Perception Paradox with Zivile (Zivi) Ein

In this episode of Perception Paradox, Zivile (Zivi) sit down with Sem Verbeek, a professional tennis player whose journey challenges everything we think we know about talent, timing, and success. Sem didn’t grow up as the most gifted junior. He wasn’t “the obvious one.” Instead, he built his career slowly - through discipline, emotional work, and a deep curiosity about life beyond sport. They tal...

A 3-minute breakdown of the storytelling framework every creator should know — hooks, conflict, and the three-act structure. With Kayvan Nikjou, live from Web Summit 2025.

To start 2026 with clarity, we’re replaying one of our most relevant conversations. In this episode, Zivile speaks with entrepreneur and mentor Dan Tyre about goal setting, optimism, and building sustainable momentum. They explore why mindset is not “soft,” how discipline compounds over time, and why focusing on what you can control is the foundation of long-term success. A timeless conversation f...

We talk a lot about short attention spans. But maybe the real problem isn’t attention - it’s meaning. In this trailer, Allan Davidson -journalist, broadcaster, and creator of over 9,000 shows - reflects on how storytelling survives in an age of scrolling, noise, and shrinking formats. We explore:– Why attention hasn’t disappeared, it’s become selective– What still holds people for hours, not secon...

Everyone wants “AI for events.” But Ben Costantini argues the real issue is underneath: outdated revenue infrastructure, fixed inventory, and pricing systems that don’t match how startups actually spend. A sharp 5-10 minute Paradox Byte recorded at Slush - for anyone building events, selling through events, or tired of conference noise. Full episode is available on Perception Paradox podcast - E11...

Most events aren’t failing because the speakers were bad or the afterparty was weak. They’re failing because the architecture is wrong - and the revenue model underneath is outdated. Recorded at Slush, this episode with Ben Constantini goes behind the curtain of the event industry: the consolidation happening at the top, the rise of smaller curated formats, and the quiet shift toward founder-first...

Europe once led consumer technology. Today, it mostly rents it. Tariq Krim explains how Europe went from building the tools we all used to paying for platforms owned elsewhere - and why the AI shift is a rare moment to change that. This is not about AI tools. It’s about ownership, power, and who sets the rules. 🎧 Full conversation on Perception Paradox podcast (E115). hosted by Zivile (Zivi) Ein

We talk about resilience as if it’s endless motivation. It’s not. Real resilience is about how quickly you recover when things fall apart. In this Paradox Byte, Dan Tyre shares why setbacks aren’t the enemy - slow recovery is. From missed deals to personal doubt, this is a grounded conversation about bouncing back without burning out. If you’ve been hard on yourself lately, this one is for you. Ho...

Europe once led consumer technology. Today, it mostly rents it. In this episode of Perception Paradox , I sit down with Tariq Krim - founder and long-time technologist - to explore what sits beneath the AI boom: power, ownership, and infrastructure . We talk about why Europe stopped building consumer tech, how regulation replaced ambition, and why the current AI moment feels more fragile than revo...

We’ve forgotten how to listen.
And it’s costing us more than we realize. In this paradox bytes episode from Perception Paradox podcast, Allan Davidson - veteran BBC & CBS journalist and host of SoundBytes - breaks down why asking “the right questions” is useless if you’re not actually listening. We talk about:
 – Why prepared questions often kill real conversations
 – How isolation and speed a...

What happens when someone has spent 35 years asking questions - and actually listening ? Recorded live at Slush, this conversation with Allan Davidson explores how media, technology, and human attention have changed - and what we’ve lost along the way.  From the early days of BBC and CBS News to AI, startups, and today’s fractured attention economy, Allan shares why listening is a skill, why moral...

At 14, he flipped Lego sets on eBay. At 17, he was running a £120K reselling business. Now, he’s building a SaaS product to solve the admin pain every reseller faces. In this Perception Paradox trailer, Daniel breaks down how he spotted real problems early, turned side hustles into systems, and why building before you’re “ready” mattered more than age, funding, or credentials. This is a founder st...

At Slush 2025, I met someone who made me pause - Daniel Guest . He’s 17 , he brought his dad (his CTO) to the conference, and he speaks with the kind of clarity most people only find after a few “career pivots” and a mild existential crisis. Daniel started building businesses at 14 , scaled a six-figure reselling operation , and then built a SaaS platform for resellers because tax returns and admi...

A quick look into the rise of “vibe coding” - and why it’s only useful for testing, not scaling. In this snippet, FIRSTPICK VC partner Andra Bagdonaite explains: • how founders should validate ideas fast • why “building on top of tools” eventually breaks • the rise of builder communities like Based Space & ROAM • why Gen Z is redefining who becomes a founder Listen to the full episode 112 on P...

What makes someone a real founder in 2025 - and who’s just riding the AI wave? In this Perception Paradox episode, recorded live at SLUSH , Zivile talks with Andra Bagdonaite , Partner at FIRSTPICK VC , a pre-seed fund backing Baltic founders at day zero. They break down how AI has changed who can build, why “vibe coding” isn’t enough, and how Andra and her team actually evaluate founders, rounds...

In this Paradox Byte, founder  Arūnas Vismantas (callsy.ai)  breaks down the startup rule almost everyone ignores:  sell before you build . We cover early traction, co-founders, avoiding “greedy equity traps,” and why structure beats hustle every time. If you’re building, testing, or validating an idea — this 3-minute clip will save you months of wasted work.

In this  SLUSH 2025 special,  Zivile sits down with  Aru nas Vismantas  (Callsy.ai) to deliver a radical founder reality check: Why ego kills more businesses than failure, and why you must SELL BEFORE YOU BUILD to survive. Arunas, a three-time founder, reveals the principles that move companies forward, including aggressive validation and his experience scaling rapidly through 500 Global. You’ll a...

A sharp 3-minute breakdown from tech journalists Cate Lawrence and Andrii Degeler on why most startup pitches fail — and what founders keep getting wrong. In this Byte: • Why AI-written emails are instantly spotted • What shrinking newsrooms mean for your story • The PR vs. journalism gap every founder misreads Full episode:  Tech Media’s Reality: Layoffs, Pressure & What Founders Should Know...

Recorded live at SLUSH 2025, this episode dives into the unvarnished reality of the tech media landscape —from structural layoffs and newsroom pressure to the fundamental misconceptions founders have about the press. Featuring: Cate Lawrence - Senior Reporter, Tech.eu Andrii Degeler - Podcast Producer & Tech Journalist What You Will Learn The Media Crunch: Why shrinking newsrooms, burnout, and...

The Valley of Cringe & Real Networking – Web Summit Special w/ Kayvan Nikjou Recorded live at Web Summit 2025 in Lisbon , this special episode with Kayvan Nikjou is about what really sits behind “networking” and “content” – and why most of us are scared of both. We talk about: the Valley of Cringe every founder & creator has to go through how one TikTok on cultural communication turned int...

Recorded live at  Web Summit 2025 , this episode explores what most ambitious humans quietly struggle with: being too nice, avoiding conflict, and staying stuck in the “middle” instead of standing for something. Kayvan Nikjou — creator, cultural communicator and viral storyteller — breaks down: • the networking rules nobody teaches • cultural intelligence & how different countries communicate...

David Savage has interviewed 800+ people on his TechTalks podcast — but his guest strategy is the opposite of what most podcasters do. In this E108 snippet, he shares: • why “chance conversations” beat big-name hunting • how organic growth compounds over time • why fun > fame if you want true longevity Full conversation in Episode 108 of Perception Paradox.

Everyone wants a podcast. Very few know why they’re making one. In this episode of Perception Paradox , David Savage — Group Technology Evangelist at Nash Squared and host of the long-running Tech Talks podcast — shares what he’s learned from a decade behind the mic. We talk about starting a show as a sales hack, why simple always beats over-produced, how to choose guests, grow an audience without...

Africa isn’t “the next big thing” — it’s already happening. In this episode, Sidi Saccoh breaks down what most people get wrong about African entrepreneurship: the real market opportunities, the grit it takes to  scale, and why consistency beats everything. A sharp, honest conversation about startups, tech, and the future taking shape across the continent. Sidi Saccoh is an entrepreneur and ecosys...

In this Perception Paradox episode, Jurate Plungyte — entrepreneur, marketing strategist, and Co-Founder of Joiner App — joins Zivile Einikyte to explore the art of building businesses that feel right . From scaling tech startups to diving into the restaurant and wine world, Jūratė shares how she filters every decision through what she calls the “sacral yes” — that gut-driven sense of alignment th...