Tacos and Tech Podcast

In this episode of Tacos & Tech , Neal Bloom sits down with Troy Helming , founder and CEO of EarthGrid , to explore one of the most ambitious infrastructure plays of our time: building an underground super grid. Troy shares how a chance conversation about Navy SEAL plasma cutters sparked the idea for plasma-based tunnel boring, and how EarthGrid is now using that technology to dramatically reduce...

In the span of days, the “AI news cycle” moved again: OpenClaw has been acquired. Craig Lauer (longtime Qualcomm builder turned angel investor), Ross Young (CEO of Clinically AI, building tools for behavioral health), and Greg Moser (CEO of ShipCalm) break down what they’re seeing… then Greg takes it from theory to practice with a real demo of how he’s deployed autonomous agents inside his company...

Listen & subscribe on Apple , Spotify , YouTube . Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News! I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners . My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier , journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter. Before we dive in, w...

Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News! I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners . My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier , journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter. Before we dive in, we wanted to thank and ask our listeners to help us...

New podcast series within Tacos and Tech: AI Builders Roundtable! Neal sits down with Craig Lauer and Ross Young on a day both Anthropic and OpenAI dropped major releases to talk about what it actually looks like to build with AI right now. Ross walks through how his team at Clinically AI built an internal AI operating system using Claude Co-work - from voice-interviewing department heads to captu...

Episode Summary In this episode of Tacos & Tech , Neal Bloom sits down with Juanny Romero , founder and CEO of Mothership Coffee Roasters , for a raw and deeply human conversation about building businesses rooted in belonging—not hustle. Juanny shares her journey from growing up in Queens, leaving New York after 9/11 in search of agency, opening her first café in Las Vegas with no business plan du...

Listen & subscribe on Apple , Spotify , YouTube . Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News! I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners . My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier , journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter. Before we dive in, w...

In this episode of Tacos & Tech , Neal Bloom sits down with Cathy Pucher , Executive Director of Entrepreneurship Initiatives at San Diego State University , to trace the roots and the future of San Diego’s startup and early-stage investing ecosystem. From Cathy’s early career in semiconductor sales at Texas Instruments and front-row seat to Qualcomm’s rise, to founding the EvoNexus startup incuba...

Listen & subscribe on Apple , Spotify , YouTube . Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News! I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners . My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier , journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter. Before we dive in, w...

A short audio reflection I recorded after noticing where momentum actually comes from. It’s not from more events. It’s from proximity, repetition, and trust. 🎧 On The Radar — Episode 5 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of Tacos & Tech , Neal Bloom sits down with longtime friend, founder, and self-described “Maine Melon,” Jared Ruth , founder of Ripcurrent . What starts as a walk down memory lane through San Diego’s early startup ecosystem turns into a wide-ranging conversation about entrepreneurship, marketing, AI, and the human moments technology should protect - not replace. Jared shares his jo...

A short audio reflection I recorded after noticing a familiar pattern while reading rock band autobiographies over the holidays. It’s not about music. It’s about how talent develops -slowly, quietly, over time. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

Listen & subscribe on Apple , Spotify , YouTube . Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News! I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners and the Tacos and Tech Podcast . My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier , journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his n...

In this episode of Tacos & Tech , Neal Bloom sits down with Eric Aguilar , co-founder and CEO of Omnitron Sensors , to unpack the deep tech powering the next wave of robotics, autonomous systems, and AI infrastructure. From Eric’s early days working on defense sensors and his journey through Google and Tesla, to building one of the most powerful MEMS-based micro-machines on the market, this conver...

I’ve been noticing something lately about what happens after meetings - and what changes when the work doesn’t stall anymore. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe

In this live session from a recent SDAC Knowledge & Network Event hosted at Mintz Law’s office, investor Neal Bloom and corporate attorney Sebastian Lucier pull back the curtain on what due diligence really means for early-stage startup investing. Whether you’re a founder preparing to fundraise or an aspiring angel investor doing your first deal, this session is packed with sharp insights and war...

Listen & subscribe on Apple , Spotify , YouTube . Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News! I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners . My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier , journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter. Before we dive in, w...

A short audio reflection on something I’ve been noticing about willpower - and what happens when it quietly stops being the thing that matters. This episode isn’t about discipline. It’s about what changes when friction is removed instead of resisted. That’s what’s on my radar. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risi...

A short audio reflection on something I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since my first ride in a Waymo. Not because the technology was impressive - but because of what happened to my attention once I stopped needing to be alert. This episode isn’t about autonomy. It’s about what changes when vigilance disappears. That’s what’s on my radar. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discus...

In this special episode, we bring you a practical, high-context walkthrough of early-stage investing hosted by the San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC) . With insights from the Pillsbury ECVC legal team and SDAC organizers, this session offers angel investors - both new and experienced - a clear breakdown of key financing instruments like SAFEs, convertible notes, and priced equity rounds. We cover t...

In this episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, host Neal Bloom sits down with Jared Tangney , co-founder and CTO of Biolinq . From their early EvoNexus days to today’s FDA clearance, Jared walks us through the incredible journey of Biolinq - how it pivoted from sweat-sensing tattoos to a revolutionary microneedle platform that can measure glucose, lactate, and even cortisol with no blood and no pain...

In this special live episode of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, we take you inside the latest Burbank Tech Talk event, recorded at Tailored Space in the heart of the Media Capital of the World. This panel brought together creators, founders, and technologists to explore the fast-shifting landscape of entertainment, gaming, and AI—and what it means for the future of storytelling, monetization, and creati...

SDSU ZIP Fall 2025 Bootcamp: Building Fast, Building Smart In this special edition of the Tacos & Tech Podcast, we dive into the action-packed day that was the SDSU ZIP Launchpad Fall 2025 Startup Bootcamp. Designed to push student founders from idea to impact in just four hours, the students go from brand new ideas on a whiteboard, using AI co-pilots to get quick customer development simulations,...

In this special edition of the Tacos & Tech Podcast , we recorded live from Snapdragon Stadium during the 2025 Top Tech Awards San Diego . We set up shop right on the concourse and captured conversations with the builders, technologists, students, and community leaders shaping the region’s innovation economy. From cybersecurity to community impact, from AI in education to employee scheduling power...

Listen & subscribe on Apple , Spotify , YouTube , and other platforms. Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News! I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners and the Tacos and Tech Podcast . My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier , journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds,...