OVNI's

In this episode of OVNIs, Rebecca Miller welcomes Philip Stehlik, entrepreneur and long-time builder in the tech ecosystem. Originally from Germany, Philip moved to San Francisco at just 21, discovering Silicon Valley in the early 2000s and immersing himself in the culture of building companies from the ground up. From engineering and project management to entrepreneurship, he shares how that early exposure shaped his mindset and opened a world of possibilities around creating and scaling ideas.
Rebecca and Philip explore the realities behind building startups and investment vehicles, including their own collaboration on launching a fund. The conversation dives into the founder journey, the dynamics of Silicon Valley, and the mindset required to turn ideas into real companies. A thoughtful discussion for founders, operators, and anyone curious about what it truly means to be a builder in the tech world.

[00:00:00] Introduction — Meet Philip Stehlik
[00:02:24] From Germany to Silicon Valley at 21
[00:04:53] Discovering the “Builder” Culture in Silicon Valley
[00:07:36] Early Startup Experiences in the 2000s Tech Scene
[00:10:10] Learning Entrepreneurship Outside Traditional Education
[00:12:29] Escaping the System to Build Your Own Path
[00:15:00] The Founder Mindset: Creating Things from Scratch
[00:17:20] When Startups Are Too Early for the Market
[00:19:59] Building in Enterprise Fintech
[00:22:20] The Reality of Startup Iteration and Failure
[00:24:55] Becoming an Angel Investor — Backing 175+ Startups
[00:27:32] What Philip Looks for in Founders
[00:30:09] Silicon Valley vs the European Startup Ecosystem
[00:32:36] The Importance of Timing in Startups
[00:34:58] Lessons from Building and Scaling Companies
[00:37:42] The Evolution of Venture Capital and Angel Investing
[00:39:57] Building Communities and Founder Networks
[00:42:36] The Future of Startups in the AI Era
[00:45:05] Advice for Founders Starting Today
[00:47:24] Final Thoughts — Staying Curious and Building the Future

📌 Disclaimer – Financial Information & Investment
The content shared in this podcast (including episodes, excerpts, descriptions, associated posts, and YouTube videos) is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute:
investment advice,
a recommendation to buy or sell financial instruments,
portfolio management advisory services,
an offer of financial securities or a solicitation to acquire any financial instrument,
banking or financial solicitation within the meaning of Articles L.341-1 et seq. of the French Monetary and Financial Code.
This podcast is not an investment services provider (ISP) nor a financial investment advisor (FIA) within the meaning of French and European regulations (AMF / MiFID II).

📘 No Guarantee – Financial Risks
The information discussed reflects the personal opinions of the speakers, based on their professional experience.
It may be incomplete, subject to change, or not applicable to your personal situation.
All investments involve risks of partial or total loss, particularly in the case of private investments, technology assets, or venture capital transactions.
Past performance is not indicative of future results.

👤 Listener Responsibility
Each listener / viewer remains solely responsible for their investment decisions.
Before making any decision, it is strongly recommended to consult:
a licensed professional financial advisor,
an investment services provider, or
a financial investment advisor (FIA) registered with ORIAS.
🔒 Potential Conflicts of Interest
The speakers may be involved in companies, investment funds, or transactions mentioned.
No statement should be interpreted as a commitment or a guarantee of performance.

Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.

In this episode of OVNIs Podcast, Matthieu Stefani sits down with Emily Eisenblätter to explore how OVNI is expanding beyond France and building a truly pan-European investment strategy. From opening their first office in Berlin to navigating cultural nuances across ecosystems, Emily shares why being “on the ground” is essential to source the best deals, build trust with founders, and create meaningful relationships with co-investors across Europe.
The conversation dives deeper into what makes OVNI different: a hands-on, value-first approach, strong operator DNA, and a growing international presence—from Germany to San Francisco. Emily also reflects on her background in deep tech, the evolution of European startup hubs, and the opportunities (and challenges) of scaling across fragmented markets. A sharp, insightful exchange on ambition, ecosystem dynamics, and what it takes to win the best deals in today’s venture landscape.

00:00 – Introduction
00:46 – Opening OVNI’s first office in Berlin
02:01 – Why being “on the ground” matters for investing
03:00 – Do you need local talent to win in a market?
04:24 – Emily’s role at OVNI: covering all non-French deals
05:38 – OVNI’s unfair advantage in France 🇫🇷
06:27 – Expanding OVNI’s brand across Europe
07:45 – How do you recruit the best people in VC?
08:49 – Building a pan-European presence (events, network, deals)
10:04 – Why having a US office changes everything 🇺🇸
11:24 – How OVNI wins deals against bigger funds
12:08 – “Give first” strategy: creating value before investing
13:12 – The power of operator VCs vs traditional investors
15:30 – SaaS boom, bust & investment lessons
16:48 – Emily’s background in deep tech & machine learning
19:46 – Missed deals & anti-portfolio regrets
20:24 – The craziest startups: from lab-grown meat to space tech 🚀
23:06 – How deal flow really works at early stage
24:28 – Where are the hidden startup hubs in Germany? 🇩🇪
26:09 – Berlin vs Munich: where the real action is
27:27 – Is Europe too fragmented for startups?
28:16 – How Germans see the French tech ecosystem 🇫🇷
29:23 – Europe vs US: where should startups scale?
31:51 – Underrated startup ecosystems in Europe
33:43 – Why industry still matters for deep tech
35:36 – Working with corporates: opportunity or trap?
36:31 – Germany’s strengths & weaknesses (talent vs bureaucracy)
38:00 – Do corporates move fast enough for startups?
39:10 – Venture clienting: how big companies work with startups
40:15 – France vs Germany: cultural differences in business 🇫🇷🇩🇪
41:30 – Why Europe struggles with risk-taking
42:45 – Can Europe compete with the US in venture?
44:00 – Building conviction at early-stage investing
45:10 – How to evaluate founders with little data
46:20 – The importance of founder-market fit
47:30 – What makes a “great” founder today
48:40 – Speed vs depth: how VCs make decisions
49:50 – Portfolio strategy: why one winner changes everything
51:00 – Lessons from failed investments (“cadavers”)
52:10 – How to think about risk in venture capital
53:15 – Deep tech vs SaaS: where the future is going
54:20 – Europe’s biggest opportunity in tech right now
55:30 – What founders should expect from investors
56:40 – Emily’s personal motivations & long-term vision
57:30 – Final thoughts on building a pan-European VC
58:30 – Closing words & wrap-up

📌 Disclaimer – Financial Information & Investment
The content shared in this podcast (including episodes, excerpts, descriptions, associated posts, and YouTube videos) is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute:
investment advice,
a recommendation to buy or sell financial instruments,
portfolio management advisory services,
an offer of financial securities or a solicitation to acquire any financial instrument,
banking or financial solicitation within the meaning of Articles L.341-1 et seq. of the French Monetary and Financial Code.
This podcast is not an investment services provider (ISP) nor a financial investment advisor (FIA) within the meaning of French and European regulations (AMF / MiFID II).

📘 No Guarantee – Financial Risks
The information discussed reflects the personal opinions of the speakers, based on their professional experience.
It may be incomplete, subject to change, or not applicable to your personal situation.
All investments involve risks of partial or total loss, particularly in the case of private investments, technology assets, or venture capital transactions.
Past performance is not indicative of future results.

👤 Listener Responsibility
Each listener / viewer remains solely responsible for their investment decisions.
Before making any decision, it is strongly recommended to consult:
a licensed professional financial advisor,
an investment services provider, or
a financial investment advisor (FIA) registered with ORIAS.
🔒 Potential Conflicts of Interest
The speakers may be involved in companies, investment funds, or transactions mentioned.
No statement should be interpreted as a commitment or a guarantee of performance.

Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.

Dans cet épisode du OVNIs Podcast, enregistré à Berlin lors d’un off-site de l’équipe d’OVNI Capital, Thomas Renaudin reçoit Victoria Beck, investisseuse spécialisée en deep tech. Ensemble, ils explorent l’évolution récente de cet écosystème en Europe, en particulier les dynamiques entre la France et l’Allemagne, deux marchés proches mais aux cultures entrepreneuriales distinctes. Victoria partage son regard sur la montée en puissance de la deep tech depuis 2021 et sur la convergence progressive des fonds et des talents entre ces deux hubs technologiques majeurs.
Au fil de la conversation, Victoria revient également sur son parcours international — entre l’Allemagne, la France, Israël et Berlin — et sur son expérience chez Earlybird, où elle s’est concentrée sur les investissements deep tech et le marché français. L’épisode offre ainsi un éclairage précieux sur les différences culturelles dans l’investissement, la construction des écosystèmes technologiques européens et les opportunités émergentes pour les fondateurs et les investisseurs.

[00:00:00] Introduction et enregistrement à Berlin avec l’équipe OVNI
[00:01:18] Le parcours international de Victoria Beck
[00:03:05] Pourquoi la Deep Tech est devenue un sujet majeur depuis 2021
[00:06:12] Différences entre les écosystèmes français et allemand
[00:09:48] Comment les fonds européens évaluent les startups Deep Tech
[00:13:27] Les qualités que Victoria recherche chez les fondateurs
[00:17:02] La convergence des écosystèmes tech en Europe
[00:20:41] Berlin comme hub pour startups et investisseurs
[00:24:08] Les grandes opportunités pour la Deep Tech européenne
[00:27:43] Conseils aux fondateurs et conclusion

📌 Disclaimer – Financial Information & Investment
The content shared in this podcast (including episodes, excerpts, descriptions, associated posts, and YouTube videos) is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute:
investment advice,
a recommendation to buy or sell financial instruments,
portfolio management advisory services,
an offer of financial securities or a solicitation to acquire any financial instrument,
banking or financial solicitation within the meaning of Articles L.341-1 et seq. of the French Monetary and Financial Code.
This podcast is not an investment services provider (ISP) nor a financial investment advisor (FIA) within the meaning of French and European regulations (AMF / MiFID II).

📘 No Guarantee – Financial Risks
The information discussed reflects the personal opinions of the speakers, based on their professional experience.
It may be incomplete, subject to change, or not applicable to your personal situation.
All investments involve risks of partial or total loss, particularly in the case of private investments, technology assets, or venture capital transactions.
Past performance is not indicative of future results.

👤 Listener Responsibility
Each listener / viewer remains solely responsible for their investment decisions.
Before making any decision, it is strongly recommended to consult:
a licensed professional financial advisor,
an investment services provider, or
a financial investment advisor (FIA) registered with ORIAS.
🔒 Potential Conflicts of Interest
The speakers may be involved in companies, investment funds, or transactions mentioned.
No statement should be interpreted as a commitment or a guarantee of performance.

Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.

⁠Some people change your trajectory — Bruce Falck changed mine.
⁠In 2019, he greenlit the acquisition of my startup by Twitter.
A few years and one tech rollercoaster later, I sat down with Bruce in San Francisco to record Episode 1 of the OVNI Podcast.
⁠Bruce’s story is wild:
⁠➤ Born in Johannesburg.
⁠➤ Moved to the US without a visa.
⁠➤ Waited tables.
⁠➤ Built a startup from scratch.
⁠➤ Led a $5B ads business at Twitter.
⁠➤ Got fired the week Elon took over.
⁠And now — he's building again.
⁠A startup in the energy mapping space. At 54. With 3 kids. With humility and fire.
⁠We talked about ego death, reinvention, customer obsession, and why being an immigrant made him a better founder.
This episode is personal. Raw. And full of lessons for anyone thinking of starting over — again.
⁠🎧 Listen to Episode 1 here → I know I got a lot out of this hour with Bruce, I can’t wait to hear what your thoughts of this conversation.
#founderstories #resilience #siliconvalley #OVNIPodcast #BruceFalck #exitandstartagain

[00:00:00]: Introduction
[00:00:57]: Bruce Falck's early years
[00:02:10]: Arrival in San Francisco and early jobs
[00:04:42]: Transition from corporate to dot-com projects
[00:07:36]: Learning new tools and getting hands-on
[00:08:10]: Joining Google and initial experiences
[00:11:50]: Transitioning from Google to BrightRoll
[00:12:04]: Challenges of immigration and visa journey
[00:13:50]: Yahoo acquisition and the role of danger
[00:15:01]: Joining Turn and handling leadership challenges
[00:16:19]: Transition from a large company to a startup
[00:20:01]: Becoming a professional CEO and its challenges
[00:22:01]: The competitive landscape with The Trade Desk
[00:24:04]: Joining Twitter and the role of GM
[00:28:18]: Initial excitement about Elon Musk's interest in Twitter
[00:29:02]: Acquisition of Aiden AI and the process
[00:32:54]: The media attention and personal impact
[00:33:03]: Attempting to lead Twitter through chaos
[00:35:54]: The acquisition by Elon Musk and its aftermath
[00:37:00]: Starting Halcyon and the startup journey
[00:39:07]: The decision to start a company and initial steps
[00:41:27]: The founding of Halcyon and its focus
[00:43:34]: The challenge of building a startup
[00:45:32]: Overcoming self-doubt and failure
[00:46:19]: Leadership style and delegation
[00:47:14]: The role of a founder in customer understanding
[00:47:53]: Building as an antidote to cynicism
[00:48:41]: Conclusion

Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.

In this episode of the OVNIs Podcast, Augustin Sayer sits down with Andrew Côté - engineering physicist, deep tech thinker, and founder of Hyperstition - for a wide-ranging conversation at the frontier of science and entrepreneurship. From his unconventional path from anthropology to engineering physics, Andrew retraces his journey through particle accelerators, nuclear fusion startups, infectious disease research during COVID, and early experiments with large language models - long before ChatGPT became mainstream.
The discussion dives deep into energy abundance, nuclear power, superconductors, venture capital, and the cultural rise of deep tech in the U.S. Andrew shares his philosophy on building technology that meaningfully advances civilization - arguing that energy, physics, and fundamental engineering breakthroughs form the true foundation of economic prosperity. A bold and intellectually electric episode about ambition, failure, resilience, and the pursuit of technologies indistinguishable from magic.

[00:00:00] Introduction — Who is Andrew Côté?
[00:00:22] From Anthropology to Engineering Physics
[00:01:54] Falling in Love with Cosmology & Particle Physics
[00:02:15] Choosing Engineering Physics Over the Safe Path
[00:03:05] Deep Tech Before It Was Trendy (2014 Context)
[00:04:28] Turning Down Academia to Start a Company
[00:05:33] First Startup Attempt — Computational Imaging & Light Field Displays
[00:07:26] Tech Risk & Hardware Fundraising Challenges
[00:08:44] Pivoting & Early Entrepreneurial Experiments
[00:09:31] The Move to San Francisco
[00:09:50] Chan Zuckerberg Biohub & Bioengineering During COVID
[00:11:04] Spinning Out an Early LLM Startup (Pre-ChatGPT)
[00:12:23] Philosophy: Doing What Only You Can Do
[00:15:00] Intrapreneurship Inside a Nonprofit
[00:17:07] LLMs for Drug Discovery — Too Early?
[00:18:50] Startup Failure & Moving Back to Canada
[00:19:36] Returning to Fusion Engineering
[00:20:19] Fusion vs Quantum Computing — What Matters Most?
[00:21:26] Why Energy Abundance Changes Civilization
[00:22:45] Nuclear Energy, France vs Germany
[00:25:15] Energy Policy & Industrial Competitiveness
[00:26:26] Back to Fusion — The Dream Job at Princeton
[00:27:33] Writing Online & Building a Deep Tech Audience
[00:27:51] The LK99 Superconductor Saga
[00:28:32] Going Viral on Tech Twitter
[00:29:04] Venture Capital Interest & New Opportunities
[00:32:43] What Is Deep Tech Really?
[00:33:05] Underwriting Technical Risk
[00:34:00] Founders vs Investors in Deep Tech
[00:36:30] The Origin of Deep Tech Week
[00:39:00] Building a Cultural Movement Around Engineering
[00:42:30] Hyperstition — Technology Indistinguishable from Magic
[00:45:00] Are We Entering a U.S. Deep Tech Renaissance?

📌 Disclaimer – Financial Information & Investment
The content shared in this podcast (including episodes, excerpts, descriptions, associated posts, and YouTube videos) is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute:
investment advice,
a recommendation to buy or sell financial instruments,
portfolio management advisory services,
an offer of financial securities or a solicitation to acquire any financial instrument,
banking or financial solicitation within the meaning of Articles L.341-1 et seq. of the French Monetary and Financial Code.
This podcast is not an investment services provider (ISP) nor a financial investment advisor (FIA) within the meaning of French and European regulations (AMF / MiFID II).

📘 No Guarantee – Financial Risks
The information discussed reflects the personal opinions of the speakers, based on their professional experience.
It may be incomplete, subject to change, or not applicable to your personal situation.
All investments involve risks of partial or total loss, particularly in the case of private investments, technology assets, or venture capital transactions.
Past performance is not indicative of future results.

👤 Listener Responsibility
Each listener / viewer remains solely responsible for their investment decisions.
Before making any decision, it is strongly recommended to consult:
a licensed professional financial advisor,
an investment services provider, or
a financial investment advisor (FIA) registered with ORIAS.
🔒 Potential Conflicts of Interest
The speakers may be involved in companies, investment funds, or transactions mentioned.
No statement should be interpreted as a commitment or a guarantee of performance.

Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.