Best 1517 Fund Podcasts (2025)

1
Flux Grant by 1517 Fund: Backing Garage Science and Sci-Fi Tech 47:01

25d ago47:01

47:01

In this episode of the 632nm podcast, we sit down with 1517 Fund’s Danielle Strachman and Michael Gibson to explore their Flux program, a unique pre-seed fellowship backing wild, unorthodox scientific and technical ideas. They share how they’ve helped founders transform “garage science” projects—like nuclear batteries, quantum computing prototypes,…

1
S2E03: Atoms over bits: Investing in hardware and innovative founders to solve climate challenges - Sundeep Ahuja, Climate Capital 41:30

9d ago41:30

41:30

We’ve welcomed investors with unique backgrounds to First Funders before, but Sundeep Ahuja is our first operator-turned-actor-turned-investor. Sundeep is all in on all things climate tech. He’s backing founders leading the way in cleaning up our water, purifying our air, and keeping our planet the way it should be: livable. Today, his micro fund a…

1
Origin of Life, Thermodynamics, and God: Jeremy England 2:19:27

15d ago2:19:27

2:19:27

In this episode, Jeremy England reframes the origin of life debate by applying non-equilibrium physics, challenging the notion that life’s emergence must be purely biological or chemical. He describes how matter can “learn” from its environment, drawing on examples from spin glasses, protein folding, and resonating mechanical systems. England also …

1
Trapped Ion Quantum Computing: Christopher Monroe of IonQ 2:25:12

1M ago2:25:12

2:25:12

In this episode of the 632nm podcast, our guest traces the evolution from the early days of Bose-Einstein condensation experiments to pioneering trapped ion quantum gateways. He reveals how breakthroughs in laser cooling and atomic clock research unexpectedly paved the way for the first quantum logic gates, beating out the BEC community at a pivota…

1
S2E02: Before Clay Was a Unicorn: The First Check, the Thesis, and the Long Game - Andre Charoo, Maple VC 1:14:00

1M ago1:14:00

1:14:00

Canadians have been the lifeblood behind some of the biggest unicorn startups of the past few years (think Open AI, Uber, Slack, Instacart, Notion, Databricks, CloudFlare, Roblox, Ethereum, Moderna Health, and Clay to name a few), and yet no one talks about them, except for Andre Charoo. And he’s not just talking – he’s putting his money behind Can…

1
Maintaining Moore's Law: Lithography, Semiconductors, and Chip Fabrication with Mordechai Rothschild 2:07:52

2M ago2:07:52

2:07:52

In this episode of the 632nm podcast, we explore how 193nm lasers unexpectedly overtook x-ray approaches and reshaped semiconductor manufacturing. Physicist Mordechai Rothschild describes the breakthroughs that turned a once “impossible” technology into the mainstay of chip fabrication, including the discovery of specialized lenses, the invention o…

1
Quantum Cascade Lasers: Federico Capasso on Curiosity and Bell Labs 1:32:38

2M ago1:32:38

1:32:38

In this episode, physicist Federico Capasso recounts his winding path from struggling undergrad to pioneering inventor of the quantum cascade laser. He reveals how openness, daring ideas, and the bottom-up ethos at Bell Labs led to breakthroughs that redefined semiconductor research. Capasso also discusses the blurred lines between basic and applie…

1
S2E01: Lessons on AI, PM, and LLMs from founder, investor, and operator Shalin Mantri 1:17:04

2M ago1:17:04

1:17:04

You can be a founder. You can be an investor. You can be an operator. Or, you can be Shalin Mantri and be all three. This respected product leader got his start by founding a mobile app startup in the early iPhone days in 2011 and followed it up with product leadership in the early days of Uber, Skip and more recently, Google. He angel invests with…

1
How Edison Inspired Eli Yablonovitch to Create Four World-Changing Inventions 3:00:34

3M ago3:00:34

3:00:34

Eli Yablonovitch shares how Thomas Edison's approach of requiring "a thousand failed discoveries for every one that works" shaped his scientific philosophy. From solar cells to semiconductor lasers to photonic crystals to cell phone antennas, Yablonovitch reveals how each invention evolved from identifying fundamental physics concepts that others o…

1
From Failed PhD to Nobel Prize | John Mather’s Journey to Revolutionize Astronomy 1:53:34

3M ago1:53:34

1:53:34

Join the 632nm team as we sit down with Nobel laureate Dr. John Mather. From his childhood days of building radios and telescopes to leading NASA's groundbreaking COBE mission, learn how a spectacular failure during his PhD research unexpectedly paved the way for his Nobel Prize-winning work. And hear the story of how NASA took a chance on a 28-yea…

1
Hunting for Alien Artifacts | Avi Loeb 3:37:27

4M ago3:37:27

3:37:27

Join the 632nm team as we sit down with Harvard Professor Avi Loeb, in this fascinating exploration of astronomy, alien life, and the intersection of science and politics. From discussing the mysterious interstellar object that changed astronomy to explaining why Mars might not be the best destination for human colonization, Loeb challenges convent…

1
Are We Doomed? | Dan Aronovich on Norbert Wiener's 1948 “Cybernetics” 58:34

4M ago58:34

58:34

In this episode, the 632nm team sits down with Dan Aronovich (Data Science Decoded Podcast) to explore predictions about technology and society, starting with MIT pioneer Norbert Wiener's remarkably prescient warnings about AI from 1948. His concerns about artificial systems misinterpreting human instructions mirror modern discussions about AI alig…

1
Information, Entropy & Reality | MIT Professor Seth Lloyd on Quantum Computing 2:03:02

4M ago2:03:02

2:03:02

The 632nm team sat down with MIT professor Seth Lloyd for a mind-bending journey through quantum mechanics, information theory, and the early days of quantum computing. Lloyd shares fascinating stories from his pioneering work in quantum information, including how he nearly got expelled from his PhD program for pursuing what was then considered a "…

1
From Medieval Glass to Nobel Prize | Moungi Bawendi on Mastering Quantum Dots 1:31:15

4M ago1:31:15

1:31:15

In this episode, the 632 team interviewed Nobel laureate Moungi Bawendi, revealing his serendipitous journey to the discovery and development of quantum dots. From a summer internship at Bell Labs to an expired bottle of chemicals that contained the perfect mixture, Bawendi shares how some of chemistry's biggest breakthroughs came from unexpected p…

1
How a Vision Disorder Led to Shocking Brain Science Discoveries | Mark Bear on Neuroplasticity 1:35:36

5M ago1:35:36

1:35:36

In this captivating episode, we explore how Mark Bear's personal experience with congenital nystagmus sparked a revolutionary career in neuroscience. Mark shares his remarkable journey from struggling with a visual impairment to making groundbreaking discoveries about how the brain processes visual information, including the identification of a pre…

1
The Current Reality of Quantum Computing | Yudong Cao on Deploying Quantum for Real-Life Problems 1:52:41

5M ago1:52:41

1:52:41

In this eye-opening episode, former Zapata Computing CEO Yudong Chen reveals the sobering truth about quantum computing's potential impact on drug discovery and the industry's inflated market expectations. Chen explains why even with perfect quantum chemistry calculations, the business case for quantum computing in pharmaceuticals falls dramaticall…

1
From Failed Project to 40 Million Eye Scans: David Huang on the Birth of OCT 1:29:04

5M ago1:29:04

1:29:04

Dr. David Huang shares the remarkable journey of how a failed laser surgery project during his MD-PhD studies at MIT led to the invention of Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), now used in over 40 million eye procedures annually. The story includes a pivotal moment when Professor James Fujimoto volunteered as the first human subject for OCT testing…

1
Origins of Life | Anna Wang on Artificial Cells and Nano-Robots 1:15:59

5M ago1:15:59

1:15:59

Origins of life researcher Anna Wang takes us on a fascinating journey through the latest theories about how life began, revealing why Darwin's "warm little ponds" are making a comeback and how ocean spray droplets may have served as nature's first test tubes. She explains why early cell membranes were more like soap bubbles - fragile and leaky - a…

1
The Future of Fusion | Dennis Whyte on Nuclear Fusion and MIT Plasma Science 2:51:01

5M ago2:51:01

2:51:01

MIT Professor Dennis Whyte's path to becoming a fusion energy pioneer began with an unlikely source - a Ripley's Believe It or Not comic strip he read as a teenager in rural Saskatchewan. The comic described how a bottle of water could theoretically contain the energy equivalent of 100 barrels of oil through fusion, sparking a lifelong fascination …

1
Origins of Life | Jack Szostak on Basement Experiments to Nobel Prize-Winning Discoveries 1:26:07

6M ago1:26:07

1:26:07

Nobel laureate Jack Szostak takes us on a fascinating journey through his remarkable scientific career, from conducting dangerous chemistry experiments in his basement as a curious child to making groundbreaking discoveries about telomeres that would earn him the Nobel Prize. He reveals how a forgotten DNA sample in his freezer led to fundamental i…

1
The God Particle | Christoph Paus on Higgs Boson, CERN, and CMS 1:42:29

6M ago1:42:29

1:42:29

Professor Christoph Paus, a key figure in the discovery of the Higgs Boson at CERN's Large Hadron Collider, discusses his journey in high-energy physics, the challenges of leading large international collaborations, and the future of particle physics. As one of the co-conveners of the CMS Higgs physics group during the historic discovery, Paus prov…

1
Cold Atoms: Mikhail Lukin on Quantum Optics and Neutral Atom Computing 50:30

6M ago50:30

50:30

In this episode, Harvard Professor Mikhail Lukin discusses his pioneering work in quantum computing using neutral atoms. He shares the journey from his early work in quantum optics and electromagnetically induced transparency to developing programmable quantum processors using arrays of individually trapped atoms. Lukin explains key breakthroughs i…

1
Einstein Was Wrong: John Clauser on Bell's Theorem and the Nature of Reality 2:09:52

6M ago2:09:52

2:09:52

In this episode, we sit down with Nobel laureate John Clauser to discuss his experiments from the early 1960’s, testing Bell's inequalities and quantum entanglement. Clauser shares the story of how, as a graduate student, he proposed testing quantum mechanics against Einstein's local realism - an idea that most prominent physicists, including Richa…

1
15: Founder to fintech evangelist to Internet personality and always a Taco Bell enthusiast – Sheel Mohnot, Better Tomorrow Ventures 53:08

7M ago53:08

53:08

We’ve had a lot of cool people on the pod, but Sheel Mohnot is our first guest to achieve this trifecta: 100X an investment, have a founder in his portfolio go to prison, and have his wedding sponsored by Taco Bell. He invests at the pre-seed and seed stages into startups in the financial technology (fintech) space, and he’s quick to tell you that …

1
The Science of Drug Discovery: Insights from Artem Evdokimov 2:50:28

7M ago2:50:28

2:50:28

In this episode, drug discovery scientist Artem Evdokimov discusses the science of pharmaceutical development, from historical breakthroughs to the current landscape. He shares insights on antibiotics resistance, the obesity drug Ozempic, and technical details of drug screening methods like DNA-encoded libraries. The conversation covers the economi…

1
Optical Metatronics: Nader Engheta on Electromagnetics and Scientific Curiosity 1:54:48

7M ago1:54:48

1:54:48

In this episode of the 632nm podcast, Nader Engheta shares his journey and experiences within the field of electromagnetics, from his early days at the University of Tehran and Caltech, to his current research in optical metatronics and nonlinear dynamics. He discusses the importance of motivation and curiosity in scientific research, the potential…

1
Quantum Computing: Peter Zoller and Ignacio Cirac on the Quantum Revolution 1:16:30

7M ago1:16:30

1:16:30

In this episode of the 632-nanometer podcast, we explore the evolution of quantum computing with theoretical physicists and experimentalists Peter Zoller and Ignacio Cirac, two pioneers in the field. They recount their personal journeys and discuss key breakthroughs in the development of trapped ion quantum computing. What are the fundamental chall…

1
Gravitational Waves: Rainer Weiss (Nobel Prize 2017) on Laser Interferometer Observation 1:21:56

7M ago1:21:56

1:21:56

In 1916, Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves, however, it took almost a century for researchers to detect them. In this episode of the 632-nanometer podcast, the team has a fireside chat with Rainer Weiss, the man behind the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory and winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics for the obse…

1
Synthetic Biology: George Church on Genome Sequencing and De-Extinction 1:10:39

8M ago1:10:39

1:10:39

The great George Church takes us through the revolutionary journey of DNA sequencing from his early groundbreaking work to the latest advancements. He discusses the evolution of sequencing methods, including molecular multiplexing, and their implications for understanding and combating aging. We talk about the rise of biotech startups, potential fu…

1
14: First checks for dropouts, students, and deep tech sci-fi founders - Danielle Strachman, 1517 Fund 1:04:23

8M ago1:04:23

1:04:23

One day soon when you see a robot squirrel on a 10-foot unicycle, think of Danielle Strachman. These are the types of ideas Danielle Strachman sees and backs on a regular basis at her VC fund, 1517. The fund, which proudly backs “dropouts, students, and sci-fi,” has had several fund multipliers in their portfolio, including Loom (Acquired by Atlass…

1
13: Elizabeth Yin of Hustle Fund has seen over 50,000 companies and made 800 investments – usually in just 30 minutes 1:00:19

8M ago1:00:19

1:00:19

Elizabeth Yin realized she had a problem. She wanted to be a founder, but couldn’t think of a problem she wanted to spend decades of her life working on. After soul searching, she remembered the one thing she did care about: helping other founders. She took that passion and turned it into Hustle Fund, which focuses on offering capital, knowledge, a…

1
12: First checks building the future of cities since 2012 led to unicorn investments and $215M in AUM - Julie & Clara, Urban Innovation Fund 1:18:46

8M ago1:18:46

1:18:46

An ill-fated business school fashion show led to a venture capital fund with $215 million AUM. The duo met in 2010 at the MIT Sloan School of Management and soon after became research partners investigating why VCs were shunning startups in highly regulated spaces even though AirBnB and Uber were starting to reach venture scale very quickly. Tech-e…

1
11: How one of Arian Ghashghai’s virtual reality companies is on track to hit $20M in revenue after one round of funding 1:30:33

9M ago1:30:33

1:30:33

Have you ever played with an Oculus VR headset? You probably owe thanks to Arian Ghashghai. The former founder was working at Meta when someone in his network introduced him to an opportunity to invest in gummies. Yes, gummies. That’s far and away from Arian’s machine learning roots, it’s now one of his best investments to date. Arian has since gon…

1
10: How Amit Garg co-founded an AI-first seed fund before AI took off 1:11:06

9M ago1:11:06

1:11:06

Armed with an educational background in computer science and biomedical informatics, Amit Garg switched to venture capital after a long, successful career in the corporate world, which included stints at companies like Google and Samsung. And that’s just the way he never planned it. That’s right, the almost-doctor didn’t intend to get into venture …

1
09: Angels of Shopify investing collectively and lessons on following your gut - Atlee Clark, Angel 58:53

11M ago58:53

58:53

What do you get when you mix U.S. national security, angel investing, and kids’ pajamas? Atlee Clark. Proud Canadian Atlee took a hard pivot from the public sector to the tech world, first through a nonprofit called the C100, which supports entrepreneurs, and later at Shopify, focusing on 0 - 1 initiatives. Similar to other angel collectives emergi…

1
08 Takeaways: Charles Hudson, Precursor Ventures: macro, team vs market, fund size vs. outcomes 20:32

11M ago20:32

20:32

Join Shaherose & Aamir as we reflect on our conversation with Charles Hudson of Precursor Ventures. Highlights: Don’t forget the macro: Government regulations can lead to massive opportunities or failures. We discuss case studies of companies like Samsara, Movtive (fka KeepTrucking), Republic, and Zum, showing how regulatory shifts led to category-…

1
08: From the CIA to Google to 400+ pre-seed investments, first and early to define pre-seed - Charles Hudson, Precursor 59:28

11M ago59:28

59:28

Hailing from Michigan, Charles developed an early obsession with the public markets in high school. Charles Hudson is now the Managing Partner at Precursor Ventures, a pre-seed venture fund that has defined and has become synonymous with “pre-seed”. Charles is known for his ability to identify and mentor early-stage companies that have the potentia…

1
07: Angel in 100+ startups, focused on learning and catalyzing mission-first startups - Eric Ries, Creator Lean Startup, Founder, LTSE 1:10:12

12M ago1:10:12

1:10:12

Eric Ries has invested in over 100+ early-stage startups. He is best known as the author of The Lean Startup, a must-read for entrepreneurs worldwide. He also founded the Long-Term Stock Exchange (LTSE), a new stock exchange designed to support companies with long-term goals. He recently launched a new podcast discussing ways to re-think corporate …

1
06: Finding Alpha in Texas - Rajiv Bala, Clutch VC 1:12:19

1y ago1:12:19

1:12:19

Rajiv Bala, GP of Clutch VC, a pre-seed and seed-stage fund exclusively investing in Texas. Rajiv is committed and bullish on the region with a hands-on approach to investing, working with founders on product feedback, team building, and more to see initial customer validation before investing. Rajiv also embraces sub $500 million outcomes to drive…

1
05: Discovering hidden baseball talent to leading Sales at Stripe all applied to finding outliers in tech - Meka Asonye, First Round Capital 1:08:18

1y ago1:08:18

1:08:18

Meka Asonye, a Partner at First Round Capital, started angel investing in 2018 while working at Stripe and joined First Round in 2021. He has made dozens of Angel investments and 13 Venture investments, and he's just getting started! While he focuses on B2B SAAS, he has not shied away from investing in audacious founders, from modernizing 911 call …

1
04: 3x tech founder turned seed VC brings a founder mindset to startup investing - Amit Kumar, Accel 1:01:48

1y ago1:01:48

1:01:48

Amit Kumar, former founder and angel investor, is a generalist venture capitalist at Accel focused on dev tools, healthcare, and fintech startups. Twitter acquired Amit’s third company, and it was then that he realized his true purpose was supporting startup founders, and he shifted to venture capital. Amit shares insightful stories and lessons lea…

1
03: Angel vs VC, finding purpose and community in startup investing - Rachel Sheinbein 1:03:13

1+ y ago1:03:13

1:03:13

Rachel Sheinbein is an angel investor with over 250 startup investments. She shares her insights on angel investing and how it allows her to work with founders “even before the seed stage,” writing $25k checks into technology startups through her vehicle Very Serious Ventures. Later, Rachel discusses how building a community drives her investing st…

1
02: 300 startup investments, 500 LPs, sharp elbows - Jenny Fielding, Everywhere Ventures 1:07:14

1+ y ago1:07:14

1:07:14

Jenny Fielding, a pre-seed investor and angel with 300 early-stage startup investments, discusses investing in FinTech, hard tech, and consumer spaces over the past decade. From studying law to working in finance to leaving it all to found not just one but two startups, Jenny brings a founder-operator mindset to her fund, Everywhere Ventures. She w…

1
01: State of Venture Capital 2024 with Arjun Arora 43:32

1+ y ago43:32

43:32

We're all discussing current market conditions - valuations, AI hype, fundraising challenges... Before we kick off our planned interview series on First Funders, we sat down with our friend Arjun Arora to discuss the Trends in Venture Capital 2024. As investors, we always look ahead, making this a great way to start 2024. Highlights from our discus…

1
About the Hosts: How they got into Seed and Angel Investing 6:36

1+ y ago6:36

6:36

Before you dive into our archives or the next episode, learn about First Funders and its hosts, Shaherose Charania and Aamir Virani. You'll hear about Shaherose's background as a startup builder turned VC who started as a product marketer and how she started Women 2.0, a startup ecosystem, and Founder Labs, a tech incubator. She also reviews her ti…

1
Coming Soon - a podcast for Angels and Venture Capitalists who write first checks 0:40

1+ y ago0:40

0:40

Coming soon. First Funders is a podcast for the Angels and Venture Capitalists who write first checks. Co-hosted by Shaherose Charania, startup builder turned VC. And Aamir Virani, founder turned angel investor. In each episode, you'll hear from angel and seed-stage VCs who wrote the first checks into startups that made it. How did these investors …

1
033. $50K Investments in Ideas/R&D: Danielle Talks Invisible College 29:24

5y ago29:24

29:24

The Invisible College is an idea/R&D stage investment program that 1517 is launching this summer and fall to support founders who would rather build than go to school in the fall. To be considered for the Invisible College, you must: * Be in North America * Have at least 1 member of your team with no undergraduate degree * Plan on working full-time…

1
032. 1517 at Home: Alex Gladstein on Why Bitcoin Matters for Human Rights. 41:29

5y ago41:29

41:29

Alex Gladstein joins 1517 Fund for a 1517 at Home conversation about how Bitcoin protects human rights, its applications around the world, and the coming death of cash that totalitarian and authoritarian regimes world over want to accelerate. Alex is the Chief Strategy Officer of the Human Rights Foundation and the Oslo Freedom Forum and the co-aut…

1
031. 1517 at Home: Ryan Kulp on Fitness for Hackers, Mindset, and Accountability 1:14:03

5y ago1:14:03

1:14:03

Ryan Kulp is a self-taught developer, marketer, musician, founder of Fomo and Fork Equity, and the author of Fitness for Hackers. He joins a live audience of the 1517 Community to discuss how the hacker mindset can be applied to fitness, nutrition, and how he stays accountable to constant learning in his personal development. Mentioned during the c…

1
030. 1517 at Home: Samo Burja on Why Civilizations Collapse 1:28:26

5y ago1:28:26

1:28:26

There are at least 12 identifiable Dark Ages in the recorded history of human civilization. Although we are all fascinated with the idea of the collapse of civilization, have we considered why civilizations actually collapse? Join Samo Burja, founder of Bismarck Analytics and research fellow at LongNow, to explore the causes behind civilizational c…

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