Latest Interviews
Showing 4336–4350 of 4,868 transcripts.
Clear all filters- Milken Institute1h 2m
How Philanthropic Capital Can Spark 21st Century Innovations
Melissa Stevens, Joe Cerrell, Madeleine Clarke, Johan Eliasch, Igor Tulchinsky
Leading philanthropists from the Gates Foundation, WorldQuant, and Co-Impact convened to redefine "venture philanthropy" by shifting from traditional grant-making toward market-based strategies that crowd in private capital for global challenges like disease, conservation, and climate instability. Through case studies on contraceptive pricing, indigenous rainforest conservation, and data-driven healthcare analytics, the event highlighted how cross-sector partnerships can achieve measurable scale while emphasizing strict governance metrics to ensure sustainability. The dialogue concluded with a strategic call to prioritize sustainable energy, integrate governments into solution design, and navigate the risks of over-claiming impact to foster genuine systems change.
- Y Combinator1h 2m
There's an Art to Getting Brilliant People to Surprise Themselves - Kevin Slavin of The Shed
Kevin Kelly's peripatetic career bridges disparate fields, from bootstrapping the mobile game company Area Code to shaping the operational philosophies of MIT's Media Lab and New York's The Shed. His work redefines cultural institutions as "synchronizing signals" that counteract social fragmentation through adaptive architecture, such as The Shed's 120-foot moving shell, and digital strategies like total smartphone ticketing. Looking forward, Kelly advocates for a future where innovation emerges from cross-disciplinary agility rather than traditional domain expertise, a perspective he applies to his analysis of the nascent virtual reality industry.
- Goldman Sachs10 min
Talks at GS – Nick Leschly: The Promise of Gene Therapy
Bluebird Bio is applying a gene-editing strategy to treat genetic diseases like sickle cell disease and cancer by harvesting patient stem cells, inserting functional DNA via viral vectors, and reinfusing the modified cells to achieve a permanent cure. Led by CEO Nick Lashley, the company has overcome a history of industry overpromising by adopting a strictly patient-centric culture that enforces operational frugality and high executive autonomy to ensure focus on therapeutic efficacy. Early clinical results demonstrate the therapy's potential, with treated sickle cell patients reportedly free of pain medication within six months, validating the firm's shift toward "function engineering" rather than simple restoration.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
Immigration, Workforce and the New Europe
Robert Guest, Elizabeth Collett, Paul Collier, August Hanning, Syed Kamall, Parag Khanna
Former German intelligence chief August Hanning, economist Paul Collier, and other global security experts convened to analyze the economic, political, and security dimensions of the European migration crisis. The panelists distinguished between refugees and economic migrants, arguing that Europe's disproportionate political focus has undermined global stability while driving polarization that empowered nationalist movements from the AfD to Trump. Ultimately, the discussion concluded that resolving displacement requires a fundamental shift from border-centric policies to investing in governance and economic development within origin countries to address the root causes of migration.
- Goldman Sachs12 min
Talks at GS – Dan Huttenlocher: Tech and the City – Powering the Future
Cornell Tech Dean Dan Huttenlacher outlined the creation of the Roosevelt Island campus as a strategic response to bridge the gap between university education and the digital economy, mirroring the historic establishment of engineering schools in the 1860s. Drawing on New York's thriving venture capital ecosystem, Huttenlacher distinguished the current technological landscape by emphasizing human dexterity in unstructured scenarios while advocating for AI's efficacy in rule-based tasks. He further addressed the necessity of diversifying the computer science demographic and navigating societal challenges posed by social media and blockchain, urging a corporate framework that prioritizes stakeholders before engaging in proactive societal dialogue.
- Goldman Sachs9 min
Talks at GS – Tony Prophet: Promoting Equality in the Workplace
Salesforce co-founder Tony Profitt describes how the company institutionalized a three-vector innovation model centered on the "1-1-1" philanthropy framework and an "Ohana" culture defined by trust, growth, innovation, and equality. As the organization's first Chief Equality Officer, Profitt outlines a four-lane strategy for societal impact that includes opposing discriminatory legislation, enforcing equal pay, expanding educational access, and mirroring local demographics through inclusive hiring practices. This approach challenges traditional notions of cultural fit to create an environment where diverse talent thrives, positioning long-term societal legacy as a core business objective rather than an afterthought.
- Goldman Sachs12 min
Talks at GS – Ella and Matthew Mills: Deliciously Ella’s Recipe for Success
Following a personal health diagnosis, Ella Mills transformed her recovery blog into Deliciously Ella, a leading international food brand that achieved record-breaking cookbook sales and app downloads without formal marketing or an internal creative team. To scale the operation, co-CEO Matthew Mills joined to provide essential financial expertise, enabling the consolidation of the fragmented free-from market into a single optimistic entity with distribution in 5,500 stores. Driven by Mills' direct daily engagement with 28 million social media followers, the company aims to become the UK's largest health food business by prioritizing general dietary improvement over niche weight loss trends.
- Y Combinator18 min
Preston Silverman on Building out a Marketplace in Education - at YC Edtech Night
Founded by a former strategy consultant and teacher, Raise Me awards nearly $1.5 billion in scholarships during high school to bridge the critical gap between eligibility and college enrollment. The platform secured its initial growth through a $100,000 Gates Foundation grant and strategic partnerships with higher education institutions, bypassing traditional EdTech skepticism to address the $100 billion annual scholarship market. Now a 52-person organization aiming for national ubiquity within five years, the company shifts focus from early-stage survival tactics to scaling its model that prioritizes student guidance and skill development over content-heavy curricula.
- Y Combinator57 min
Microbes, Robots, and Ambition - Robin Sloan on His Novel Sourdough
Robin Sloan, Kat Manalac, Craig Cannon
During a discussion on the intersection of artificial intelligence and literary craft, the author details the unprecedented creation of the *Sourdough* audiobook, which features machine-generated alien music synthesized from Croatian Klapa folk recordings. The conversation further examines the technical reality of the "Egg Problem" in robotics, the author's philosophy of viewing technological convergence as a cumulative "glorious crash" rather than an adversarial force, and the fragility of digital preservation in contrast to physical media. Looking toward the future, the author outlines plans to integrate text generation as a core stylistic tool in a new novel while reflecting on how current cultural narratives have shifted from Silicon Valley's early optimism to a more critical examination of power and labor.
- Goldman Sachs46 min
Talks at GS – Ron Chernow: Lessons in Leadership – The Unlikely Rise of Ulysses S. Grant
Ron Chernow, Ulysses S. Grant, Lloyd Blankfein
Biographer Ron Chernow reconstructs Ulysses S. Grant's arc from a failed businessman and dismissed officer to a strategic genius who secured Union victory and championed Reconstruction through the Department of Justice. Chernow utilizes Grant's presidency to challenge the "Lost Cause" narrative, highlighting the passage of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments and the unprecedented political representation of African Americans before the era's eventual collapse. While documenting Grant's tragic financial ruin and his unique psychological capacity for calm under fire, the work reframes the general as a modernizing leader whose legacy has surged from historical obscurity to the center of civil rights history.
- Y Combinator28 min
Keith Schacht and Doug Peltz on What Traction Feels Like - at YC Edtech Night
Keith Schacht, Doug Peltz, Geoff Ralston, Tim, Blake
Founded by former teacher Doug Peltz and entrepreneur Keith Schacht, Mystery Science delivers an interactive, pre-recorded science curriculum that acts as a virtual co-teacher for K-5 educators lacking subject expertise. The company secured a $2 million Series A round and entered Y Combinator in 2017 after validating a viral, teacher-led adoption model that currently operates in over 10% of U.S. schools. By replacing traditional textbooks with evidence-based storytelling, Mystery Science has bypassed the need for heavy sales infrastructure to become a dominant supplemental resource in a market where 95% of elementary schools lack dedicated science staff.
- Y Combinator26 min
Sarah Chou on Finding Product-Market Fit in the Education Industry - at YC Edtech Night
Sarah Chou, Karen Lien, Chen, Preston, Jeff, Tim, Chad
Informed K-12, a B2B SaaS platform founded by CEO Sarah and CTO Chen, facilitates the digitization of administrative workflows for school districts by managing over 600 distinct forms ranging from mileage reimbursements to travel authorizations. After pivoting from an unsuccessful teacher-focused Q&A model, the company established a repeatable sales process targeting Chief Business Officials and Assistant Superintendents to validate demand for a system-level paperwork solution. With 22 employees now operating in 22 distinct markets, the firm leverages direct relationship-building strategies and rigorous data privacy standards to modernize back-office operations for districts navigating budget constraints and staffing challenges.
- Goldman Sachs14 min
Talks at GS – Henry Kravis: 40 Years of Innovation in Finance
Founded in 1976 by Henry Kravis, George Roberts, and Jerry Colbert, KKR operates as an independent private equity firm distinguished by a long-term investment horizon and a decadal "first day" mindset designed to prevent organizational stagnation. The firm prioritizes active value creation over static financial modeling, leveraging a unique culture of full profit sharing and a leadership philosophy that warns against arrogance while focusing on the 20% of business levers that drive the majority of outcomes. As the firm manages a global portfolio of over 130 companies, its partners emphasize that success relies on identifying evolving market realities rather than adhering to rigid projections, a strategy supported by their enduring partnership and adherence to rigorous operational discipline.
- Goldman Sachs11 min
Talks at GS – David Eagleman: The Neuroscience of Creativity
David Eagleman, David Rockefeller Jr., Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Levine Jr., Dan Coffey Jr., Dan Collins
This analysis redefines human creativity as an evolutionary advantage rooted in the prefrontal cortex's capacity for hypothesis testing rather than physical traits, identifying three universal cognitive operations—break, blend, and bend—as the fundamental drivers of innovation. By shifting educational and economic focus from rote memorization to cognitive flexibility, individuals and organizations can leverage the collective intelligence of 8 billion brains to navigate a transitioning creativity economy. Ultimately, success in this new era requires actively dismantling past successes and tolerating failure to generate novel solutions that artificial intelligence currently cannot replicate.
- Goldman Sachs13 min
Talks at GS – Dan Weiss: A Museum for the 21st Century
Danish El-Kholy, the fifth president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, oversees a global institution with a $320 million budget and 7 million annual visitors while navigating complex debates on repatriation and public monuments. He defends the museum's object-centered preservation mission against political pressures and advocates for historical labeling over the removal of controversial statues to foster civil discourse. El-Kholy concludes by urging leaders to prioritize integrity and ownership of errors, emphasizing that success often relies on acknowledging the role of luck alongside professional responsibility.