The DNA of Software Companies

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[00:02:57] - [First question] - His notion of the investor as a biologist or a physicist

[00:05:24] - Why he seeks out new companies with unique business models

[00:07:53] - How his investments are based on present and future needs in the market

[00:11:55] - Evaluating the genetics of a nascent or small company

[00:13:38] - The half-life of information as it flows through a company or platform

[00:17:26] - Unpacking how software companies can survive re-evaluation periods

[00:21:03] - The power of environment creation and facilitation

[00:25:10] - The importance of user conferences

[00:25:45] - A company’s potential for a differentiated second act as a sign of good genes

[00:30:21] - Product quality, timing, and reinvention in tech startups

[00:33:10] - Why it’s crucial for companies to avoid copying their heroes

[00:37:41] - Breaking down market perspective on pure API companies

[00:41:29] - His views on software targeted to vertical versus horizontal markets

[00:44:29] - Carefully leveraging relationships with core customers

[00:48:06] - Operational lessons from his experience with the companies he’s invested in

[00:50:26] - His maxim that software development is as much an art as a science

[00:51:12] - His idea of a product magician in the software industry

[00:52:19] - Effects of new products and categories at the forefront of the space

[00:58:21] - How software founders should prepare for 2023

[01:01:41] - How both market structure and product shape the genetics of a business

[01:04:32] - The challenge of pricing and packaging for SaaS companies

[01:06:42] - Cardinal sins in software investing

[01:07:42] - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for him