# What This Unlikely Deal Shows About New Austin | Max Cunningham (Sesh) & Jake Medwell (8VC)

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/austin-next/what-this-unlikely-deal-shows-about-new-austin-max-cunningham-sesh-jake-medwell-8vc
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/austin-next/what-this-unlikely-deal-shows-about-new-austin-max-cunningham-sesh-jake-medwell-8vc.md
Podcast: [Austin Next](https://stenobird.com/podcast/austin-next)
Published: 2026-07-16T12:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/5d7a0688
Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/5d7a0688/8b45a409.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/austin-next/episodes/what-this-unlikely-deal-shows-about-new-austin-max-cunningham-sesh-jake-medwell-8vc
Duration seconds: 3522

## Resource

Sesh looks like a consumer brand. 8VC looks like the last fund that would back it. That mismatch is the fastest way to see what Austin is becoming. Sesh founder Max Cunningham and 8VC's Jake Medwell start with the logic that makes the deal make sense. Sesh holds a legal moat most competitors can't cross for years, and it earns software-like margins on a physical product. From there the conversation opens into a bigger question about where ambitious companies belong, and why more of them are choosing a city that now draws the founders and families betting on that future. Agenda 00:00 What Sesh is 06:05 Why 8VC backed a nicotine company 10:44 Regulatory timing and the six-year door 16:37 Software margins and owning the factory 22:01 Who buys this and why the market is growing 29:27 Why some companies need SF and others do not 34:32 What Austin talent looks like now 42:10 The Elon spillover and the coming IPO wave 48:37 Raising kids in the AI age 55:07 Safety, schools, and what comes next Guest Links Sesh: Max Cunningham , Website , X , Instagram 8VC: Jake Medwell , Website , X ------------------- Austin Next Links: Website , X/Twitter , YouTube , LinkedIn Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

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