Give First

In this episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen sits down with James Oliver Jr., Techstars alum, entrepreneur, and author of Burn Bright, Not Out . James shares his journey navigating the pressures of high achievement and the hidden cost of hustle culture. He introduces the Burn Bright Spectrum, a framework to help founders recognize the difference between healthy ambition and burnout, and...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen sits down with John Fein, partner at Firebrand Ventures and former Techstars managing director. John reflects on the winding path of his career, from moments of uncertainty to finding renewed purpose through startups, venture, and community building. He shares how small acts of generosity, like answering a random email or making an introductio...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld talks with David Hornik, founding partner at Lobby Capital. David shares how a relationship driven approach has shaped his career in venture capital, from investing to community building. He reflects on why generosity compounds over time, how trust creates durable networks, and why long term thinking matters in both business and life. The conver...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen talks with Seth Levine, Partner at Foundry and co-author of Capital Evolution . Seth looks back on the early days of Techstars, the original Boulder community that shaped it, and how Foundry is approaching its final fund while still actively investing. The conversation explores why so many people are questioning capitalism today. Seth breaks d...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld talks with Bala Kamallakharan, founder of Startup Iceland and a driving force behind the country’s modern startup ecosystem. Bala shares the remarkable story of moving to Mumbai to build an Icelandic bank in 2008, only to watch the entire financial system collapse overnight. Within three months, he went from launching a new bank to shutting it d...

In this special episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld and Sameer Dholakia revisit the origins of Pledge 1%, the global movement helping startups build philanthropy into their business from the start. What began as a simple conversation in Boulder between Brad and Rally Software co-founder Ryan Martens grew into a worldwide initiative championed by Salesforce, Atlassian, Techstars, and thous...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld sits down with Sameer Dholakia, partner at Bessemer Venture Partners and former CEO of SendGrid, the first Techstars company to go public. When Sameer joined SendGrid, growth was slowing and the company was losing money. Under his leadership, it became a $250M business, went public, and was later acquired by Twilio. Sameer shares the story of ho...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld sits down with Robert Glazer, 5x entrepreneur, #1 Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author, and author of the new book The Compass Within. Robert shares his framework for uncovering personal core values, the principles that guide decisions, relationships, and leadership. The conversation explores why many people are climbing the wron...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen sits down with longtime Techstars friend Andy Sack and former Starbucks Chief Digital Officer Adam Brotman, co-CEOs of Forum3 and co-authors of AI First: The Playbook for a Future-Proof Business and Brand . They explore why AI isn’t just another vertical, but the foundation of how companies will be built, operated, and scaled in the years ahea...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld talks with Scott Dorsey, co-founder of High Alpha and former CEO of ExactTarget, the email marketing pioneer acquired by Salesforce. Scott shares his journey from launching a startup with no technical background to building a company of 2,000 employees, going public, and running Salesforce Marketing Cloud. The conversation dives into why relatio...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld talks with Elizabeth Gore, co-founder and president of Hello Alice, about what it takes to build and scale a platform serving over 1.5M small business owners. Elizabeth shares how Hello Alice became a critical lifeline during COVID, launching grant programs, pivoting product builds, and creating community hubs for entrepreneurs in crisis. She re...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld reconnects with Landon Young, pre-seed investor at Elevate Ventures and a longtime builder of startup ecosystems. Landon shares stories from both sides of the table, as a founder and investor, including what it means to write the first check when a company is still just a sketch on a napkin. They revisit the early days of the Kansas City Startup...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld sits down with Bobby Franklin, President and CEO of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). They unpack the disconnect between Washington, D.C., and the startup world, and why that gap poses a growing threat to innovation in the U.S. Bobby shares stories from the front lines of venture policy, illustrating how small regulatory changes c...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld sits down with longtime friends and Simple Energy co-founders, Justin Segall and Yoav Lurie. Together, they revisit a pivotal moment in their startup journey, when the company was on the verge of collapse. The conversation dives into the chapter inspired by their experience in Brad’s new book, Give First , titled The Near Death of Simple Energy...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld sits down with organizational psychologist and bestselling author, Adam Grant, for a conversation about the power of generosity in business, leadership, and life. Brad and Adam trace the roots of give first and give and take , uncovering how their philosophies arrived at the same conclusion: that success isn’t about what you extract, but what yo...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld is joined by 22-time bestselling author and entrepreneur Seth Godin for a conversation that cuts to the core of leadership, impact, and what founders often get wrong. Seth reflects on his early days as an entrepreneur, the first time he met Brad, and what he’s learned since about ego, ambition, and the trap of "founder mode." Together, they expl...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, Brad Feld sits down with Ian Hathaway, co-author of The Startup Community Way , host of Outsider Inc., and Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Far Out VC, to unpack what makes entrepreneurial ecosystems actually work. They revisit the early days of their collaboration, from Ian’s initial cold email and time in Boulder, to writing the book that reframed how...

In this special episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen and Brad Feld go deep with Lesa Mitchell on the 35-year evolution of the startup community movement. Recorded live at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress, they reflect on the early days of entrepreneurship support—from the founding of EO and early angel networks to the ripple effects of the Kauffman Foundation. Together, they explore...

In this special episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen and Brad Feld go deep with Lesa Mitchell on the 35-year evolution of the startup community movement. Recorded live at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress, they reflect on the early days of entrepreneurship support—from the founding of EO and early angel networks to the ripple effects of the Kauffman Foundation. Together, they explore...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen sits down with Robert Wolfe , founder of Zeck and serial entrepreneur behind companies like Moosejaw and CrowdRise. Robert shares his transition from consumer brands to enterprise software—and how Zeck is modernizing how executive teams communicate, collaborate, and make decisions. They explore the inefficiencies of traditional board meetings,...

In this special episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen is joined once again by co-host Brad Feld, back after nearly two years away from the spotlight. Brad shares why he stepped back, what brought him back, and the deeper thinking behind his new book, Give First: The Power of Mentorship . They dive into the origins of the Give First philosophy, how it grew from a simple idea into a powerfu...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, host David Cohen is joined by Usman Gul , founder and CEO of Metal . Usman shares his entrepreneurial journey and how his company is revolutionizing the fundraising process for startups. Usman discusses his own experience raising capital, the challenges he encountered, and how Metal is simplifying and democratizing access to venture capital. With advanced...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, hosts David Cohen is joined by Kevin Noertker , CEO and co-founder of Ampaire . Kevin shares his journey from aspiring astronaut and NASA engineer to leading a revolutionary Techstars-backed company. Ampaire is advancing hybrid electric aviation, aiming to cut aircraft fuel usage by 50-70%, addressing both environmental and economic issues in the aviation...

In this episode of the Give First podcast, David Cohen speaks with Marc Steren , Cofounder and Co-CEO of University Startups. The two discuss the entrepreneurial journey and the transformative impact of education.  Marc offers insights into his 30-year entrepreneurial career, from pioneering mobile ticketing to selling his company in 2012, and transitioning to education as a professor at Geor...

Emma Bates , co-founder of Diem , is reshaping the way women search the internet. Diem is a social search engine designed to provide women with trustworthy, community-driven results. In this episode of Give First, Emma talks about her journey building Diem, starting with her experience in the Techstars accelerator and the inspiration behind her women-centric approach to search. Emma dives into the...