Profile 6 min read

Lessons from Gabe Whaley from MSCHF

Gabe Whaley, founder and CEO of MSCHF, approaches creativity, commerce, and culture through deliberate provocation. His work offers a study in generating viral ideas, building a recognizable brand, and sustaining attention by repeatedly subverting audience expectations.
Profile 6 min read

Lessons from Fidji Simo

Fidji Simo led Instacart and OpenAI's applications organization before moving to a part-time OpenAI adviser role in 2026. Her lessons cover leadership, product focus, purposeful technology, and resilience.
Profile 6 min read

Lessons from Jeff Dean

Jeff Dean, an influential computer scientist and artificial intelligence leader, has helped guide the development of large-scale distributed systems and machine learning. His work connects the engineering of immense computational infrastructure with the continuing advancement of AI.
Profile 8 min read

Lessons from Olivier Pomel

Olivier Pomel, co-founder and CEO of Datadog, built an enterprise by solving practical engineering problems. His customer-centric, no-drama approach highlights an enduring operating arc: begin with disciplined discovery, stay close to real needs, and scale without theatrical leadership.
Profile 7 min read

Lessons from Arash Ferdowsi

Arash Ferdowsi, co-founder of Dropbox, brought quiet influence to product design, company culture, and entrepreneurship. His path from MIT dropout to building Dropbox with Drew Houston shows how behind-the-scenes conviction can help reshape cloud storage and file sharing.
Profile 5 min read

Lessons from Kunal Shah

Kunal Shah, founder of CRED and Freecharge, combines philosophy, close observation of human behavior, and relentless curiosity. His counterintuitive approach offers entrepreneurs a way to examine business and life through first principles rather than inherited assumptions.
Profile 6 min read

Lessons from Sarah Tavel

Sarah Tavel, a Benchmark general partner and former early product manager at Pinterest, studies product development and marketplace dynamics. Her Hierarchy of Engagement moves from growing engaged users to retaining them, then creating loops that sustain themselves.
Profile 8 min read

Lessons from David Haber

David Haber, a General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, brings experience as an entrepreneur, investor, and strategic leader. His journey from co-founding Bond Street through its acquisition by Goldman Sachs illuminates the intersection of entrepreneurship, fintech, and small-business lending.

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