Under The Hood X Le Studio

Explore the dynamic world of social impact and innovation with Lauren Taylor, principal at REDF. Lauren shares insights into REDF’s approach to fostering community-driven businesses. Unpack key resources needed for social entrepreneurs, from impact measurement to the art of storytelling. Dive into the challenges, opportunities, and the importance of self-care in the transformative space of triple-...

Discover the evolving intersection of law and innovation with Emily, a skilled and experienced intellectual property (IP) lawyer. Unpack the essentials of IP for early-stage companies, ethical AI considerations, and the global challenges of content ownership. Explore how IP becomes a strategic ally in business growth as Emily highlights the dynamic creative nature of IP law and emphasizes its role...

Unlock the world of AI and entrepreneurship in this riveting episode. Join host Sophie Durey as she learns about Shomit Ghose, a seasoned Silicon Valley investor, entrepreneur, and AI enthusiast. Shomit shares profound insights about the transformative evolution of AI and navigating the ethical landscape. Discover the emerging trends in AI, learn about the essential qualities for entrepreneurs, an...

Explore the crossroads of design, AI, and human creativity with Tara Tan, Founding Partner at Strange Ventures. Gain insights into the impact of strategic design on market leadership, the ethical considerations of AI, and the dual nature of open source technology. Tara’s unique perspective offers a compelling journey through entrepreneurship, innovation, and the delicate balance between fostering...

Dive into the world of social entrepreneurship with Whitley O’Connor, Co-Director of Social Enterprise at Curbside Enterprises. Explore the differences between running for-profit and nonprofit ventures, learn from successful models, and navigate ethical considerations in social impact. Get insights into the challenges and triumphs of building and scaling social enterprises. Whitley shares the pers...

Join us in this episode as we dive into the fascinating journey of David Dietz, a conflict journalist turned social entrepreneur, and his insights into community building and global philanthropy. Host Karine Sarkissian explores David’s personal milestones, to navigating the realms running a sustainable business. Discover the transformative power of community, as David shares stories about Nexus, a...

In this episode, we sit down with Matias Gandulfo, co-founder of Bay Padel, as he shares his incredible journey from engineer and soccer player to entrepreneur. Matias discusses his background, including his experiences prior to coming to the United States, and how a personal connection to Padel inspired the creation of Bay Padel. We delve into the challenges and triumphs they've encountered a...

Join us in the latest episode of Under the Hood X Le Studio as Karine Sarkissian interviews Aditi Maliwal, Partner at Upfront Ventures. Aditi shares her incredible journey into the world of venture capital, along with captivating investing stories and her insights into current venture funding trends. Discover what it takes to thrive in the world of investment and entrepreneurship. Listen now!

In our latest episode, Sophie Durey engages in a compelling conversation with Tximista Lizarazu, CEO & Co-Founder at Fraîche. Tune in as they delve into Tximista's background and the journey that led to the creation of Fraîche in New York. Discover how sustainability emerged as the driving force behind Fraîche and the pillars that propel their impactful mission. Don't miss the inspirin...

Dive into a special episode of 'Under the Hood X Le Studio' as we flip the script and bring back one of our early guests, Hrag Sarkissian, Founding Partner at Tamar Capital and Co-founder & CEO at eSkootr Championship (eSC), to take the interviewer's seat. In this unique opportunity, Hrag, who also happens to be the brother of our co-founder Karine Sarkissian, delves into her fasci...

Dive into the fascinating journey of Le Studio's co-founder, Sophie Durey, in this special episode of "Under The Hood X Le Studio." In an inspiring swap of seats, previous guest Brigit Blote takes on the role of host to uncover Sophie's remarkable path from her beginnings to her current roles at Tamar Capital and Le Studio. Join us as we explore Sophie's transition from a pas...

Join host Sophie Durey in an enlightening episode of Under the Hood X Le Studio as she engages in a captivating conversation with Brigit Blote, the CEO and co-founder of Fomeno. Explore the origins of Fomeno, its deep-rooted commitment to sustainability, and its unexpected growth through viral TikTok videos. Gain insights into Fomeno's marketing strategy, their foray into AI, and the challenge...

Join Karine Sarkissian in the latest episode of "Under the Hood X Le Studio" as she sits down with the incredible guest, Lopa Desai, to delve into captivating discussions on career shifts, human-centered design, and the significance of collaboration and partnership.  Lopa shares her personal journey of transitioning from the world of design to investing, offering valuable insights and ad...

Join our host Karine Sarkissian on the latest episode of Under The Hood X Le Studio Podcast as she engages in an enlightening conversation with Thomas Knowles, Partner at Gratitude Railroad. They dive deep into topics such as work-life balance, Thomas's professional journey leading him to Gratitude Railroad, and the distinctions between traditional venture capital and impact-oriented VC. Get i...

In the latest episode of Under the Hood X Le Studio Podcast, our host Sophie Durey engages in an inspiring conversation with Michael Robinov, the Co-Founder & CEO at Farm To People. Join them as they delve into the fascinating journey behind this innovative food business and explore the values that drive its success. Michael shares his personal experiences that ignited his passion for sustaina...

In this Under The Hood X Le Studio episode, host Karine Sarkissian chats with Ibrahim AlHusseini, Managing Partner at FullCycle. Ibrahim shares his background, impact investing journey, and views on climate change. He talks about FullCycle's efforts to create bridges in the sustainability and impact investing world and the importance of education and awareness. The discussion also covers the t...

Are you looking for inspiration and insights into cross-culture midset and VC? Look no further! Tune in to the latest episode of our podcast, where host Karine Sarkissian sits down with Chris Shen, co-founder of Revere VC. Together, they explore the benefits of learning from other cultures to improve self-awareness and people skills and the exciting potential of democratizing VC through Revere&#39...

Welcome to the latest episode of our podcast, where we invite you to join host Sophie Durey as she sits down with Lori Van Dam, CEO of the Hult Prize, for an insightful and inspiring conversation. In this episode, Lori shares her incredible journey in the non-profit space and provides a unique perspective on the future of entrepreneurship. Listeners will gain valuable insights into the power of en...

We are thrilled to release our latest podcast episode featuring an inspiring conversation with Jack McNamara, former professional hockey player turned founder, and our host Sophie Durey. During the episode, Jack shared his unique journey from the world of sports to entrepreneurship and how his experience in hockey taught him valuable lessons that he has been able to transfer into building his comp...

Alex West Steinman and Bethany Iverson, Co-founders of The Coven. During our latest episode, Alex and Bethany had a wonderful conversation with Sophie. They shared some of the unexpected challenges The Coven had faced with the pandemic, and how they overcame social distancing as a business and also as a team. Furthermore, they tell us about some of the key learnings they collected during their jou...

Christina Andreou, Head of Global Sustainability at o9 Solutions tells Sophie about how she came into the Sustainability space. What are some of the challenges she faced building an internal Social Impact team at O9 Solutions, her experience combining the Design Thinking methodology with sustainability, and some other topics she likes. 

Our Third and final Le Studio Reacts is Live! Karine and Sophie look back at the three interviews of this series on fundraising and chat about their own experience as investors. 

Shahan Sarkissian, our last guest for the Fundraising series. In this episode, Karine Sarkissian chats with her brother Shahan, Founding Partner at Tamar Capital, Co-founder at Tioopo Capital. Shahan shares his journey from an engineer to a fund manager. He has a very unique perspective on fundraising since he has been on both sides of the table. If you want to learn more about Tamar or Tioopo fol...

In this episode on fundraising, Sophie Durey chats with Jessica Karr, General Partner at Coyote Ventures. Jessica tells us about her personal and professional journey in becoming an impact investor and starting Coyote Ventures. She shares insights on the fundraising process from her investor’s perspective and she teaches us about the fundraising process for a fund. If you want to learn more about...

Our third season of Under The Hood X Le Studio is live! This time Sophie has the opportunity to chat with Manik Suri, Founder and CEO of  Therma , a technology startup whose mission is to help protect our food, health, and planet. Therma is one of Tamar Capital’s portfolio companies, and we are incredibly excited to share their success in this podcast. During this conversation, Manik shares w...