{"podcast":{"title":"Fund/Build/Scale","slug":"fund-build-scale-6723964","podcast_index_feed_id":6723964,"rss_url":"https://feed.podbean.com/fundbuildscale/feed.xml","website_url":"https://fundbuildscale.substack.com","image_url":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/17670315/new_FBS_1400_x_1400_tile_ggrhbt.jpg","author":"Walter Thompson","episode_count":120,"summary":"After working for years in early-stage startups and as a journalist, here are three hard truths I’ve learned: 1. Success in Silicon Valley hinges on connections, hard work and luck. 2. Startups often fail because founders lack fundamental business knowledge. 3. Real, actionable advice comes from those who’ve actually done it. There’s no such thing as “founder DNA.” If you’re willing to take on risk and invest years of your life in something that has maybe a 10% chance of paying off — less if you’re a woman or person of color — you can be a startup founder. Here’s why I founded Fund/Build/Scale: 1. To help founders make fewer mistakes. 2. To share successful strategies that can accelerate your go-to-market journey. 3. To inspire more people to see themselves as potential founders. There’s a lot of overlooked talent out there, and we are missing out. This podcast is for anyone who’s interested in learning the basic skills required to launch a startup, secure initial funding and transform an idea into a sustainable business. I’m talking to guests about everything: finding a co-founder, conducting customer discovery, recruiting early employees, developing a PLG strategy, fundraising w…","last_synced_at":"2026-07-07T10:21:25.778921+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/fund-build-scale-6723964"},"episode":{"title":"Why Most Startups Shouldn't Raise Money (Even If They Can)","slug":"why-most-startups-shouldn-t-raise-money-even-if-they-can","published_at":"2026-07-06T22:01:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/fund-build-scale-6723964/why-most-startups-shouldn-t-raise-money-even-if-they-can","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/fund-build-scale-6723964","url":"https://fundbuildscale.podbean.com/e/why-most-startups-shouldnt-raise-money-even-if-they-can/","audio_url":"https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/mkqx5x6vf6ndyepk/Most_Startups_Shouldn_t_Raise_Money_Even_If_They_Can_bvf12.mp3","summary":"Before you raise a Series A, ask whether you should. Ryan Ziegler, General Partner at Edison Partners, explains customer validation, investor fit, and the risks of scaling too soon.","meta_description":"Before you raise a Series A, ask whether you should. Ryan Ziegler, General Partner at Edison Partners, explains customer validation, investor fit, and the…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2729,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/fund-build-scale-6723964/episodes/why-most-startups-shouldn-t-raise-money-even-if-they-can/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/fund-build-scale-6723964/why-most-startups-shouldn-t-raise-money-even-if-they-can.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}