Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal, co-hosts of the popular business and technology podcast Acquired, are raising a new fund to invest in startups. The fund was revealed through a new SEC filing recently spotted by GeekWire. The hosts already do personal investing in companies they know from their work on the podcast, and now they are creating a more formal mechanism to do so. Gilbert explained that the fund is a vehicle with a small set of LPs that allows them to fully utilize the allocations offered to them. Both hosts have experience in the venture capital world, having worked at Madrona in Seattle when they started Acquired as a side hobby in 2015, which has now become one of the leading technology and business podcasts with over 600,000 monthly listeners.
Despite their success, Gilbert and Rosenthal are focused on producing the best episodes for Acquired and are not looking to build a new venture capital firm at this time. However, they have already invested in startups they became familiar with through the podcast, such as Vanta, Modern Treasury, and Go1. The podcast offers in-depth stories and strategies of companies, with episodes typically lasting three to four hours. Popular episodes have analyzed companies like Nike, Costco, and LVMH, and have featured guests including NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, and the late Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway. Acquired generates revenue from sponsors and subscribers.
Ben Gilbert recently transitioned to a new role at Pioneer Square Labs, the Seattle startup studio he helped launch in 2015, to focus more time on Acquired. David Rosenthal is still an investor at San Francisco-based Kindergarten Ventures. Both hosts have also taken on the additional roles of being fathers, each welcoming a child into the world this year. They are fortunate that the podcast often gives them unique access to participate in investment rounds as the companies they feature on Acquired scale. Gilbert described the latest episode, a deep dive on Microsoft, as the “Super Bowl of Acquired,” showcasing the show’s dedication to providing insightful and comprehensive content for their listeners.
The hosts are being intentional about not building a new venture capital firm to maintain their focus on producing quality episodes for Acquired. They have been able to invest in startups through the podcast, leveraging their unique access to opportunities as the companies they feature grow. Acquired has become one of the top technology shows on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, with a growing listener base. The podcast delves into the stories and strategies of various companies, with long-form episodes that offer detailed analyses and insights. Gilbert and Rosenthal are looking to formalize their investments through the new fund, allowing them to further explore opportunities in the startup world while continuing to produce engaging content for their audience.
