logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2019
1h 1m

Recode Decode: Jana Messerschmidt

The Verge
About this episode

Venture capitalist Jana Messerschmidt, talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about how she became a partner at Lightspeed and the co-founder of an all-female group of angel investors called #ANGELS. Messerschmidt previously worked at DivX, Netflix, and Twitter, and also discusses the early days of video streaming online and how Netflix timed the market perfectly. Plus: Why #ANGELS doesn't invest only in women, what made that collective different from traditional venture capital, and the urgent need to ensure that women have their fair share of equity in tech startups.

Read a full transcript of this interview here.

Featuring:

Jana Messerschmidt (@janamal), partner, Lightspeed Venture Partners (@Lightspeedvp) and co-founder, #ANGELS (@hashtagangels)

Hosts:

Kara Swisher (@karaswisher), Recode co-founder and editor-at-large

More to explore:

Subscribe for free to Reset, Recode's new podcast that explores why — and how — tech is changing everything.

About Recode by Vox:

Recode by Vox helps you understand how tech is changing the world — and changing us.

Follow Us:

Newsletter: Recode Daily

Twitter: @Recode and @voxdotcom

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Up next
Today
The AI industry is at a major crossroads
This is Hayden Field, senior AI reporter at The Verge and your Thursday episode guest host. It’s been a very big news week in AI, and a lot of it had to do with OpenAI, its DevDay in San Francisco this week, and the viral explosion of AI-generated video thanks to the company’s ne ... Show More
44m 2s
Oct 6
Rivian CEO on CarPlay, Lidar, and affordable EVs
I’m Joanna Stern, the senior personal tech columnist at The Wall Street Journal, and this is my final Decoder episode filling in for Nilay while he’s out on parental leave. My guest today: Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe. This is RJ’s third time on the show, and it felt like the perfect f ... Show More
50m 38s
Oct 2
The good, the bad, and the future of AI agents
This is Hayden Field, senior AI reporter at The Verge and your Thursday episode guest host. Today, I’m talking with David Hershey, who leads the applied AI team at Anthropic. I wanted to have David on because earlier this week, Anthropic released a brand-new AI model called Claud ... Show More
46m 35s
Recommended Episodes
Aug 2024
AI Friends, deepfake foes, and which Tiger Global partner is leaving now
On today's Friday news roundup, we just had to talk about AI hardware taking on a new shape with Friend’s $99 necklace. The pendant gives you an AI friend to talk to and…that’s about it. Friend’s pitch is that its wearable can help combat loneliness, but other AI hardware product ... Show More
31m 12s
Aug 2024
Maybe it's a good thing that we're not seeing too many AI unicorns
In this Friday’s episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Mary Ann Azevedo and Becca Szkutak kick off the show dissecting a bill which aims to regulate AI at the model level. Naturally, some VCs and founders as well as students and professors are in an uproar abou ... Show More
31m 44s
Sep 2024
AI's tween years, who's taking over climate tech, and the latest for Fearless Fund
What could be more frightening than Friday the 13th? How about a realization that AI is in its awkward tween stage? At least, it was for the TC Equity pod crew, which this week included hosts Devin Coldewey and Kirsten Korosec along with TC reporters Tim de Chant and Dominic Mado ... Show More
34m 10s
Jul 2024
BCG Presents: In Her Ellement
In this special episode, we’re taking you back to Season 1 for Andrea Gallego’s conversation with Alaina Percival, co-founder and then CEO of Women Who Code—the largest and most active community for technical women worldwide. Alaina shares her career path; she’s run niche product ... Show More
21m 15s
Jul 21
When Feedback and Data Fuels Creativity, with Angela Morgenstern
We want to hear from you! Email us at BCGInHerEllement@bcg.com with a voice memo describing your In Your Ellement moment. We might feature your story in an upcoming episode!***What do you do when the data doesn’t give you a clear answer—but the decision can’t wait?For Angela Morg ... Show More
25m 59s
Feb 2020
E35: “Angel” Podcast: Sarah Tavel, Partner at Benchmark shares insights on getting recruited by Peter Fenton, disrupting VC gender norms from the inside, transitioning from operator to investor & more
0:50 Jason intros Benchmark's Sarah Tavel 1:20 Aside from Slack, what other companies grew like consumer-facing but charge like enterprise? 3:19 How was Sarah recruited to Benchmark? How is Benchmark different from other major VC firms? 12:04 Limited upside of talking to the pres ... Show More
1h 33m
Sep 15
Throwback: Role Modelling Vulnerability with Kensho’s Bhavesh Dayalji
What does allyship look like when you’re leading a company? For Bhavesh Dayalji, it often means being honest about the challenges of balancing work and family, and choosing to show up as a husband and father first. This is a throwback episode, but Bhavesh’s reflections on leaders ... Show More
25m 46s
Oct 2024
Investor FOMO is back, and what's happening with WordPress and WP Engine?
Today on Equity, Devin, Margaux and Anthony Ha are rounding up the week's startup and venture news, kicking things off with a look at the $400 million raised by Lightmatter, and the importance of fast networking within the fast growing datacenter industry today — not just in year ... Show More
36m 39s
Mar 2025
Why AI Voice Feels More Human Than Ever
AI voice technology has been around for years — think Siri or Alexa — but the magic has been missing. That’s changing, and quickly!In this episode, Anish Acharya, General Partner at a16z, and Olivia Moore, Partner at a16z, explore why AI voice is reaching a breakthrough moment, h ... Show More
43m 19s
Aug 22
AI and Accelerationism with Marc Andreessen
Marc Andreessen, cofounder Andreessen Horowitz, joins the Hermitix podcast for a conversation on AI, accelerationism, energy, and the future.From the thermodynamic roots of effective accelerationism (E/acc) to the cultural cycles of optimism and fear around new technologies, Marc ... Show More
1h 9m