Attainment Podcast

Private markets run on bandwidth. AI just gave that bandwidth back to investors. Nicolas Frendo is CFO and Co-founder of Acephalt, an AI platform automating investment due diligence for VCs and family offices. Before Acephalt, he helped founders build the data rooms investors pick apart. Before that, he trained finance AI models at Outlier AI, writing questions the best models in the world would g...

While most companies build strategies through forecasts and slide decks, Brian Byrne builds them through competition , using business wargaming to pressure test every move before it hits the market. Hosted by David Cyrus , this episode features Brian, founder and CEO of Aviador Group , who has helped leadership teams in more than 60 countries stress test strategy, uncover blind spots, and make fas...

Murray Simser, technologist, entrepreneur, and former Microsoft executive, returns to The Attainment Podcast to continue our conversation on artificial intelligence, innovation, and the patterns of progress shaping the future of work. As founder and CEO of CITIZN AI, Murray explores how AI, capitalism, and governance are converging to redefine how we build and lead. Drawing on centuries of technol...

What happens when artificial intelligence stops being a tool and becomes an agent of change? In this episode of The Attainment Podcast, Murray Simser, founder and CEO of CITIZN, the company behind DemocracyGPT and HumanityGPT, joins us to unpack how AI, capitalism, and creativity are colliding to shape the next stage of human progress. A former Microsoft Worldwide Director and serial tech CEO, Mur...

Is it possible to get real ROI from your marketing on day one— without risky bets or guesswork ? This episode reveals how the smartest marketers use test-first strategies to de-risk growth, accelerate results, and turn uncertainty into predictable wins. Join host David Cyrus and digital growth expert Andreas Mueller (Bloofusion) as they break down a playbook built on 20+ years of launching, scalin...

What if finding your dream job, networking with the right people, and building your personal brand were as easy as letting your AI agent do the work? In this episode, David Cyrus sits down with Akanksha, a veteran technical product manager (Intel, Meta, Google, Coinbase) and founder of Neopolis.ai, to explore how digital twins and AI agents are transforming the job market, recruiting, sales, and h...

What's the real formula for success in Silicon Valley? Investment banker and 3rd-gen insider Ryan Baird reveals his "Focus on Risk" philosophy—a universal growth model that applies to everything from startups and marketing budgets to your own career. This episode is packed with actionable advice for founders, marketers, and anyone looking to navigate the modern job market with insigh...

This week David sits down with Julia [Last Name], the University of Waterloo student whose 90-second “Room for One More” video went viral on X and convinced Canada’s largest tech company to invent a brand-new position: Shopify’s first Social Media Intern. In a fast-moving conversation they unpack:• Why CMOs in 2024 rank “generalists” and “social fluency” above MBAs• How Julia designed, shot and di...

Can VCs trust your business before slide 1? Discover the Sales-Marketing-Legal trio that signals credibility - or risk. Guest Avi-Loren Cohen, former CEO and VP Marketing, lifelong salesperson, now a board-level advisor on growth and governance. In this episode you’ll learn • Why every future CMO should carry a quota early in their career • How treating the sales team as “customer zero” sharpens m...

In this episode of The Attainment Podcast , we sit down with Narbe Alexandrian , Founder and CEO of Define Capital , to explore what venture capital and private equity investors really look for in a company’s marketing strategy. Narbe shares candid insights from both sides of the investment table, drawing on his experience as a former VC at OMERS Ventures and now as a PE leader acquiring and scali...

In this episode of The Attainment Podcast , we explore how marketing plays a pivotal role in attracting venture capital and private equity investment at every stage of a company’s growth. Our guest, Brent Brooks, Director of Marketing at Texada Software and former product marketer at Amazon, brings over 15 years of experience guiding brands from scrappy startups to scaled organizations. We dive in...