The Magnus Effect Podcast

Ethan Jagoda wears a lot of labels, like a software engineer, musician, traveler, but underneath all of them is a single commitment: live life to the fullest by going all-in on whatever creates genuine enjoyment. The episode opens with Ethan's story of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro without training, and his account of just how brutally difficult the experience was. He then connects it to a broade...

Dylan has grown his business staging properties for real estate brokers to over $50,000 a month while still a student at UC Berkeley, but this conversation is less about flexing revenue and more about the weird, in‑between space of being young, ambitious, and deeply unsure what “enough” even means. I wanted to document this snapshot in his life to capture how he’s thinking about his experiences so...

Welcome back to the Magnus Effect! In this episode, we talk to Ryusei Hayashi, an international student at UC Berkeley and founder of  @reachbest-ai  , a platform using AI to help with college admissions. Ryusei shares his story of starting a business at 17, his mixed cultural background, and how his family inspired him. We dive into his challenges as a young entrepreneur and the lessons he's...

Ever feel like dating apps just waste your time? Allen Wang felt the same, so he built something different. He dropped out of Berkeley to launch Ditto AI, an app that skips the small talk, skips the swiping, and just… sends you on the date. In this episode, we talk about how it all started: digital pets, guerrilla marketing with a Cybertruck, and co-hosting the biggest party at UCSD. But more than...

What does it take to build the next generation of social connection, and who gets to lead that revolution? In this episode, we sit down with Sean and Nathaneo, Yale students and founders of Series, the AI-powered platform reimagining what a network can be. We explore how faith, grit, and intention helped them raise $3.6 million while staying grounded, and why building real community means bridging...

Astha is a talented filmmaker who started her journey at a young age, driven by her love for storytelling. Over the years, she has worked with major companies like Netflix and Marvel, holding roles such as production assistant, art designer, script supervisor, and assistant director. Her accomplishments include working on popular shows like Bridgerton and various Marvel projects. Astha's work...

In this episode, we talk to Dawson Kelly, a young and creative college student at Berkeley, about his journey in starting a card game called 'Fuck the Small Talk.' He shares how he defines his ever-changing identity, his passion for entrepreneurship, and his struggle to balance school life with his projects. Dawson discusses his inspirations, the importance of mentorship, and how he believ...

In this episode, we talk with a pre-med student at UC Berkeley about their journey and challenges. Learn about choosing the right school, managing tough courses, and competing for club spots. Discover how they started the Glass Slipper Initiative, a nonprofit helping kids with disabilities, and how they balance school with running this impactful project. Get inspired by their dedication to making...

In this episode, I talk to Leanid, a student who moved from Belarus to California and learn about his incredible journey building a business and his recognition of cultural differences. Learn how he overcame cultural differences, grew as an individuals, and formed meaningful friendships even when he left his home country when everything was going well. We also explore cutting-edge technologies lik...

In this episode, I sit down with Anaiy Somalwar , an AI textbook author, chess national master, and venture investor who achieved all of this before turning 20. We dive into the lessons learned from balancing passion and practicality, how resilience and discipline from chess shaped success in AI and venture capital, and the importance of maximizing long-term happiness over short-term wins. Whether...

In this episode, I am joined by Jen and Yavuz, two students who dedicate their free time to building student communities. We dive into how to make the most out of community events and find real value in them. You'll learn about hosting impactful events, building fitness communities, and navigating social climbing. We discuss how to follow paths that truly interest you instead of just chasing caree...

Tom Lam is a transfer student at UC Berkeley actively pursuing multiple ventures within the startup space. He is known on campus to post content around the day in his life as a student, amassing close to 500,000 views on Instagram shorts. Listen to my conversation diving deep into his journey and understand his mindset to get so much done. 0:00 Early Upbringing 3:12 Finding a career path 7:33 Shou...

Fireside chat with the former president of Student-Run Startup Accelerator Free Ventures. Graduating Senior, Safwan Masood, explains his journey into the startup space after originally intending to go into law and offers tips to aspiring founders to maximize their resources and time on campus. 0:00 Career Summary 1:05 Navigating Opportunities on Campus 3:04 What is Free Ventures? 4:14 How do you g...

Conversation with Evan Tsai about the tests you need to endure to get a third-degree black belt and what mental state he puts himself through in order to achieve such extreme physical feats. 0:00 Intro 1:41 Interest in Taekwondo 3:35 What it Takes to be a Black Belt 8:17 Pushing Through the Hard Times 10:27 How to Endure the Hardest of Physical Tests 13:06 Is Taekwondo for Everyone 14:17 Channelin...

Chat Gpt 4o is an exciting new feature that allows you to talk to Ai using your voice but how does it hold up in a podcast interview with a simple prompt? 0:00 Introduction 1:53 Main Ambitions 3:32 Managing Time 5:37 Major Challenges in Podcasting 9:27 Advice for Starting a Podcast 12:58 Most Rewarding Part of Podcasting 15:13 Things I Wish I Knew Before Starting 18:02 Maintaining Motivation 19:53...

Serial Machinist, Entrepreneur, & Mentor for FRC Team 4414 Hightide talks about how to get started and create that thing you want to build so badly. 0:00 Introduction 4:47 Interest in Manufacturing 10:49 Love for Electric Skateboards 15:57 What Makes an Elite FRC Team 21:21 Getting Your Team to Buy Into the Vision 26:02 Most Rewarding & Worst Memory in Robotics? 29:26 Big vs. Small Teams 3...

UC Berkeley student Viviana talks about her experiences working to pay her college tuition. 0:00 Introduction 1:44 Current Work Study Job 3:49 Unique Parts of the Job 6:08 Hours & Pay 7:33 Favorite Jobs 11:23 Creative Writing 13:27 Teaching 16:27 Being a Bio Major at Berkeley 18:58 Campus Involvement 20:05 Balancing Strategy 23:06 Dealing with the Size of Berkeley 27:10 Avocado Festival 31:29...

Successful startup founder and now a general partner at FutureX Capital as a college student. Discussion on how to get into the Venture Capital Space and the importance of Capital in todays world. 0:00 Intro 0:43 Entering the Tech Industry 4:29 Getting Assistance and Funding for Startup 6:53 Takeaways from Exiting Startup 8:55 Where Did the Passion Stem From? 12:05 Nvidia's Own Incubator 15:03...

How Maryanne has been driven to achieve so much in her life, how she did it, and how she manages time. 0:00 Intro 0:58 Experiences as a Refugee 3:47 Historical Context of the War 5:13 Reflecting Back on Traumatic Experiences 7:38 You Need Money to Make Impact 9:15 Becoming a Published Author at 9 Years Old 11:05 Nature vs. Nurture 12:45 Is It Worth the Effort? 13:41 What Are You Striving for? 14:4...

0:00 Introduction 2:02 How Arya Started in Robotics 4:30 Outlook on Robotics Over Time 7:27 Patenting Robots8:40 Arya's First Patent 11:22 What Does Robolabs Do? 13:52 How Did This Business Start? 18:06 Patenting Fun Facts 20:00 Learning From His Mistakes 24:47 How to Host a Robotics Competition 28:43 Regrets of Hosting 31:38 Role of College 34:25 Having Fun While Being Disciplined 38:07 Role...

Conversation with Saki about why she teaches the youth as a part time job how how she balances it with her academics. 0:00 Intro 1:01 Saki's 3 Languages 3:07 Career Support from Parents 4:23 Student Transformation Story 6:32 Knowing When To Be Strict vs Nice 8:28 Who Are You In The Eyes Of students 9:44 Unlimited Happiness From Seeing Students 11:04 Balancing Work With School 14:59 Role of Col...

Ambitious college student gets in his own way with negative thoughts and shares them on social media, here is why. 0:00 Intro 2:00 Why Post Vulnerably on Social Media? 8:50 Trouble Finding Hobbies and Girlfriends 10:30 Playing to Stereotypes 14:00 Pitying for Attention 16:08 Best Case Scenario 19:00 Surrounded by Sweats 22:00 Myth of Shortcomings of Others 24:38 Should People Approach You First? 3...

UPENN M&T student shares how he launched LineupsValorant.com in high school. Listen to his love for teaching and giving back to the world. 0:00 Introduction 0:55 First Entrepreneurial Venture 6:40 How has Networking Benefited You? 8:57 Favorite Connections 10:58 Early Exploration in AI 13:00 Interest in Game Development 16:34 Favorite Personal Projects 18:37 Fulfillment from Teaching 19:49 Fav...

UPenn M&T student describes his campus life. 0:00 Introduction 2:23 How did you get into your major? 5:30 Immersion into video games 7:45 Kyle's Personality 13:00: West Coast vs. East Coast 13:55 Solitude 24:02 Should you strive for Penn M&T? 25:24 Favorite Memory at Penn 30:20 Campus Involvement 32:37 Quant Research 35:36 Self-Love 37:35 Choosing your inner circle 39:17 Similar Values...

UC Berkeley student Tay talks about how he approaches learning hobbies and skills while resolving parental pressures. 0:00 Intro 1:54 Major(s) 2:26 Love for Math 3:58 High-School Upbringing 8:20 CS Learning Process 9:18 Branching out into Machine Learning 10:40 Feeding Sparks of Interests 12:01 Finding Someone to Learn with 14:45 Card Magic Side Hustle 16:36 Persisting through Difficult Learning 1...