Latest Interviews
Showing 1036–1050 of 1,302 transcripts.
Clear all filters- Goldman Sachs17 min
Goldman Sachs at 150: Part 4 – Changing Times (1969)
Gus Levy, Sidney Weinberg, Bob Mnuchin, Bob Rubin, Steve Friedman
In the early 1960s, Gus Levy redefined Goldman Sachs by transitioning it from a conservative investment bank into a trader-led market maker capable of handling massive institutional volume. His innovative block trading strategies and a culture of relentless accessibility navigated the firm through a 1970s liquidity crisis, establishing a legacy of institutional leadership that endured beyond his 1976 death. This structural shift not only secured the firm's position as a Wall Street hub but also instilled a permanent culture of vigilance and high standards that continues to shape Goldman Sachs' operations.
- Goldman Sachs18 min
Goldman Sachs at 150: Part 3 – Recovery (1930)
Following the 1929 stock market crash, Sidney Weinberg rose from a janitor to lead Goldman Sachs through two decades of financial adversity, personally restoring client trust and building a network of high-profile corporate clients. Under his centralized control, Weinberg prioritized long-term relationships over immediate gains, orchestrating the landmark 1956 public offering for Ford Motor Company to cement the firm's status as a premier investment bank. His leadership legacy, characterized by "controlled ambition" and integrity, survived him after he stepped back from daily operations in 1963, leaving behind a client list and reputation that sustained the firm for decades.
- Goldman Sachs12 min
Goldman Sachs at 150: Part 2 – Hubris (1929)
Henry Goldman, Waddill Catchings, Walter Sachs
During the 1920s, leadership under Waddell Catchings pivoted Goldman Sachs toward aggressive leverage and the creation of the highly risky Trading Corporation, a move that nearly destroyed the firm following the 1929 market crash. Although the catastrophic collapse of the Trading Corporation reduced its stock from $326 to $1.75 and triggered a $100 million lawsuit from 42,000 stockholders, the legal separation of the entity from the main partnership allowed the original family-controlled firm to survive the Great Depression. This near-failure ultimately cemented a culture of constitutional pessimism and risk aversion, ensuring that future decision-making would prioritize long-term institutional stability over short-term profit maximization.
- Goldman Sachs16 min
Goldman Sachs at 150: Part 1 – Beginnings (1869)
Founded in 1869 by immigrant Marcus Goldman and later expanded by his son-in-law Samuel Sachs and son Henry Goldman, the firm evolved from a niche commercial paper dealer into a dominant investment bank through a unique leadership dynamic and aggressive market innovation. Pioneering critical financial practices such as the underwriting of non-utility retailers and the development of the Price-to-Earnings ratio, the partners successfully floated major companies like Sears and Macy's while navigating competition from established giants like J.P. Morgan. This strategic combination of calculated risk-taking and client-focused ingenuity transformed the organization from a basement operation into a globally influential institution that maintained its core values despite significant operational changes over the first century of its existence.
- Goldman Sachs29 min
Ian Bremmer: President and Founder of Eurasia Group
Ian Bremmer's *Us Versus Them: The Failure of Globalism* diagnoses the rise of populism in advanced democracies as a structural result of economic inequality, automation, and information fragmentation rather than a singular political event. The analysis details how U.S. unilateralism is eroding alliances, specifically through trade tensions with China and security failures in the Middle East, while highlighting China's strategic pivot toward controlling semiconductor supply chains and exporting digital authoritarianism. Despite these geopolitical recessions and regional flashpoints in Mexico, Iran, and Europe, Bremmer concludes that global human capital and technological innovation may ultimately catalyze new solutions to these existential challenges.
- Goldman Sachs28 min
Douglas Brinkley: Historian and Author of "American Moonshot"
Douglas Brinkley, Tim O'Neill, Doug Brinkley
The 1969 Apollo 11 lunar landing, driven by Cold War political competition and a 4.5% federal budget commitment, relied on rocket technology developed by former Nazi officer Wernher von Braun to defeat Soviet advances. While the mission served as a definitive triumph of American democracy that cost taxpayers $25 billion, it ultimately exposed the fragility of such singular national goals, as the program was immediately scaled back under President Nixon due to waning public interest and political friction. The event left a complex legacy where technical achievements coexist with the moral contradictions of von Braun's background and the reality that the organizational capacity for such massive undertakings has since diminished.
- Goldman Sachs28 min
Tzi Ma: Actor
Tai Ma, a Hong Kong-born actor who transitioned from cultural isolation in Staten Island to a prominent stage and film career, advocates for substantive Asian-American representation through his upcoming projects like *The Farewell* and the Netflix series *Wu Assassins*. He highlights a shifting industry landscape driven by the demographic spending power of the 23 million Asian-American consumers, noting increased opportunities for Asian-American women directors while criticizing the Writers Guild of America's lack of diversity. Beyond his own roles in major productions such as *Mulan*, Ma actively mentors emerging talent and employs a participatory casting approach to challenge script inconsistencies and foster authentic storytelling.
- Goldman Sachs28 min
Mark Teixeira: Retired Major League Baseball Player
Former MLB switch-hitter Mark DeShera reflects on his journey from a contentious 2004 Red Sox draft to winning a 2009 World Series with the Yankees, where he led the league in home runs and RBIs while rejecting performance-enhancing drugs to preserve his personal legacy. Now a broadcaster and dedicated philanthropist, DeShera analyzes the modern game's reliance on analytics and payroll depth while championing his DREAM organization's 99% college matriculation rate for at-risk youth in the New York tri-state area. His career is defined by high-stakes competition, a commitment to integrity, and a philosophy that values education and long-term relationship building over short-term baseball gains.
- Goldman Sachs13 min
Amb. Bruce Heyman and Vicki Heyman: Co-Authors, "The Art of Diplomacy"
Bruce Heyman, Vicki Heyman, Dena Powell
Former U.S. Ambassador Bruce Heyman navigated intense diplomatic friction with the Harper administration regarding the Keystone Pipeline delay, which resulted in his temporary exclusion from high-level Canadian meetings. To repair the strained relationship, Heyman and his wife Vicki launched extensive cultural diplomacy tours across Canadian provinces while simultaneously building "Uncharted," an organization dedicated to promoting the role of citizen ambassadors. Their collaborative efforts culminated in a published book that emphasizes the strategic necessity of the U.S.-Canada border and urges Americans to actively preserve the alliance through shared historical experiences and civic engagement.
- Goldman Sachs14 min
Ming Mei: Co-Founder and CEO of GLP
Founded in 2009 and led by co-founder Ming-Mei, GLP has evolved from a brick-and-mortar warehouse operator into the world's largest logistics solutions provider managing over $125 billion in combined assets. Under Ming-Mei's strategic direction, the company executed a pivotal shift to a private fund management model after taking itself public in 2010, a move designed to support its complex global expansion into emerging markets and technology-driven supply chain services. This transformation leverages early real estate insights and a "minimized regret" decision framework to deploy capital across diverse geographies, effectively turning physical infrastructure into a platform for financial innovation and operational efficiency.
- Goldman Sachs20 min
Niklas Zennström: CEO of Atomico and Co-Founder of Skype
Niklas Zennström, Cliff Marriott
Founded by Skype co-creator Nicholas Zennstrom in 2006, Atomico has evolved from addressing European capital gaps to investing in consumer giants like Spotify while pivoting toward enterprise solutions in healthcare and climate sectors. The firm now integrates ethical governance into its portfolio strategy, requiring founders to assess societal risks and implementing proactive diversity hiring programs to foster inclusive growth. Zennstrom guides this transformation by framing the next decade as a critical window for technology to solve environmental challenges and align commercial success with sustainable corporate purpose.
- Goldman Sachs21 min
Saadia Zahidi: Author of "Fifty Million Rising"
Saadia Zahidi, author of *50 Million Rising*, documents a 50% surge in the Muslim world's female labor force that is reshaping social norms through increased education investment and economic independence. While this regional progress contrasts with a global gender gap projected to take 202 years to close due to unpaid care burdens and technological displacement, Zahidi highlights Nordic policy models and smart quotas as effective strategies for accelerating parity. The narrative emphasizes how individual success stories, such as a Pakistani McDonald's worker navigating joint family dynamics, illustrate the broader transformation of family economic strategies and women's agency in Muslim-majority economies.
- Goldman Sachs20 min
Dan Rosensweig: President and CEO, Chegg
Dan Rosenzweig leveraged a serendipitous net gain from his first layoff at Pitney Bowes to navigate a career defining the shift toward direct-to-consumer technology sales and later as Yahoo's COO, where he missed a pivotal opportunity to acquire a then-unprofitable Facebook. Following that tenure, he founded Chegg to address the higher education crisis marked by $1.5 trillion in student debt and obsolete four-year degree models, advocating for an on-demand, skills-based system aligned with employer needs. His work highlights the urgent need to reform curriculum and enrollment barriers to serve non-traditional learners and resolve the financial stagnation facing millions of American graduates.
- Goldman Sachs22 min
Lei Zhang: Founder and CEO of Hillhouse Capital
Zhang Lei, founder and CEO of Gaoling Capital, directs a firm that has scaled assets under management to over $60 billion by applying a lean, reputation-based investment model that merges Western equity principles with Eastern philosophical concepts. The firm actively pursues the "Plus Internet" sector, driving innovation in traditional industries through artificial intelligence and biotechnology while prioritizing founders who demonstrate empathy, lifelong learning, and a resilient "sports team" culture. Beyond capital allocation, Lei's strategy extends to philanthropy and education, notably through the establishment of Hill House Academy and Westlake University, which aim to transform China's wealth culture by compounding human capital rather than seeking immediate financial exits.
- Goldman Sachs22 min
Hooi Ling Tan: Co-Founder of Grab
Grab, a Southeast Asian super app serving over 600 million people across eleven nations, evolved from a taxi safety solution into a comprehensive platform for mobility, food delivery, and financial services under the leadership of co-founders Huiling Tan and Anthony Tan. By strategically acquiring Uber's regional operations and securing critical financial wallet licenses faster than competitors, the company has integrated diverse markets into a unified ecosystem while maintaining strict safety protocols and regulatory partnerships. Operating with a heavy focus on on-the-ground infrastructure and cultural alignment, Grab targets the region's middle-to-lower income demographics to drive financial inclusion and aims to become the market leader in all its territories by year-end.