logo
episode-header-image
Jan 2025
30m 44s

How To Build The AGI Future: Bob McGrew

Y Combinator
About this episode

According to OpenAI's former Chief Research Officer Bob McGrew, reasoning and test-time compute will unlock more reliable and capable AI agents— and a path to scale to AGI.


In this episode of How to Build the Future, YC's @garrytan sits down with Bob to discuss the lessons learned from his time at OpenAI, scaling laws, his advice for startups, and what all of this means for the jobs of the future.

Up next
Yesterday
How This 25-Year-Old Built A $675M Legal AI Startup (With No Legal Experience)
In this episode of Founder Firesides, YC General Partner Gustaf Alströmer is joined by Max Junestrand, co-founder and CEO of Legora, one of the fastest-growing legal AI startups in the world. In just 13 months, Max and his team scaled from 10 to 100 people, raised $80M, and crack ... Show More
45m 25s
Aug 15
The Sales Playbook for Founders | Startup School
Navigating B2B sales for the first time can feel slow and overwhelming.Drawing from his experience founding Monzo and GoCardless, YC's Tom Blomfield shares his playbook for running a tight sales process that lands real, recurring revenue. He walks through each step—free and paid ... Show More
18m 38s
Aug 8
Figma CEO Dylan Field: How AI Will Transform Design
Dylan Field on June 17th, 2025 at AI Startup School in San Francisco.Dylan Field co-founded Figma to bring the design process online and make it multiplayer. From a meme maker built on WebGL to a design platform powering millions, Figma’s journey hit a major milestone with its IP ... Show More
40m 36s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2025
Sam Altman's Wild 2035 Prediction
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman just dropped a new blog post outlining his vision for AGI, AI economics, and the next decade. His key prediction? By 2035, any individual will have access to as much intelligence as the world today. Is this realistic, or just more hype? This episode breaks d ... Show More
22m 16s
Apr 2025
#246 Will Granis: How Google Cloud is Powering the Future of Agentic AI
This episode is sponsored by Thuma. Thuma is a modern design company that specializes in timeless home essentials that are mindfully made with premium materials and intentional details. To get $100 towards your first bed purchase, go to http://thuma.co/eyeonai What happens when A ... Show More
57m 44s
Aug 7
The Prove-It Mentality: Rethinking ROI in the Age of AI - A Planning Aces Episode
In Episode 47 of Planning Aces, Jack Sweeney and resident thought leader Brett Knowles explore the evolving role of FP&A through the lens of three forward-looking CFOs. Dan Zhang (ClickUp), John Rettig (Bill), and Josh Schauer (insightsoftware) share how they’re driving enterpris ... Show More
44m 37s
Jun 2024
AI & The Future of Work
Steve Jobs once called the computer the “bicycle for the mind." What should we call AI? The Ferrari? Fighter jet? Maybe even the flying car? In this episode, host Courtney Baker, along with Knownwell’s CEO David DeWolf and Chief Product Officer Mohan Rao, dive into the transforma ... Show More
33m 57s
Nov 2024
Data, AI, and Creativity: Building Tomorrow’s Marketing Teams with Andreas Frangeskides
Whether you’re a marketing pro or just starting out, this episode offers valuable insights into leveraging technology for impactful marketing strategies. Tune in for fresh perspectives! 🎧 Watch the Full Episode and Follow us on Social Media! ↓  Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:49 ... Show More
43m 5s
Nov 2024
The Future of AI: Predictions and Realities
In this episode, Jaeden Schafer discusses the current challenges and developments in the AI industry, particularly focusing on the limitations faced by major players like OpenAI and Anthropic. The conversation explores the anticipated improvements in AI models, the predictions fo ... Show More
18m 14s
Feb 2025
AI and Cyber
In this episode of Life of a CISO, Dr. Eric Cole dives into one of the most pressing topics in cybersecurity today—Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its impact on the role of a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). He emphasizes that the key to being an effective CISO is thin ... Show More
31m 57s
Nov 2024
AI Agents Are About to Change Everything (Here's Why)
Episode 31: What will the future look like when AI agents take over mundane tasks? Matt Wolfe (https://x.com/mreflow) and Nathan Lands (https://x.com/NathanLands) are joined by Don Allen Stevenson III (https://x.com/DonAllenIII), former DreamWorks specialist and author of "Make a ... Show More
48m 14s
May 2
Windsurf CEO: Betting On AI Agents, Pivoting In 48 Hours, And The Future of Coding
Varun Mohan didn't set out to build one of the fastest-growing AI developer tools. He just knew his company had to change, or die.After initially betting on GPU virtualization, he saw the writing on the wall: if there was a future for his company, it would be at the AI applicatio ... Show More
52m 35s
Nov 2024
837: Career Success in the AI Era, with Deepali Vyas
Deepali Vyas, Global Head of FinTech, Payments and Crypto Practice at Korn Ferry, talks to Jon Krohn about the best ways for data science and AI professionals to get seen and hired. Hear why video, not text, is the future of recruitment, how to get over camera shyness, and how to ... Show More
1h 10m