In this episode of The Bear Roars, Dan Caruso sits down with Dave Schaeffer, founder and CEO of Cogent Communications, to unpack one of the most fascinating and unorthodox careers in telecom.
Before launching Cogent, Schaeffer ran the second-largest taxicab company in Washington, D.C., built a real estate empire, and traded in spectrum—after entering college at age 12 and nearly completing a PhD as a teenager. Schaeffer shares the wild backstory behind his entrepreneurial path, including the strategic bets that helped him turn $1 million investments into multimillion-dollar exits long before he ever touched fiber.
Their conversation dives deep into the origins of Cogent and the six core principles that have guided its long-term success—from targeting a single product (internet access) to outmaneuvering larger players with laser focus and ruthless cost efficiency. Dan and Dave also talk about the dot-com crash, how Cogent scaled through downturns by acquiring distressed assets, and what it took to build one of the largest and most profitable IP networks in the world.
This episode is packed with sharp insight, telecom history, and lessons on what it really takes to think differently—and win.
Order Dan’s Book – Bandwidth: The Untold Story of Ambition, Deception, and Innovation that Shaped the Internet Age and Dot-Com Boom: dan-caruso.com/book
To nominate a founder or yourself as a future guest speaker, email: contact@loudbearproductions.com
