Launching Tech Today Tech Today With Eric Tarczynski podcast

14:23

Sid Malladi, co-founder and CEO of Nuvo, joins us on the day of the company’s public launch to talk about the future of B2B trade infrastructure. Backed by $45M from Sequoia, Founders Fund, and Spark, Nuvo aims to replace the outdated pen-and-paper systems that still dominate the $11 trillion U.S. trade economy. Sid explains why the problem isn’t just software—it’s a lack of shared infrastructure across businesses. He walks us through the scaling challenges, the platform Nuvo is building, and why he compares Nuvo’s roadmap to early Facebook: first connect businesses, then build layers of coordination like payments, underwriting, and automation on top. We also covered supply chain resilience, vendor adaptation in the face of tariffs, and how Nuvo’s viral trade graph might one day power millions of relationships between buyers and sellers.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
The Tariff Freeze in Tech M&A with Jon Gegenheimer 11:37

2 days ago11:37

11:37

In today’s episode, Jon Gegenheimer, Global Co-Head of Tech M&A at Jefferies, joins us to break down how the Trump administration’s new tariffs have frozen the tech M&A market almost overnight. We dive into why the year started with optimism, how quickly the landscape shifted in April, and why buyers and sellers are now stuck in a tense waiting game. Jon also shares his advice for founders and boards navigating this uncertainty—and why companies need to be prepared to move fast if the market reopens later this year. We also covered Neuralink’s latest breakthrough, OpenAI’s new push into shopping and search, Huawei’s plan to compete with Nvidia, and Hugging Face’s robotics expansion.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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Rebuilding the Chemical Supply Chain with Sean Hunt 15:51

3 days ago15:51

15:51

Today, Kyle Harrison, general partner at Contrary, sits down with Sean Hunt, co-founder and CTO of Solugen, to talk about how the company is reinventing chemical manufacturing from first principles. Sean explains why traditional chemical supply chains are fragile and carbon-intensive — and how Solugen’s modular, carbon-negative Bioforge model could reshape industrial production. We discuss the dynamics driving demand for domestic chemicals, how tariffs are creating new opportunities, why reusing abandoned infrastructure is critical for scaling manufacturing, and how Solugen thinks about licensing its technology in the future. We also covered Discord’s CEO transition, Flow’s latest funding round, Elon Musk’s $20 billion xAI fundraising talks, and Apple’s push to manufacture more iPhones in India.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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The Retailization of Venture Capital with Samir Vasavada 15:01

6 days ago15:01

15:01

Samir Vasavada, co-founder and CEO of Vise, joins us to talk about how registered investment advisors (RIAs) are increasingly entering the world of venture capital. Samir explains how changes in liquidity, demand for differentiation, and the availability of new platforms have opened the door for wealth managers to back private tech companies—something historically reserved for endowments and institutions. We dive into why this shift is happening now, how RIAs are navigating access to top-tier venture funds, and what the “retailization” of private markets might mean for venture as an asset class going forward. We also covered Revolut’s record profit, Anthropic’s model welfare research program, Flex’s acquisition of Maza, and Adam Neumann’s latest raise for Flow.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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The Rise of Secondaries in Venture with Hunter Walk 16:23

7 days ago16:23

16:23

Over the last decade, startup exit timelines have stretched, cap tables have grown more complex, and LPs have become more focused on liquidity. That’s why Homebrew co-founder Hunter Walk says it’s time for early-stage VCs to embrace secondaries—not as a last resort, but as part of the playbook. In this episode, Hunter breaks down why the traditional “buy and hold” mindset is breaking down, how the dynamic between small funds and mega-AUM firms is reshaping investor behavior, and what responsible secondaries can look like for both founders and early backers. We also covered Windsurf’s new pricing war with Cursor, Datadog’s latest acquisition, Perplexity’s iPhone assistant rollout, and Tesla’s robotaxi pilot in Austin.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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The Developer’s Toolkit for the Vibe Coding Era with Zach Lloyd 13:00

8 days ago13:00

13:00

The tools—and expectations—of software development are changing fast. Today on Tech Today, Zach Lloyd, founder and CEO of Warp, joins us to talk about how the job of the software developer is evolving in the age of AI, agents, and “vibe coding.” Zach breaks down what gets easier, what stays hard, and what tools will need to be rethought entirely. He shares why he thinks IDEs are becoming obsolete, why software engineers are more in demand than ever, and what Warp is doing to build the developer interface of the future. We also covered: xAI’s Grok Vision update, Supabase’s $200 million raise, Northwood Space’s ground station expansion, and OpenAI’s surprising interest in acquiring Google Chrome.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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Agency is Eating the World with Gian Segato 13:19

9 days ago13:19

13:19

Replit founding engineer Gian Segato joins us to talk about his viral new essay, Agency Is Eating the World , and the shift toward high-agency individuals building and scaling software alone. He explains why today’s AI “agents” aren’t truly agentic, why taste is downstream of iteration, and how generalists are now empowered to compete with specialists across industries. We also discuss the end of credentialism, how AI collapses years of specialization into days of effort, and why this is only the beginning of a larger economic shift — one that stretches from barbershops writing code to billion-dollar solo startups. We also covered ChatGPT Search's rapid EU growth and looming regulatory status, YC-backed Theseus and its GPS-free drone tech for Special Operations, OpenAI’s massive spend on making ChatGPT more polite, and Slate Auto’s $25K EV that can change shape ahead of its public reveal.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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ServiceNow’s $2.9 Billion Acquisition of Moveworks with CEO Bhavin Shah 13:00

10 days ago13:00

13:00

Bhavin Shah, founder and CEO of Moveworks, joins us after announcing the company’s acquisition by ServiceNow last month. Moveworks was one of the first enterprise AI startups to bet on conversational interfaces and AI agents — years before ChatGPT made that idea mainstream. In this episode, Bhavin walks us through the origin story, how they made the gutsy call to rewrite their entire architecture around agentic reasoning, and how that decision set the stage for their nearly $3 billion exit. We also talk about what it really takes to build AI that works in the enterprise: connectors, context windows, multilingual models, and the hard truth of procurement cycles. Bhavin shares lessons from navigating two black swan events — COVID and the generative AI boom — and why conviction, speed, and creative destruction were key to Moveworks’ success. We also covered Bill Gates’ prediction that AI will replace doctors and teachers, Strava’s acquisition of AI running coach Runna, OpenAI’s potential $3 billion acquisition of Windsurf (formerly Codeium), and Figma’s confidential IPO filing.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Launching Tech Today 0:29

14 days ago0:29

0:29

We're launching Tech Today, a daily show on the most important stories in technology. 10 minutes per day. Five days per week.

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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Lightmatter’s Photonic Superchip and the Future of AI Infrastructure with Nicholas Harris 12:40

21 days ago12:40

12:40

Nicholas Harris, CEO and co-founder of Lightmatter, joins us to talk about the company's latest product launches: the Passage M1000 and the L200, two breakthroughs in photonic interconnect technology that could reshape how we scale AI infrastructure. We also discussed the limits of traditional electrical interconnects, why data movement — not compute — is the real bottleneck in AI training, and how Lightmatter is building a full-stack photonics platform for the next era of massive, energy-intensive AI models. Finally, we discussed Base Power’s $200 million Series B to build a distributed residential battery network, OpenAI’s launch of a new benchmarking program following controversy around Meta’s Llama 4, Andreessen Horowitz’s plans to raise a $20 billion growth-stage AI fund, and Anthropic’s launch of a new $200/month “Max” subscription tier for power users.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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How to Fund the Future of Nuclear with John Arnold 16:54

23 days ago16:54

16:54

Today, John Arnold—philanthropist and co-chair of Arnold Ventures—joins us to break down the real barriers facing next-gen nuclear energy. In a space filled with big promises and long timelines, John makes the case for why fusion and small modular reactors (SMRs) won't succeed without serious government intervention. We talked about: • Why non-binding agreements in nuclear can be misleading • The funding “valley of death” facing fusion startups • How a milestone-based public-private model — modeled on NASA’s COTS program — could unlock progress We also covered OpenAI’s updated release roadmap for o3 and GPT-5, the extended deadline for a TikTok sale, new agentic capabilities in Microsoft Copilot, and Midjourney’s first new image model in nearly a year.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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Runway’s Gen-4 and the New Era of Video Storytelling 17:28

29 days ago17:28

17:28

On Monday March 31, Runway, a generative video startup, launhced its most advanced AI video generation model to date, Gen-4. Today, Runway co-founder and CEO Cristóbal Valenzuela joins us to talk about the Gen-4 release, the evolution of Runways product over time, the future of video generation and storytelling, and how Runway is building an “infinite dream machine that can do whatever you want.” We also cover OpenAI’s new $40 billion fundraise, Amazon’s new AI agent, a16z’s talks to invest in TikTok, and Circle’s upcoming IPO.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

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Upstarts and the Future of Startup Media with Alex Konrad 15:12

5 weeks ago15:12

15:12

On Wednesday, former Forbes senior editor Alex Konrad launched a new tech media company covering startups. Today, Alex joins us to talk about his new company. We covered a lot of ground including why media coverage of startup stories is demand, whether the narrative of media vs. tech being adversarial is accurate, how Alex wants Upstarts to serve as a bridge to the startup world, and why the energy in the startup ecosystem from AI makes it a uniquely interesting time to be in startups right now. We also covered Mercury’s $300 million Series C, Terrestrial Energy’s SPAC, Rivian’s new micromobility company, and Grok’s integration with Telegram.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Emergence Capital’s New $1 Billion Fund 13:25

5 weeks ago13:25

13:25

On Tuesday, Emergence Capital announced it had raised a $1 billion Fund VII. Today, Emergence Capital general partner Jake Saper joins the podcast to talk about Emergence’s focus on B2B software and plans for the future. He also describes his point of view on how the venture industry has evolved and why it’s both the scariest and most exciting time to be in VC. Finally, we talk about what will happen to SaaS post-AI and why Jake thinks people will continue to buy software. Finally, we cover the resurgence of the IPO market with StubHub and eToro recently filing to go public. We also covered Google’s new Gemini 2.5 model and OpenAI’s launch of image generation in ChatGPT.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Unpacking the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve with Anthony Pompliano 13:56

7 weeks ago13:56

13:56

On March 6, President Trump signed an executive order establishing both a strategic bitcoin reserve and digital asset stockpile, which the administration says is meant to position “the United States asa. leader among nations in government digital asset strategy.” Today, Anthony Pompliano, founder & CEO of Professional Capital Management, joins us to unpack the significance of this move, discussing the geopolitical game theory behind Bitcoin adoption, how tech and politics are increasingly intertwined, and why governments are now competing for digital assets. He also explores potential methods for the US to expand its Bitcoin holdings, the shifting attitude toward crypto in Washington, and what all this might mean going forward. Finally, we discuss Dario Amodei’s warning about Chinese IP theft, OpenAI’s push to ban DeepSeek from the US and its new creative writing model, and the upcoming rollout of Community Notes on Meta.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Cartesia’s $64M Series A and the Future of Voice AI 15:00

7 weeks ago15:00

15:00

This week, voice AI startup Cartesia raised a $64 million Series A at an undisclosed valuation, led by Kleiner Perkins. Today, Cartesia CEO Karan Goel joins us to talk about the vision behind Cartesia’s voice products. Karan also spoke about the origins of Cartesia, the importance of latency, the unrealized potential of voice AI and why it will be the way that we interface with the robots of tomorrow, and how Cartesia hopes to contribute to the next big step in AI by building a AI brain that can interface more directly with the world. Lastly, we covered Hinge Health’s upcoming IPO, Dario Amodei’s predictions about AI coding, Niantic’s sale of its game division, and cybersecurity startup Pantera’s $60 million Series D.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Prayer App Hallow Hits Almost 500K Daily Downloads 18:13

7 weeks ago18:13

18:13

Last week, Hallow, a prayer and meditation app, reached number 2 on the app store and almost half a million downloads in a single day. Today, Alex Jones, CEO and co-founder of Hallow, joins us to talk about Hallow’s origin story, what he believes is behind its rapid success, and the past and future of prayer. Finally, we discuss Eric Schmidt’s new CEO role, a $11.9 billion deal between OpenAI and CoreWeave, ServiceNow’s acquisition of MoveWorks, and Redfin’s acquisition by Rocket Companies.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Varda’s Historic Second Mission with Delian Asparouhov 14:54

8 weeks ago14:54

14:54

Last week, Varda Space Industries successfully completed its second mission, which landed in Australia last week after over six weeks in orbit. Today, Varda co-founder and President Delian Asparouhov joins us to talk about his reflections on the mission, Varda’s ambitious roadmap ahead including its fast-approaching W-3 launch, its grand vision for expanding the economic bounds of humanity, and the fascinating history that led him to start the company to begin with. Finally, we cover Klarna’s upcoming $15 billion IPO, the creation of “woolly mice” by Colossal Biosciences, and ChatGPT’s new code-editing abilities.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Ramp Valuation Nearly Doubles to $13 Billion 12:44

8 weeks ago12:44

12:44

This Monday, Ramp announced a $150 million secondary round which valued the company at $13 billion. Today, Ramp co-founder and CEO Eric Glyman joins the podcast to talk about what has driven Ramp’s rapid growth, why he’s happy about Ramp’s decision to recognize reality and raise $5.8 billion down round in 2023, and how Ramp’s future will look in a world where AI transforms how finance works. Finally, we cover TSMC’s plan to invest $100 billion in the US over the next four years, the Trump administration’s announcement of a strategic crypto reserve, Anthropic’s $3.5 billion Series E, and Microsoft’s new Dragon Copilot product launch.…

Tech Today with Eric Tarczynski

1
Flexport Goes Founder Mode with Ryan Petersen 13:04

9 weeks ago13:04