VC10X - Investing, Venture Capital, Asset Management, Family Office, Wealth Management

Get new episodes in your inbox - https://vc10x.com

Yash Patel is Managing Partner at Capra Ventures, a fund built around Lean AI: AI native companies that do more with less. Capra takes high conviction bets in seed and Series A companies, primarily at the AI application layer. Its first portfolio company, Higgsfield AI, grew from zero to $200M in ARR in nine months and to $1B in annualized revenue in eighteen months. Yash has previously led investments across vertical software and platforms, including OpenGov and Super.com.

In this episode, Yash breaks down his Lean AI playbook and what tiny, fast-growing AI teams mean for fund math, metrics, moats and the future of venture capital.

⭐ This episode is brought to you by Podcast10x - https://podcast10x.com

Key topics we cover:
• Why Lean AI companies call for more concentrated funds and more capital up front
• Net dollar retention of 300%+ and revenue per employee as the metrics that matter most
• Where the moat lies when every competitor has access to the same frontier models
• What the org chart of a one-person, $10M ARR company tells us about which roles stay human
• Why pricing is moving to outcome-based models and the middle of venture is being hollowed out

Timestamps:

(00:00) - Preview

(02:16) - How lean AI changes fund size, reserves, and growth economics

(07:39) - What founders need from venture partners and flexible capital

(10:20) - Retention, engagement, and the metrics that signal product-market fit

(14:14) - Open models, competition, and defensible AI startup moats

(18:13) - Distinguishing temporary viral spikes from durable AI product habits

(20:52) - Managing inference costs and protecting AI gross margins

(23:07) - Token pricing, model-company discounts, and compute deals

(25:04) - Internal model routers and choosing models by use case

(26:51) - AI-native company roles, automation, and human oversight

(31:23) - Founder skills and product velocity in lean teams

(34:10) - Building resilient organizations without corporate bloat

(37:39) - AI startup independence, acquisitions, and IPO prospects

(40:28) - How AI agents could shift SaaS pricing toward outcomes

(43:36) - Venture capital requirements as software gets cheaper to build

(46:49) - Changing venture milestones and the hollowing out of mid-stage funding

(48:38) - Rapid-fire questions about Capra Ventures

(48:50) - Investment sectors

(49:10) - Geographic focus and distributed talent

(49:58) - Typical investment stage and check size

(50:48) - Leading and co-leading rounds

(51:18) - How founders can contact Yash Patel

(51:44) - Where listeners can follow Yash

(52:22) - Closing remarks

Connect with Yash Patel:https://www.linkedin.com/in/ypatel1/

Connect with Prashant Choubey:https://linkedin.com/in/choubeysahab

Subscribe to VC10X newsletter - https://vc10x.beehiiv.com
Subscribe on YouTube - https://youtube.com/@VC10X
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vc10x-investing-venture-capital-asset-management-private/id1632806986
Subscribe on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7F7KEhXNhTx1bKTBFgzv3k?si=WgQ4ozMiQJ-6nowj6wBgqQ
VC10X website - https://vc10x.com

#VC10X #VentureCapital #LeanAI #AIStartups #StartupFunding #VCPodcast #ArtificialIntelligence #Investing

Get new episodes in your inbox - https://vc10x.beehiiv.com

Jessie Jia Guo is an Investment Partner at Next Legacy, a venture fund-of-funds that has been investing since 1999 on behalf of philanthropists, nonprofit organizations, and a community of athletes, entertainers and changemakers. One hundred percent of the distributions from Next Legacy's legacy funds go to nonprofit causes chosen by its investors, crossing three billion dollars to date. Jessie began her career on the LP side in Beijing before joining Next Legacy through a cold email to its founder.

Jessie Jia Guo on capital with a soul, how Chinese VCs scale differently, and the new liquidity playbook for GPs.

⭐ This episode is brought to you by Podcast10x - https://podcast10x.com

Key topics we cover:

• Why benchmarks are table stakes and how force-ranking managers adds rigor
• Whether capital with a soul makes an LP take more risk or less
• How Chinese VCs scale their companies and the role of geopolitics
• The portfolio construction blind spot experienced GPs have when pitching LPs
• Triaging a portfolio for liquidity and spotting real AI conviction versus hype

Timestamps:

(00:00) - Episode highlights
(01:06) - Introduction to Jessie Jia Guo and Next Legacy
(01:37) - Sponsor: Podcast10x
(02:18) - Landing a role at Next Legacy through a cold email, and how Jessie reads cold pitches today
(06:25) - Bringing force ranking from China to US-style benchmarking
(10:59) - Capital with a soul: how 100% charitable distributions shape risk appetite
(13:33) - Full-spectrum portfolio: emerging managers alongside established firms
(15:12) - Telling generational managers apart from trend-chasers
(18:05) - How Chinese VCs scale companies: USD vs RMB funds, going global and local government support
(20:56) - Exit routes and the impact of geopolitics on US-China venture
(25:30) - Next Legacy's history and early entry into China
(28:05) - A common blind spot when VCs pitch LPs: long-term portfolio construction
(31:28) - The new liquidity playbook: triaging breakouts, M&A candidates and pivots
(36:19) - Spotting real AI and deep tech conviction vs hype
(39:55) - $3 billion in charitable distributions and Jessie's personal legacy
(42:03) - The next frontier: institutional investors reinventing themselves with AI
(43:48) - Rapid fire: themes, check sizes and how to reach Jessie
(45:24) - Closing thoughts

Connect with Jessie Jia Guo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessiejiaguo/

Connect with Prashant Choubey:https://linkedin.com/in/choubeysahab

Subscribe to VC10X newsletter - https://vc10x.beehiiv.com
Subscribe on YouTube - https://youtube.com/@VC10X
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vc10x-investing-venture-capital-asset-management-private/id1632806986
Subscribe on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7F7KEhXNhTx1bKTBFgzv3k?si=WgQ4ozMiQJ-6nowj6wBgqQ
VC10X website - https://vc10x.com

#VC10X #VentureCapital #LimitedPartners #FundOfFunds #EmergingManagers #ImpactInvesting #Philanthropy #ChinaVC #Liquidity #AIInvesting #Podcast

Jev by TypeSafe is a different kind of AI model.

It doesn’t write essays, generate images, or try to replace frontier LLMs. Instead, Jev is designed to make fast, structured decisions — which tool to use, which model should handle a task, whether an action is safe, how relevant information is, or whether something should be escalated.

And that could become an important layer in the emerging AI agent stack.

In this episode, we break down what Jev actually does, why TypeSafe built a specialized decision model, and whether this approach can make AI agents faster, cheaper and more reliable.

⭐ Sponsored by Podcast10x - Podcasting agency for VCs - [https://podcast10x.com](https://podcast10x.com)

Key topics we explore:

— What Jev actually does and how it differs from traditional LLMs
— Why not every AI decision requires a frontier model
— How Jev could fit into the AI agent stack
— The economics of fast, structured AI decisions
— Where Jev could improve agent reliability and orchestratio
— The limitations and risks of specialized decision models
— What this could mean for the future architecture of AI

The bigger question:

How many decisions inside the AI economy can be separated from expensive generative models and handled by specialized models instead?

The next phase of AI may not just be about models that generate more. It could be about specialized models that decide what happens next.

LINKS

Prashant Choubey - [https://www.linkedin.com/in/choubeysahab](https://www.linkedin.com/in/choubeysahab)
Subscribe to VC10X newsletter - [https://vc10x.beehiiv.com](https://vc10x.beehiiv.com)
Subscribe on YouTube - [https://youtube.com/@VC10X](https://youtube.com/@VC10X)
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts - [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vc10x-investing-venture-capital-asset-management-private/id1632806986](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vc10x-investing-venture-capital-asset-management-private/id1632806986)
Subscribe on Spotify - [https://open.spotify.com/show/7F7KEhXNhTx1bKTBFgzv3k?si=WgQ4ozMiQJ-6nowj6wBgqQ](https://open.spotify.com/show/7F7KEhXNhTx1bKTBFgzv3k?si=WgQ4ozMiQJ-6nowj6wBgqQ)
VC10X website - [https://vc10x.com](https://vc10x.com)

Sponsorship queries: [prashantchoubey3@gmail.com](mailto:prashantchoubey3@gmail.com)

This channel is for asset managers, allocators, and investors who want analysis that holds up—not headlines dressed as insight.

Subscribe for weekly data-driven breakdowns of the forces reshaping capital markets.

#VC10X #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Jev #TypeSafe #AIModels #AIAgents #VentureCapital #Investing #AIInvesting #TechInvesting

Get new episodes in your inbox - https://vc10x.beehiiv.com

Tom Duffy is a Director on the private markets team at TIFF Investment Management, an institutional investment firm founded over 35 years ago to serve nonprofit endowments and foundations. TIFF runs outsourced CIO and individual asset class strategies, with a 13-person private markets team and over three billion dollars in private market commitments across lower middle market private equity, micro-cap direct investments, small-cap secondaries, and an early-stage venture fund of funds program running since 1997.

Tom breaks down how TIFF selects venture managers, how it underwrites a first fund with no track record, how it gets exposure to AI without chasing the theme, and what it's actually doing about the DPI drought.

⭐ This episode is brought to you by Podcast10x - https://podcast10x.com

Key topics we cover:

- What TIFF looks for in an early-stage venture manager, and why focus beats coverage
- How to underwrite an emerging manager raising Fund I with no attributable track record
- Why judgment and partnership are the traits AI can't commoditize
- Investing in AI and crypto through specialists rather than chasing the narrative
- Why forcing exits to manufacture DPI is a worse outcome for LPs

Chapters:

(00:00) - Preview

(02:11) - The Origin Story and Mission of TIF

(04:26) - Differentiating on Fees in Investment Management

(05:29) - TIF's Private Market Strategies and Key Differentiators

(08:06) - The Profile of a VC Manager That TIF Backs

(10:40) - How TIF Evaluates and Underwrites Emerging Managers

(13:21) - The Single Most Important Trait of the Best Managers: Focus

(15:54) - Investing in AI and Crypto Without Chasing Themes

(19:15) - Portfolio Diversification and Exposure to the AI Theme

(21:07) - Managing the "DPI Crisis" and Liquidity in Private Markets

(25:37) - Exploring Opportunities Beyond Popular Sectors and Geographies

(27:00) - Rapid-Fire Round on TIF's Investment Thesis

(27:20) - Sectors and Regions of Investment

(27:38) - Allocation Between Emerging and Established Managers

(28:13) - Preferred Fund Stage (Early vs. Late)

(28:50) - Typical First-Time Check Size

(29:17) - How Listeners Can Get in Touch

(29:34) - Conclusion and Final Words

Connect with Tom Duffy:
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-duffy-cfa-cfp/
TIFF - https://www.tiff.org

Connect with Prashant Choubey:
LinkedIn - https://linkedin.com/in/choubeysahab

Subscribe to VC10X newsletter - https://vc10x.beehiiv.com
Subscribe on YouTube - https://youtube.com/@VC10X
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vc10x-investing-venture-capital-asset-management-private/id1632806986
Subscribe on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7F7KEhXNhTx1bKTBFgzv3k?si=WgQ4ozMiQJ-6nowj6wBgqQ
VC10X website - https://vc10x.com

Disclaimer: Tom Duffy, CFA, CFP, is a Director, Private Markets at TIFF Investment Management. All views expressed by him on this podcast are solely his opinions and do not reflect the opinions of TIFF. You should not treat any opinions expressed by Tom as a specific endorsement to make a particular investment. References to any securities are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an investment recommendation or offer to provide investment advisory services. Any past performance discussed is not indicative of future results. Please keep in mind that investment in a fund entails a high degree of risk, including the risk of loss. Please note that TIFF does not endorse the ads featured in this podcast, and TIFF is not a sponsor of these ads.

#VentureCapital #LimitedPartners #EmergingManagers #PrivateMarkets #FundOfFunds #Endowments #DPI #VentureLiquidity #AIInvesting #VC10X

AI spending isn't slowing down.

But the AI investment story may be changing.

Global AI spending is still accelerating, Nvidia is reporting extraordinary growth, and hyperscalers continue committing hundreds of billions of dollars to data centers, GPUs, networking and power.

So why are we hearing more about an "AI slowdown"?

Because there are several very different things that could be slowing — model development, infrastructure spending, AI revenue growth, or simply investor expectations.

And those distinctions matter.

In this episode, we break down what is actually happening beneath the AI boom, why massive infrastructure spending is creating a new focus on returns, and what happens when investors start asking whether AI growth is fast enough to justify the capital being deployed.

⭐ Sponsored by Podcast10x - Podcasting agency for VCs - https://podcast10x.com

Key topics we explore:

— Why AI spending and infrastructure demand remain extraordinarily strong
— What Nvidia's latest numbers reveal about AI demand
— Why hundreds of billions in AI infrastructure investment changes the investment equation
— The growing importance of capital efficiency, margins and infrastructure utilization
— Why highly leveraged AI infrastructure companies could face different pressures than hyperscalers
— How frontier AI development could slow without AI adoption slowing
— Why inference, AI agents and enterprise automation may become increasingly important
— The difference between slowing AI growth and slowing AI expectations
— Why the next phase of the AI boom could be defined by returns rather than spending

The bigger question:

Can AI generate enough economic value to justify the enormous amount of capital being invested into the technology?

AI doesn't have to stop growing for the AI trade to slow down.

It simply has to grow more slowly than the expectations already priced into the market.

For investors, that distinction could become increasingly important as the AI ecosystem moves from a period of aggressive capital deployment toward a period where revenue, margins, utilization and return on invested capital matter much more.

The question is no longer simply:

"How big can AI become?"

It's:

"Show me the returns."

LINKS

Prashant Choubey - https://www.linkedin.com/in/choubeysahab
Subscribe to VC10X newsletter - https://vc10x.beehiiv.com
Subscribe on YouTube - https://youtube.com/@VC10X
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vc10x-investing-venture-capital-asset-management-private/id1632806986
Subscribe on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7F7KEhXNhTx1bKTBFgzv3k?si=WgQ4ozMiQJ-6nowj6wBgqQ
VC10X website - https://vc10x.com

Sponsorship queries: prashantchoubey3@gmail.com

This channel is for asset managers, allocators, and investors who want analysis that holds up—not headlines dressed as insight.

Subscribe for weekly data-driven breakdowns of the forces reshaping capital markets.

#VC10X #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Nvidia #AIInvesting #AIInfrastructure #AIBubble #DataCenters #AIAgents #VentureCapital #Investing #TechInvesting