The Sure Shot Entrepreneur

Updated: 08 Jul 2025 • 170 episodes
podcast.sure.ventures

Successful entrepreneurs begin with the support of a few #earlybelievers. Gopi Rangan, founding partner at Sure Ventures, interviews venture capital investors in the Silicon Valley and beyond. Guests share insider stories on how they invest in early stage startups. Do you want to learn from real-life challenges, inspiring missions and important decisions by CEOs, founders, VCs, angels, and advisors? Listen to https://podcast.sure.ventures.

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Dave McClure, founder of Practical Venture Capital and co-founder of 500 Startups, dives deep into the growing role of secondaries in venture capital. Dave explains how today’s longer startup cycles and liquidity droughts have created opportunities (and confusion) around secondary markets. He breaks down what secondari

39 min
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Brian Frank, the founder and general partner at FTW Ventures, shares why he left his founder career to invest in startups solving real-world problems starting with the global food system. He explores the climate risks, supply chain fragility, and health challenges driving the need for innovation in food and agriculture

42 min
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Geoff Ralston, founder of SAIF (Safe Artificial Intelligence Fund), and former President of Y Combinator, shares his vision for building a safer AI future. Geoff discusses the risks and promise of AI as a force beyond traditional tools, posing AI as a set of entities that will reshape the way we work, live, and relate

34 min
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Nadav Eylath, founder and managing partner of at.inc, shares his philosophy of early-stage investing rooted in trust, long-term thinking, and technical rigor. Nadav talks about backing founders at the very inception of their startup journey—sometimes even before they’ve left their jobs. He explains how asking questions

27 min
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Tomoko Ishikura, Managing Partner at Kicker Ventures, shares her unique perspective on investing in the future of healthcare. She talks about building a venture firm rooted in empathy, humility, and measurable impact. Tomoko explains how Kicker Ventures seeks science-backed innovations that move the heart, not just the

31 min
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Mahesh Ram, serial entrepreneur and former Head of AI at Zoom, shares his journey from building pioneering companies in education and AI to helping launch FUNDA, a vibrant founder-to-founder community. He discusses the evolution of AI-first startups, lessons from working closely with Zoom founder Eric Yuan, and what it

38 min
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