EP 144: Jeffrey Katzenberg & Sujay Jaswa (WndrCo) on What Startup Founders Can Steal From Hollywood

Logan sits down with Jeffrey Katzenberg, Hollywood legend and co-founder of DreamWorks, and Sujay Jaswa, former CFO of Dropbox - together, the duo behind WndrCo. They talk about building enduring companies, bridging tech and media, and what makes a great CEO partnership. The conversation also touches on storytelling as a business superpower and lessons from scaling at different stages. Whether you're a founder or a media nerd, there’s something here for you.

(00:00) Intro
(04:26) The Genesis of the Partnership
(13:06) Building and Investing in Companies
(20:27) The Team and Their Roles
(26:52) Decision-Making Process
(33:25) Balancing Dreams and Skepticism
(35:06) The Dynamics of Partnerships
(37:25) Transitioning to Tech
(38:45) Cultural Differences in Industries
(41:26) The Value of Failure and Success
(44:37) Excitement in Emerging Technologies
(48:23) The Venture Capital Game
(56:42) The Dropbox Talent Network
(01:01:20) AI's Impact on Media and Creativity
(01:06:18) Transitioning to CG Animation at DreamWorks
(01:08:39) Embracing Change in the Intelligence Revolution
(01:11:52) The Role of AI in Enhancing Productivity
(01:14:11) Building a Consumer Cybersecurity Business
(01:23:49) The Mission to Protect Children Online
(01:35:17) Reflections on Partnership and Innovation

Executive Producer: Rashad Assir

Producer: Leah Clapper

Mixing and editing: Justin Hrabovsky

Check out Unsupervised Learning, Redpoint's AI Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@UCUl-s_Vp-Kkk_XVyDylNwLA

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About the Show

Logan Bartlett is a Software Investor at Redpoint Ventures - a Silicon Valley-based VC with $6B AUM and investments in Snowflake, DraftKings, Twilio, and Netflix. In each episode, Logan goes behind the scenes with world-class entrepreneurs and investors. If you're interested in the real inside baseball of tech, entrepreneurship, and start-up investing, tune in every Friday for new episodes.