Venture Lab with Luis

Xavier grew up moving countries five times. That instability drilled into him one obsession: control your own destiny. That mission carried him from law school in Sydney, through three unicorns, Uber, Deliveroo, and Turo, to an encounter over rosé at the Cannes Film Festival. An Alice in Wonderland trailer created with AI was the lightning bolt that led him to co-found Wanda Studios, an AI-native...

Will grew up in a family of shipbuilders, naturalists, and war heroes, a family legacy that, drilled into him one simple principle: have a go, do something that helps people. That mission carried him from a poetry degree to a hedge fund, through a cancer diagnosis at 29, to become a deep tech founder and then deep tech investor with one obsession: swing the bat on something that actually matters....

Zeynep grew up in Turkey in an entrepreneurial family and from an early age absorbed their persistence, bias for action, and an understanding of what it really takes to build a business. That observation became her mission: not to start a company, but to be a partner to the founders. Her path to General Catalyst was not a straight line, investment banking, private equity at TA Associates, and a sp...

Bastian Larsen went from co-leading product strategy for a $10B hedge fund at BlackRock to building his own venture capital firm with zero VC experience. Learn how he: - Raised $25M from 65 LPs without a network. - Pitched a non-existent fund and closed deals. - Used persistence over credentials to break into VC. - Applied "Keep It Simple" to avoid years of overthinking. For aspiring VCs...

Tim Chong, founder and CEO of Yonder, reveals how he went from a Single room apartment in London during COVID lockdown to building one of Europe's fastest-growing consumer fintechs competing against billion-dollar incumbents like American Express, Visa, and Mastercard. We cover the hidden cost of the founder journey, surviving Silicon Valley Bank's collapse with £12M trapped, and why &quot...

Filip Dames, co-founder of Zalando and Managing Partner at Cherry Ventures (€500M fund), reveals how he went from opera singer to failed founder to scaling Europe's largest fashion marketplace to backing deep tech startups in fusion energy, AI, and robotics. We cover startup failure lessons, seed fundraising strategy, hiring mistakes founders make, and why Europe will build trillion-dollar com...

Mo Chahin, founder of Twain, reveals how he went from dropping out of university to raising millions from Sequoia before building a product and how he closed a full seed round in just 24 hours. We cover his journey from refugee roots to co-founding EatClever, fighting imposter syndrome, walking away from a million dollar startup, and finally building his life’s work with Twain. If you’re a founder...

Christian Nagel, co-founder of Earlybird Venture Capital, unpacks 28 years of European VC: how to build top-performing funds, pick founders when product isn’t enough, and why real VC “education” costs $50M. We cover Earlybird’s evolution from the dot-com crash to €2.5B AUM, category-defining exits, and a data-driven future of founder discovery and portfolio construction. If you’re a VC, operator,...

Ondrej Bartos, co-founder of Credo Ventures, shares what most VCs won’t say out loud: venture capital is broken. In this episode, he reveals why the industry lost its edge, how he built a fund against all odds in Eastern Europe, and what the rise of solo founders means for the future of investing. If you're a founder, aspiring VC, or builder who questions the status quo, this is a must-watch. In t...

Ophelia Brown, founder of Blossom Capital and former Index Ventures investor, reveals how she’s reshaping European venture capital with conviction-led investing and elite founder support. In this episode, she unpacks why the best VCs operate like founders, how to build a differentiated fund, and what most investors still get wrong about ambition in Europe. If you’re a VC, operator, or ambitious fo...

Sam Tidswell-Norrish, former private equity operator, shares how he’s rebuilding venture capital with value creation at the core. In this episode, he breaks down the future of VC, why the best founders are obsessed, and how community is the next edge in early-stage investing. If you are a VC, operator, or ambitious founder, you HAVE to watch this. In this episode, Sam shares:• Why the traditional...

Co-Created founder Oliver Yonchev, formerly co-founder of Flight Story with Steven Bartlett and ex-Managing Director at Social Chain, shares how AI is disrupting venture capital, why creative founders will thrive, and the future of startup building. A must-watch for VCs, operators, and early-stage founders. In this episode he shares: • Why the traditional VC model is broken • The #1 trait of succe...

Salomon Aiach is an investor and founder who’s reshaping what it means to break into venture capital. After working at Goldman Sachs and leading startup partnerships at Facebook, Salomon co-founded Origins Fund alongside World Cup winner Blaise Matuidi and Ilan Abehassera. Together, they’ve built one of Europe’s most unique early-stage funds, backed by athletes and celebrities, and focused on supp...

Saul Klein is a husband, father, founder, operator, and one of the most influential investors in European tech. After co-founding LoveFilm (acquired by Amazon), Klein established himself as a cornerstone of the European tech ecosystem by co-founding Local Globe, one of Europe's most successful early-stage venture funds, alongside his father Robin Klein. Local Globe's impressive portfolio includes...

Erik Huberman is an entrepreneur, investor, and bestselling author who bootstrapped his marketing company, Hawke Media, to over $150M. In this conversation, he gives you the secrets and the exact framework behind his success.