Kyriakos is joined by Ethan Kurzweil, a founding partner at Chemistry and former managing partner at Bessemer Venture Partners.
He’s led early investments in Twitch, Twilio, Intercom, and PagerDuty — and in this conversation, he shares what separates good founders from iconic ones.
In this episode, we discuss:
- Why the best founders are like cult leaders
- What makes a startup idea truly contrarian
- How to build a focused, high-conviction VC fund
- The future of AI-native companiesWhether you’re raising, investing, or building
— This is a must-listen for anyone serious about startups.
Follow Ethan on X: https://twitter.com/@ethankurz
Follow Kyriakos on X: https://twitter.com/@kyriakosel
Chemistry VC: @chemistry_fund | [https://chemistry.vc](https://chemistry.vc/)
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - Intro
02:10 - What Makes a Cult-Like Founder
05:20 - Why the Best Startups Start in SF
08:30 - The Origins of Ethan & Chemistry VC
10:20 - How He Spotted Twilio Early
13:45 - What Great Founders Have in Common
18:00 - Contrarian vs. Consensus Thinking
21:00 - Lessons from Bessemer + Transition to Chemistry
26:00 - Why Chemistry Focuses Only on Early Stage
30:30 - Building a High-Conviction VC Fund
35:00 - What Chemistry Invests In
38:00 - How to Build a Durable AI Company
43:00 - Why AI Will Reshape Healthcare First
47:10 - Ethan’s First Healthtech Investment
50:00 - Building Strong Startup Culture
52:00 - Advice for Founders Moving to SF
54:40 - Ethan’s 50-Year Future Vision
58:00 - The Future of Creativity & Learning
1:01:00 - Are Elite Universities Still Worth It?
1:03:00 - How to Reach Ethan & Final Words
