The LionTree Podcast

What if the biggest digital opportunity today isn’t online at all, but it’s the moment you’re standing at an airport gate, at a stadium concourse, or in a checkout line? In this episode of the LionTree Podcast, Alex Michael sits down with Tim Armstrong, former Google, AOL, and Verizon/Oath executive and now Founder and CEO of Flowcode, to unpack why he believes the next wave of digital value will...

On a special episode of The LionTree Podcast, we explore how prediction markets are repshaping the way we understand uncertainty, truth and decision-making. In partnership with Boardroom, the media brand at the intersection of sports, business and entertainment, we present a conversation between Tarek Mansour, Founder and CEO of Kalshi, and Rich Kleiman, Founder and CEO of Boardroom. In order of a...

To start the year off right, Alex Michael sits down with Scott Belsky, founder of Behance, seed investor, and now partner at A24 and founder of A24 Labs, to walk through his predictions for 2026. Scott, who previously led product strategy and design at Adobe, has spent his career at the intersection of creative work and emerging technology. In the episode, the pair explores how artificial intellig...

LionTree’s James Lindsay visits the massive studio complex of Merwas in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (the world’s largest music studio, according to Guinness) to converse with Danny Townsend, CEO of SURJ Sports Investment. Danny, who began his career playing football (a/k/a soccer) for Australia’s Sydney United Team, had a 26 year-long career on the business side of sport prior to his 2023 appointment as...

LionTree’s Alex Michael chats with journalist Tara Palmeri, who, after reporting for everyone from the New York Post, CNN, Politico, Puck and ABC News, has struck out on her own with her substack, “The Red Letter,” as well as “The Tara Palmeri Show” on YouTube. The pair explores the entrepreneurial landscape for journalists, and how the confluence of media influencers and hard news is shifting the...

Join Rachel Kraus and Caryl Stern as they examine the intersection of purpose and business. In this episode, our hosts hear from James Turk, CEO & Founder of The Turk Group. With more than 25 years of experience developing leaders at companies such as Spotify, Squarespace, and Goldman Sachs, James helps people move from managing tasks to truly inspiring others. Tune in to hear insights from Ja...

LionTree’s Louis Kenna is joined in the company’s UK office by Lionel Assant, Global Co-Chief Investment Officer of Blackstone. Lionel came to Blackstone in 2003, four years prior to the firm going public; in that time, their AUM has risen from ~$27 Billion to around $1.1 Trillion. Executing on 70 plus strategies across four divisions, Lionel details how Blackstone’s scale enables them to make bol...

Join Rachel Kraus and Caryl Stern as they examine the intersection of purpose and business. In this episode, we hear from Raj Vinnakota, the President of the Institute for Citizens & Scholars. The organization's goal is to "equip young people with the civic skills necessary to navigate a divided country and become effective leaders," and Raj's first-hand experience in the corporate a...

LionTree’s Antal Runneboom sits down with FJ Labs Founding Partner Fabrice Grinda, whose long and successful career in the tech space includes co-founding wireless mobile company Zingy as well as global marketplace OLX. Fabrice gives fascinating perspective into the opportunities around vertical-specific marketplaces; the process by which he and his FJ Labs partners select the hundreds of start-up...

Two-time NBA champion and Duke University mainstay Shane Battier checks in with LionTree’s resident sports expert, Alex Michael, to share his philosophy on what makes teams - and businesses - great. Shane discusses his experiences under Duke’s renowned Coach K (most recently lionized on “The Bear”), and reflects on the importance of the “glue guys” who help all of their colleagues shine.  Thi...

In the latest installment of his series examining private equity in the tech sector, LionTree’s Antal Runnebom speaks with Reed Rayman, a Partner in Private Equity at Apollo Global Management. Making his first-ever podcast appearance, Reed discusses his 15-year career at Apollo, and the “value on the buy, growth once we own” philosophy that has guided the firm’s deals with companies including West...

Join Rachel Kraus and Caryl Stern as they examine the intersection of purpose and business. In this episode, they hear the colorful life story of Luis Duarte, a serial entrepreneur whose career has taken him from facing down gun-toting cartel members to founding Amoofy - which stands for “A Moment of You” - a platform that enables you to document and share your family’s history ethically and priva...

LionTree’s James Lindsay chats with music blogger turned startup CEO Andy Apple, whose company Mellomanic provides artists and labels a unique, integrated platform for hosting listening parties, exclusive live streams, interactive chat rooms and more. In an era where artists are taking more direct ownership of how they market themselves, Mellomanic offers new ways to engage, and eventually monetiz...

In this episode, LionTree’s James Lindsay gets the lowdown on Jen Music AI from co-founder and music industry vet Shara Senderoff. Earlier this year, Jen launched an ethically-trained AI music platform for text-to-music creation, and Shara details the platform’s commitment to transparency, compensation and copyright identification. It’s a glimpse at how content creators can utilize generative AI t...

Today, join LionTree Managing Director Rosie Kurmaniak as she engages in an illuminating conversation with communications guru Maha Abouelenein ( https://www.mahaabouelenein.com/ ). Over her three decade career, Maha has crafted strategies for global corporations, startups, governments and CEOs, as well as managing comms for major tech companies in the Middle East. She’s just published her first b...

Join Rachel Kraus and Caryl Stern as they examine the intersection of purpose and business. In this episode, they speak with Misha Vitels & Peter Frelinghuysen, the co-Founders of Earth Brands. Recent Williams College grads and varsity tennis teammates, the pair turned their dismay at the red plastic cups littering their campus into inspiration - and created a thriving company dedicated to mak...

LionTree Managing Director and resident sports expert Alex Michael chats with MOGL CEO and co-Founder Ayden Syal to discuss how the company enables brands and college athletes to partner in the wake of the 2021 NCAA decision that allows these athletes to monetize their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). By taking the pain out of the process - and making sure schools are in the loop - MOGL projects th...

The youth sports market is exploding, and there’s no better example of that growth and opportunity than GameChanger, the ubiquitous app that parents, family members and friends use to stream, score and stay up on all the games being played at schools nationwide. Join LionTree Managing Director Alex Michael as he and Sameer discuss the company’s growth in the wake of their 2016 acquisition by DICK’...

Listen in for a fascinating exploration of how private equity has evolved over the last few decades as LionTree Managing Director Antal Runneboom sits with Brian Ruder, Partner, Head of Investment Committee and Co-Head of Technology at Permira, a worldwide investment firm with over $80B of assets under management. A long-time leader in tech and consumer internet investing, Permira’s portfolio incl...

Powerhouse of the business world Lisa Borders shares her life story from being childhood playmates with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s children, to the roles she's held throughout her storied career including President of the WNBA, Vice President of Global Community Affairs at Coca-Cola, and Vice Mayor of Atlanta. Find and rate KindredCast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen. For more content,...

Join LionTree's resident sports expert Alex Michael as he breaks bread with Game 7 co-Founders Mark Messier - the NHL legend who boasts a 7-2 record in the titular championship matches - and music industry titan Mat Vlasic. A lifelong fan of Mark’s, and a long-time friend and partner of Mat’s, Alex uncovers the thinking behind their new performance lifestyle venture, which aims to “underscore the...

In the second and final part of our look-forward at the year ahead, activist, author, and humanitarian Caryl Stern hosts discussions with a few of the company’s thought leaders to uncover how the firm integrates purpose into the fabric of our decision-making. First up, Rosie Kurmaniak details the cyclical nature of M&A, and how that is manifesting itself in the firm’s business;...

It’s time for one of our most highly anticipated shows of the year,  The 2024 Outlook , where leaders from across LionTree look into their crystal balls to discuss the thematics that will be driving the industry this year. LionTree’s public markets expert Leslie Mallon drills down into sector themes with a trio of the company’s thought leaders: James Lindsay discusses...

Join Rachel Kraus and Caryl Stern as they examine the intersection of purpose and business. Carol Cone, founder of Carol Cone ON PURPOSE and renowned leader in the world of corporate social responsibility and purpose-driven business talks about how she introduced the idea of melding business strategy with social responsibility to companies in the 1980s, and shares about her journey growing that in...

Join Tom Graham, the CEO and co-Founder of generative AI company Metaphysic, as he dives deep with Kindred Media’s Laura Clinton to explore the huge opportunity that this photo-realistic technology enables. A Harvard-trained lawyer turned entrepreneur, Tom is laser-focused on the ethical usage of AI, making Metaphysic a favored partner of the entertainment industry. He is a vocal proponent for gov...