Finding PROOF: Recent Episodes
Thanasis Delistathis, Jenny Schretter
PROOF partners, Thanasis Delistathis and Jenny Schretter talk with the early-stage venture partners funding the next generation of great tech companies.
Throwback Take: This week, Jenny and Thanasis revisit a conversation with Paige Soya, Managing Partner at K Street Capital, a seed-stage venture firm investing in high-growth regulated markets. Paige shares her journey from launching GoTab—a fintech startup she created as an MBA school project and later sold—to leading K Street’s evolution from an angel group to a VC fund. She dives into the firm’s $26M fund-of-funds program in partnership with Washington, D.C., her take on why the DMV is an ideal hub for innovation, and how having a pulse on regulated markets can make or break scaling. Along the way, she shares what she looks for in team dynamics, why her weekly meetings always include discussions on latest AI tools, and her biggest founder lesson: a finance background alone doesn’t make you a VC.
Throwback Take: This week, Jenny and Thanasis revisit a conversation with Alexandre Lazarow, Managing Partner at Fluent Ventures, a global venture fund. With over 12 years of experience across financial services and impact investing, Alexandre shares how his diverse upbringing and travels have shaped his investment philosophy. He dives into the process of launching his book at the start of the pandemic, the universal patterns he’s seen in global investing, and why optimism is key to his outlook on tech’s role in shaping the future. Plus, he offers actionable advice for founders looking to stand out: bring on operators who live and breathe your business model.
#ThrowbackThursday This week on Finding PROOF, we're revisiting our earlier conversation with NVCA and Bobby Franklin.
While this conversation originally aired just over a year ago, with the election approaching, it’s a timely reminder of the vital role lobbyists play—and how fortunate the venture capital ecosystem is to have such a strong, passionate advocate for the innovation economy in Washington.
NVCA has played an invaluable role in VC wins, such as securing block grant funding for entrepreneurial ecosystems through the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI), supporting tech-driven initiatives in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and advancing the CHIPS and Science Act, which originated as the Endless Frontier Act—a generational investment in technology and entrepreneurship across the country.
This Week, Jenny and Thanasis talk with Matthew (Matt) Weinberg of Max Ventures, a VC fund of first-check investors who lead or co-lead rounds primarily focusing on digital health, SaaS, and digital commerce. In addition to writing the first check, Max Ventures has co-founded seven venture-backed companies, with Matthew himself serving as a co-founder of Elion Health. Before becoming a VC, Matthew worked under the Obama administration as an appointee in the U.S. Small Business Administration as a Senior Advisor in the Office of Investment and Innovation.
This week, Jenny and Thanasis are joined by Semyon Dukach, Founding Partner of One Way Ventures, a seed-stage firm investing in immigrant founders. Semyon brings a wealth of experience to the conversation, having previously served as Managing Director of TechStars Boston, as well as an entrepreneur and angel investor. In a unique twist, Semyon’s journey also includes a stint as a professional blackjack player, marking a first for our podcast. Tune in for insights on Semyon’s fascinating career, his passion for supporting immigrant founders, and the lessons he's learned along the way.
In this episode, Jenny and Thanasis spend time with Rob Biederman, Founder and Managing Partner of Asymmetric Capital Partners. Rob shares his career journey from private equity at Goldman Sachs and Bain Capital to entrepreneurship with Catalant Technologies and eventually founding his own venture capital firm.
In this episode, Jenny and Thanasis spend time with Steven Rosenblatt, co-founder of Oceans, a seed-stage VC firm with a team-driven thesis.
In this episode, we interview Adam Burrows, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Range Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm that backs the best tech entrepreneurs in Colorado.
Finding PROOF is back! We're kicking off our new season with Sean Glass, Founder and Managing Partner of Evidenced, a firm specializing in health tech. In this episode, Sean shares his background, offers insights from his experience as a founder, and discusses current trends in the health tech industry.
Finding PROOF is now on video! We are so thrilled to kick off this next phase of our podcast with none other than Bobby Franklin, the President and CEO of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). In this episode, Jenny and Thanasis speak with Bobby about NVCA's recent SEC Lawsuit, what life is like as a lobbyist for the entrepreneurial ecosystem, and what he thinks the future holds for VCs.
In this episode, Jenny and Thanasis talk with Jenny Abramson, Founder & Managing Partner of Rethink Impact, the largest firm investing exclusively in female and non-binary leaders using technology to solve the world’s biggest problems.
In this episode, Jenny and Thanasis spend time with Rex Salisbury, Founder & General Partner of Cambrian, a community for founders & builders in FinTech and a fund that invests in seed and pre-seed opportunities in FinTech.
In this episode, Jenny and Thansis spend time with Alex Ferber, Co-Founder and Partner of Green Egg Ventures, an early-stage fund that discovers, invests in, and supports software startups that are solving problems for businesses across multiple verticals.
In this episode, Jenny and Thansis spend time with Joe Raczka, Chief Investment Officer, Managing Partner & Co-Founder of York.ie, a seed-stage fund based in New Hampshire that also provides advisory services for startups.
In this episode, Jenny and Thansis spend time with Mark McCabe, Founder and Partner of Nomad Capital, a seed-stage fund based out of Dublin, Ireland, investing in companies in the US and Europe. Marc previously worked at Google, SV Angel, and was an early employee of Airbnb before starting his own fund.
This week on Finding PROOF, Jenny and Thanasis talk with Cameron Borumand. Cameron is a General Partner at Fuse, an early-stage fund based in Seattle that invests in enterprise software companies in the Pacific Northwest.
This week on Finding PROOF, Jenny and Thanasis sit down with Jason Best. Jason is a co-founder and managing partner of Vectr FinTech Partners, a member of the Vectr Ventures family of funds designed to invest in FinTech companies primarily in the US and Southeast Asia.
In this episode, Jenny and Thanasis spend time with Yanev Swissa, the founder and managing general partner of SineWave Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on connecting early-stage technology companies in the enterprise space with government clients.
This week on Finding Proof, Thanasis and Jenny sit down with Lu Zhang, the founder and managing partner of Fusion Fund, a Silicon Valley-based seed and early-stage investor that focuses on healthcare and deep tech. An entrepreneur herself, Lu started Fusion at the impressive age of 25.
This week on Finding PROOF, our hosts Jennifer Schretter and Thanasis Delistathis sit down with Anthony Bontrager, Managing Director at WestRiver Group, a firm that invests in seed and early-stage companies in the US Pacific Northwest.
Subscribe to Finding PROOF on your favorite podcast platform to listen to our weekly episodes. And, as always, enjoy the show. #podcast #venturecapital #technology #startups #entrepreneur #tech
This week, Thanasis and Jenny reconnect with Gabe Turner, now a Partner at Sway Ventures, to discuss the future of retail, how Covid has affected the way we shop, and the future of remote work.
This week on Finding PROOF, our hosts Jennifer Schretter and Thanasis Delistathis talk with James Newell, Managing Director at Voyager Capital, a regionally focused, early-stage venture capital fund investing out of the Pacific Northwest.
James discusses his favorite portfolio company, the difference between early and late stage investing, and why his fund has decided to focus on the Cascadia region and the unique challenges of operating exclusively in the Pacific Northwest.
Subscribe to Finding PROOF on your favorite podcast platform to listen to our weekly episodes. And, as always, enjoy the show... #podcast #venturecapital #technology #startups #entrepreneur #tech
This week on Finding PROOF, our hosts Jennifer Schretter and Thanasis Delistathis sit down with Lorenzo Thione of Gaingels, a leading LGBTQIA+/Allies investment syndicate, and one of the largest and most active private investors in North America.
Lorenzo shares the story behind the founding of Gaingels and how it supports diversity in leadership at all levels within the venture capital ecosystem. Tune in to this week’s episode to learn more about Gaingels’ mission and investment philosophy.
Subscribe to Finding PROOF on your favorite podcast platform to listen to our weekly episodes. And, as always, enjoy the show... #podcast #venturecapital #technology #startups #entrepreneur #tech
The modern data stack is set to impact every sector. Technology that can automatically capture, sort, and apply data can accelerate companies to the forefront of their industry.
This week on Finding PROOF, our hosts Jennifer Schretter and Thanasis Delistathis talk to Brian Yormak, Co-Founder of Story Ventures based in New York.
Founded by two brothers, this seed and early stage fund invests in automated, data driven technology that solves the most prescient issues in the data landscape. From #healthcare to #autonomous vehicles, Story Ventures looks for companies that can answer the question: “why now?”
Tune in to this week’s episode to learn more about Story Ventures’ investment thesis, current portfolio companies, and their origin story.
Subscribe to Finding PROOF on your favorite podcast platform to listen to our weekly episodes. And, as always, enjoy the show...
This week our hosts talk to Alex Malamatinas, Founder and Managing Partner at Melitas Ventures. Based in New York, this early-stage venture capital firm focuses on innovative food and beverage companies.
This week our hosts speak with Kevin Leonard, a Principal at MissionOG. Based in Philadelphia, this early-stage venture capital firm focuses on B2B companies that are driving the digitization of the economy.
This week our hosts speak with Nick Adams, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Differential Ventures, a seed-stage venture capital firm focused on B2B data technology startups.
Join us for a conversation with Josh Breinlinger, Founder of Turtle Ventures. Based in California, this early-stage venture capital firm invests in tech companies tackling existing markets and bringing efficiency to large established industries.
This week our hosts speak with Steven Finn, Co-Founder and General Partner at Siddhi Capital, an early-stage, food and beverage fund.
Join us for a conversation with Ryan Freedman, General Partner at Alpaca. Based in New York, this seed-stage venture capital firm invests in technology that is changing how the real world works.
This week our hosts talk with Les Craig, Partner at Next Frontier Capital, a seed-stage venture fund based in Montana. With a focus on technology companies based in the Northern Rocky Mountain Region, NFC looks for companies of impact, utility, and value.
This week our hosts speak with Gabe Turner, Executive Director of the Draper Venture Network. Based in San Mateo, CA, DVN is a vast network of independent venture funds that share investment diligence, marketing intelligence, relationships, and co-investments.
Join this week's conversation with Andrew McMahon, Co-Founder & General Partner at Ridgeline, an investment firm focused on bridging the gap between the technology ecosystem and national security communities.
This week our partners chat with Greg Gottesman, Managing Director & Co-Founder at Pioneer Square Labs, a startup studio and venture capital fund based in Seattle, WA.
This week our hosts are joined by Eric Manlunas, Founder and Managing Partner of Wavemaker Group, an early-stage venture capital firm making investments in both the U.S. and Southeast Asia.
This week our hosts talk to Phil Bronner, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Ardent Venture Partners, a seed and early-stage fund focused on the transformation of work.
This week our hosts talk to Nick Chirls, Partner at Notation Capital, a first-check venture fund based in Brooklyn, NY backing product-obsessed teams.
Our hosts are joined by Nicole Conner, a Partner at Airbus Ventures, a global early-stage investment firm backing inspired founders focused on the many aspects of aerospace engineering.
This week we have a conversation with Brandon Shelton, Founder and Managing Partner at TFX Capital, an early-stage venture firm based in Charlotte, North Carolina which backs founders with a military background.
This week we have a great discussion with Sonali Vijayavargiya, Founder and Managing Partner at Augment Ventures an early-stage venture capital firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan focused on software, smart hardware, and physical science innovations.
In this episode, our hosts are joined by Blair Garrou, Co-founder and Managing Director at Mercury Fund an early-stage venture capital firm focusing on entrepreneurs and technology innovation originating in the U.S. Midcontinent.
This week our hosts talk to Wes Blackwell, Partner at Scout Ventures a seed-stage firm investing in frontier technologies and hard-to-access founders.
This week our hosts are joined by Jim Cohen & Mark Poag of Fitz Gate Ventures, an early-stage venture firm with a network-driven approach and a focus on the Princeton University ecosystem.
Our hosts are joined by David Beisel a partner at NextView Ventures. With offices in Boston and New York, NextView is a seed-stage investment firm focused on the "Everyday Economy."
This week our hosts chat with Liza Benson of Moderne Ventures, an early-stage venture fund focused on technology companies innovating within real estate, mortgage, finance, insurance, hospitality, and home services.
This week our hosts sit down with Hadley Harris, Founding General Partner at Eniac Ventures, a seed-stage fund with a focus on New York startups. Eniac backs bold founders who use code to build transformational companies.
Our hosts sit down for a conversation with Alex Gurevich, Managing Director at Javelin Venture Partner, a seed and early-stage venture fund based in Silicon Valley built by founders, for founders.
This week our hosts chat with Caitlin Strandberg of Lerer Hippeau. Based in New York, this early-stage venture firm invests across all sectors, backing entrepreneurs with product vision, customer insight, and a keen instinct for brand building.
Our hosts sit down with Guy Turner, Co-founder and Managing Director at Hyde Park Venture Partners. With offices in Chicago and Indianapolis, HPVP is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on high-growth mid-continent companies with exceptional teams.
A conversation with Gardiner Garrard, Co-founder and Managing Partner at TTV Capital, an early-stage venture firm focused on fintech businesses meeting the needs of the financial services sector and their customers.
Our hosts chat with David Cremin, Founder and Managing Partner at Frontier Venture Capital. With Partners in California, New York, Colorado, and Oregon, Frontier invests in early-stage technology companies in the United States.
This week our hosts chat with Rajul Garg of Leo Capital. Based in Delhi, this early-stage venture firm is part of the natural evolution of both Rajul's career and, more broadly, the entrepreneurial ecosystem in India.
Join us for a conversation with Leeor Groen, Principal at Blockchain Valley Ventures. Based in Switzerland, the firm is focused on seed and early-stage investments in high-quality blockchain-enabled businesses.
Join us for a conversation with Rudina Seseri of Boston-based Glasswing Ventures, an early-stage venture firm funding visionary entrepreneurs focused on AI and frontier technologies.
This week our hosts speak with Scott Birnbaum of New York-based Red Sea Ventures. Focused on seed and early-stage tech-enabled startups, Scott has a broad background in corporate law, digital media, and entrepreneurship.
Paul Willard of Silicon Valley-based grep -vc joins us this week. Focused on Robotics as a Service, Paul is a hands-on early-stage investor with a strong engineering background.
This week we speak with Jai Choi, Founding Partner at Tekton Ventures. Based in Silicon Valley, Tekton is an international seed investment firm that leverages an extensive global network to partner with entrepreneurs in leading technology hubs worldwide.
We speak with Sheel Tyle, Founder & CEO of Amplo, a venture capital firm based in Texas that invests in mission-driven entrepreneurs looking to solve big problems.
In this episode, we speak with Meagan Metzger founder and CEO of Dcode, an accelerator based in Washington, DC helping private-sector tech companies break into and scale in the federal market.
In this episode, we speak with Dustin Rosen, Founder and Managing Partner at Wonder Ventures. Based in Los Angeles, Wonder Ventures invests at the pre-seed stage, aiming to be the first check to back the best founders in the LA area.
In our premiere episode, we speak with Steve Marcus, General Partner at Riot Ventures. Based in Los Angeles, Riot Ventures is a seed and early-stage fund focused on technology companies where hardware is a component.
Meet our hosts, Thanasis Delistathis and Jenny Schretter, as they describe PROOF and give you a sneak peek what to expect from Finding PROOF.