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Fund/Build/Scale

Fund/Build/Scale

Di: Walter Thompson
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After working for years in early-stage startups and as a journalist, here are three hard truths I’ve learned:

1. Success in Silicon Valley hinges on connections, hard work and luck.
2. Startups often fail because founders lack fundamental business knowledge.
3. Real, actionable advice comes from those who’ve actually done it.

There’s no such thing as “founder DNA.” If you’re willing to take on risk and invest years of your life in something that has maybe a 10% chance of paying off — less if you’re a woman or person of color — you can be a startup founder.

Here’s why I founded Fund/Build/Scale:

1. To help founders make fewer mistakes.
2. To share successful strategies that can accelerate your go-to-market journey.
3. To inspire more people to see themselves as potential founders. There’s a lot of overlooked talent out there, and we are missing out.

This podcast is for anyone who’s interested in learning the basic skills required to launch a startup, secure initial funding and transform an idea into a sustainable business.

I’m talking to guests about everything: finding a co-founder, conducting customer discovery, recruiting early employees, developing a PLG strategy, fundraising when you’re outside a major tech hub — all of it.

Interested? Subscribe to Fund/Build/Scale on all major platforms and follow the podcast on LinkedIn to get articles, excerpts, transcripts and more.

Fund/Build/Scale is a production of Truth and Soul Media LLC.Produced by Truth and Soul Media LLC. Copyright 2026 | All rights reserved. Politica e governo
Episodi
  • Why Some Startups Get Taken Seriously and Others Don't

    Why Some Startups Get Taken Seriously and Others Don't
    Oct 19 2026

    Why do some startups get taken seriously while others struggle to earn attention, even when they're solving similar problems?

    Beck Bamberger, founder and CEO of startup communications agency BAM, joins Fund/Build/Scale to discuss how early-stage founders establish credibility before they have much traction.

    We explore why conviction matters but can't substitute for evidence, what investors look for when customers and revenue are scarce, and why founders who've raised millions sometimes struggle to explain what their companies actually do.

    Beck also explains the concept of narrative capital, how investors, customers and journalists evaluate startups differently, and what founders can do to earn trust and media attention without an established track record.

    A practical conversation about confidence, customer validation, clear communication and giving people real reasons to believe in your business. WATCH ON YOUTUBE

    https://youtu.be/yqdmd7S7jR4

    RUNTIME 35:29

    EPISODE BREAKDOWN

    (1:50) Meet Beck Bamberger, Founder and CEO of BAM

    (4:36) Why Some Founders Earn Belief Before Proof

    (10:50) What Makes an Early-Stage Startup Credible?

    (18:45) Your Startup Story Shouldn’t Take 17 Minutes

    (24:35) Who Needs to Believe in Your Startup First?

    (28:08) How to Get Journalists to Take You Seriously

    (31:01) Practical Advice for Building Startup Credibility

    LINKS

    Beck Bamberger, PhD

    BAM

    Are you building something that’s hard to explain?

    If so, that’s often a sign you’re working on something interesting, but it raises the risk that you’re missing out on fundraising, sales, hiring, and media opportunities.

    I help early-stage founders sharpen the narrative: what matters, why now, who needs to care, and why they’re the right team to make it happen.

    If you’re preparing for a raise, launch, important customer meeting, panel, or hiring push, I can help you pressure-test the story before the stakes get higher.

    Visit the Fund/Build/Scale website to learn more, or email fundbuildscale@gmaii.com

    👉🏾 Learn more

    SUBSCRIBE

    📥 Get the Fund/Build/Scale newsletter on Beehiiv: https://fundbuildscale.beehiiv.com/

    📺 Watch Fund/Build/Scale on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFFH4cs2B1BKatPGs8SFRJw

    📸 Follow Fund/Build/Scale on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fundbuildscale/
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    35 min
  • How Much Proof Does a Consumer Startup Need to Raise Money?

    How Much Proof Does a Consumer Startup Need to Raise Money?
    Oct 6 2026

    “Follow your dreams and quit your day job” is terrible advice.

    That’s not me saying it. That’s Jon Keidan, founder and managing partner of Torch Capital, where he’s backed companies including Sweetgreen, Acorns and Zocdoc.

    He has a better suggestion: before you blow up your life for a startup idea, find some proof that people actually want what you’re planning to build.

    The bar may be lower than you think.

    In this conversation, we break down how Jon evaluates consumer startups from the pain point up, what makes founders credible before there’s much traction, why he initially passed (twice!) on Sweetgreen, and how to tell the difference between focus and distraction.

    We end with a 30-day experiment you can run while you still have a paycheck to find out whether strangers care about your idea before you go all in.

    📺 WATCH ON YOUTUBE

    https://youtu.be/1VvBiLhvd_g

    RUNTIME 37:14

    EPISODE BREAKDOWN

    (2:39) Is the problem painful enough to build a company around?

    (7:01) Start with a niche, but think bigger

    (19:02) Don't quit your day job just yet

    (24:17) The deli test: How to tell if your consumer product is venture-scale

    (26:57) How much proof does a pre-seed investor need?

    (28:43) AI is not a business model

    (32:09) Where are the opportunities AI hasn't swallowed?

    (35:04) Jon's 30-day experiment for consumer/CPG founders

    LINKS

    Jon Keidan

    Torch Capital

    Sweetgreen

    Acorns

    Zocdoc

    DigitalOcean

    Ro

    Are you building something that’s hard to explain?

    If so, that’s often a sign you’re working on something interesting, but it raises the risk that you’re missing out on fundraising, sales, hiring, and media opportunities.

    I help early-stage founders sharpen the narrative: what matters, why now, who needs to care, and why they’re the right team to make it happen.

    If you’re preparing for a raise, launch, important customer meeting, panel, or hiring push, I can help you pressure-test the story before the stakes get higher.

    👉🏾 Visit the Fund/Build/Scale website to learn more, or email fundbuildscale@gmaii.com

    SUBSCRIBE

    📥 Get the Fund/Build/Scale newsletter on Beehiiv: https://fundbuildscale.beehiiv.com/

    ↔️Follow F/B/S on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7249143254363856897/

    📸 Follow Fund/Build/Scale on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fundbuildscale/

    📺 Watch Fund/Build/Scale on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFFH4cs2B1BKatPGs8SFRJw
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    37 min
  • What You Permit Is What Gets Produced

    What You Permit Is What Gets Produced
    Oct 2 2026

    Most of us learn culture by adapting to one that already exists. We join a company, figure out what gets rewarded, who has power, what people say in meetings, and what they say after the meeting ends.

    Founders don’t have that luxury. They’re not fitting into a culture. They’re creating one, whether they mean to or not.

    SnapLogic President Molly Matthews has a more practical way to think about it: culture is what gets repeated. It shows up in who you hire, what you build, and how you treat customers.

    “For me, it’s the ethos,” she said. “It’s the energy in which you exchange details with colleagues. It’s how you show up to work.”

    We get into the first five hires, why “culture fit” is often the wrong frame, what to do with the talented-but-toxic employee, and we’ll end with a self-diagnostic you can run to see if your company is becoming the kind of place you meant to build.

    📺 Watch this episode on YouTube

    RUNTIME 49:56 EPISODE BREAKDOWN

    (1:58) Molly Matthews on scaling through people

    (4:29) What company culture actually means

    (19:09) Why waiting for the perfect hire backfires

    (26:56) When grit turns into burnout

    (32:06) The Captain America problem: when talent hurts the team

    (38:37) Morale and culture are different problems

    (40:14) Choosing advisors and investors

    (44:47) What to look for in your first five hires

    LINKS
    • Molly Matthews
    • SnapLogic
    • Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, Angela Duckworth
    • Radical Candor, Kim Scott
    • Extreme Ownership, Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
    Are you building something that’s hard to explain?

    If so, that’s often a sign you’re working on something interesting, but it raises the risk that you’re missing out on fundraising, sales, hiring, and media opportunities.

    I help early-stage founders sharpen the narrative: what matters, why now, who needs to care, and why they’re the right team to make it happen.

    If you’re preparing for a raise, launch, important customer meeting, panel, or hiring push, I can help you pressure-test the story before the stakes get higher.

    👉🏾 Visit the Fund/Build/Scale website to learn more, or email fundbuildscale@gmaii.com

    SUBSCRIBE

    📥 Get the Fund/Build/Scale newsletter on Beehiiv: https://fundbuildscale.beehiiv.com/

    ↔️Follow F/B/S on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7249143254363856897/

    📸 Follow Fund/Build/Scale on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fundbuildscale/

    📺 Watch Fund/Build/Scale on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFFH4cs2B1BKatPGs8SFRJw
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    50 min
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