate governance while urging the next generation to pursue their goals with perseverance.
- Milken Institute26 min
Across Sectors and Borders | Part 1: Building Tomorrow's Global Workforce
Mina Al-Oraibi, Jeff Maggioncalda, Solveig Nicklos
Established to address the region's 31% youth unemployment, the Abu Dhabi School of Government (ADSG) partnered with Coursera to deploy a localized, mobile-accessible platform delivering 3,000 courses from elite institutions to 60,000 government employees. This initiative integrates competency-based learning into performance management systems and extends "stepping stone" programs to reskill non-government job seekers, aiming to foster a culture of adaptability for future workforces. By shifting focus from static degrees to modular credentialing, the project aspires to serve as a scalable global model for upskilling workforces against rapid technological and economic shifts.
- Goldman Sachs34 min
Bret Stephens: "New York Times" Op-Ed Columnist
Bret Stephens, Jake Siewert, Brett Stevens
Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Brett Stevens, a former Jerusalem Post editor with a background in political philosophy, delivered a speech titled "The Dying Art of Disagreement" warning that political certitude and the erosion of free press threaten liberal democracy. Stevens critiqued the isolationist trends in U.S. foreign policy, condemned the Republican Party's failure to check executive overreach, and highlighted the dangers of media algorithms creating thought silos. He argued that healthy democracies require robust disagreement and contrarian voices, urging both journalists and voters to reject the toxic "certitudinousness" that fuels extremism and undermines global security.
- Y Combinator21 min
YC's Director of Events Domonique Fines with Elpha CEO Cadran Cowansage
Domonique Fines, Cadran Cowansage
Dom, the sole proprietor directing all public events at Y Combinator, spearheads a strategy to democratize the startup ecosystem by partnering with organizations like Code 2040 and visiting institutions such as Morehouse College to challenge elitist perceptions. Drawing on a non-linear career path that moved from law to nightlife management and tech operations, she applies a problem-first mindset to dismantle barriers for underrepresented communities while actively cultivating diversity through high-profile partnerships. To sustain this high-impact work, she enforces strict burnout prevention tactics including digital detachment and restorative "staycations," ensuring her leadership remains effective without compromising personal well-being.
- Milken Institute20 min
Across Sectors and Borders | Part 2: Entrepreneurship, Technology, and Social Investing
Rich Ditizio, Edgar Bronfman Jr., Richard D'Atizio
Bronfman outlines a transformative economic landscape where technology disrupts traditional music distribution, while the Endeavor Global network leverages mentorship to sustainably scale entrepreneurship across 33 countries. Simultaneously, he argues that addressing climate change requires moving beyond emission reduction to mass-scale Direct Air Capture, utilizing modular technology to economically sequester billions of tons of CO2 annually. Together, these strategies exemplify an impact investing philosophy that rejects the compromise between social good and profit, insisting that scalable solutions must generate financial returns to drive global transformation.
- Goldman Sachs22 min
"Catch-Up With David": with Chief Executive Officer of Nextdoor, Sarah Friar
Former Square CFO Sarah Friar left her previous role to become CEO of Nextdoor, leveraging the platform's presence in over 90% of U.S. neighborhoods to bridge the gap between digital connectivity and tangible community health. Her strategy targets societal discord by fostering offline neighbor interactions while integrating local businesses to reinvest wealth back into communities, a mission shaped by her experiences with sectarian conflict in Northern Ireland and financial exclusion in South Africa. Friar applies rigorous financial discipline and people-first leadership principles to drive an ambitious goal of reaching one billion members while simultaneously championing capital allocation for women-founded businesses to address systemic funding gaps.
- a16z21 min
What’s with All the Bio M&A in 2019?: A Quick Take
Kouki Harasaki, Nate Chang, Frank Chen
Driven by urgent patent cliffs and $150 billion in available capital, the 2019 biopharmaceutical landscape saw major corporations like Bristol-Myers Squibb and Takeda pursue $94 billion in M&A deals to secure platforms in gene therapy and manufacturing. Buyers increasingly favored strategic acquisitions that offer shared R&D infrastructure and supply chain security, while simultaneously utilizing early-stage licensing to mitigate risk before committing to late-stage assets. Startup executives are advised to secure internal champions and negotiate for standalone operational autonomy to align with shifting commercialization models that prioritize long-term value over traditional full integration.
- Y Combinator34 min
Karn Saroya on the Capital-Light Way to Start an Insurance Business
Co-founder Karn Soroya and his team launched Cover, a national property insurance entity that utilizes TensorFlow-based computer vision to automate underwriting and verify asset values through customer photography. The company strategically pivoted from failed e-commerce ventures to secure licenses in 49 states and partnerships with 30 carriers, avoiding balance sheet risk by operating as a capital-light distributor and underwriting filter. Cover achieved rapid market dominance by leveraging app-based acquisition strategies and utility-driven tools like defensive driving schools, ultimately raising $3.2 million at YC Demo Day in 2016 to scale its operations across the United States and Canada.
- Goldman Sachs32 min
Van Jones: A "First Step" in Criminal Justice Reform
Van Jones transformed his early disillusionment with media sensationalism into a decades-long crusade for criminal justice reform, leveraging grassroots activism in the Bay Area and high-level political alliances ranging from the Obama and Trump administrations to launch major policy victories like the First Step Act. Building on bipartisan support that secured overwhelming legislative passage and targeted the opioid crisis, he recently founded the Reform Alliance with $50 million in capital from co-founders Jay-Z, Meek Mill, and Robert Kraft to dismantle the probation and parole systems driving recidivism. His work continues to focus on removing employment barriers for formerly incarcerated individuals and expanding green job initiatives to reintegrate millions into the economy while reducing the racial disparities inherent in the current justice system.
- Milken Institute27 min
A Conversation with Sean Parker, co-founder of Napster, Facebook, and the Parker Foundation
Sean Parker, Hadley Gamble, Katie O'Reilly
Milken Institute leaders and entrepreneur Sean Parker convened at the annual MENA Summit to outline strategic economic initiatives, including upcoming events in Japan and Los Angeles, while addressing critical intersections of healthcare, technology, and ethics. Parker detailed his $400 million commitment to cancer immunotherapy and warned of impending societal crises driven by CRISPR accessibility, predicting that the U.S. will allocate 50% of its GDP to healthcare by 2080 due to aging demographics and biological complexity. The dialogue further examined contrarian investment opportunities in underserved markets, the accelerating convergence of AI and life sciences, and the urgent need for regulatory frameworks to govern germline editing and data privacy.
- a16z34 min
a16z Podcast | Gaming Goes Mainstream
Bobby Kotick transformed Activision from a struggling publisher into the global entertainment giant Activision Blizzard by leading the 2008 merger with Vivendi Games to acquire Blizzard Entertainment. Under his strategic direction, the industry has evolved from a niche hobby into a worldwide cultural phenomenon driven by mobile accessibility, augmented reality, and the tribal dynamics of esports. Kotick further solidified market dominance by championing cross-platform engagement models like Fortnite's serialized seasons and the city-based structure of the Overwatch League.