The Ben & Marc Show

a16z cofounders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz join a16z general partner Erik Torenberg and Not Boring founder Packy McCormick for a conversation on how the media and information ecosystem has changed over the past decade. The discussion breaks down the shift toward a more open and decentralized speech environment, the rise of writer- and creator-led platforms like Substack, and the erosion of centralized media gatekeepers. Marc and Ben also tie these dynamics to their investing worldview, outlining how supply-driven markets, major technological step changes, and reputation-driven venture platforms shape outcomes in the AI era.
Timecodes:
00:00  Introduction
00:46  How the media ecosystem is changing
4:20  Why a16z invested in Substack
6:28  Supply-driven markets and new content creation
8:07  Why writers felt trapped by media companies
10:09  Databricks and the 10x cloud multiplier
13:58  Long-form podcasting proves demand
15:40  What the new fund signals about the future
16:24  AI as a universal problem solver
18:49  Why market sizing is broken
20:45  Go-to-market, policy, and platform power
22:37  Turning inventors into confident CEOs
25:58  Borrowing power to scale faster
27:29  Building dreamers, not killing dreams
30:46  Reputation as a core competitive advantage
35:57  Taking arrows in public
38:56  Avoiding big company failure modes
40:39  Autonomous teams inside a16z
41:54  Venture capital as the last job
46:01  Why intangibles matter more than ever
48:17  Original thinkers with charisma
50:06  Why Zoomers are different
Resources: 
Follow Marc Andreessen on X: https://twitter.com/pmarca
Follow Ben Horowitz on X: https://twitter.com/bhorowitz
Follow Erik Torenberg on X: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg
Follow Packy McCormick on X: https://twitter.com/packyM
Read Packy’s piece: https://www.notboring.co/p/a16z-the-power-brokers
Read David Haber’s piece ‘Firm > Fund’: https://www.a16z.news/p/firm-fund
 
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Find a16z on X: https://twitter.com/a16z
Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z
Listen to the a16z Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5bC65RDvs3oxnLyqqvkUYX
Listen to the a16z Podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a16z-podcast/id842818711
Follow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg](https://x.com/eriktorenberg
Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

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Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz sit down with Margit Wennmachers—the woman who turned two unknown entrepreneurs with $300 million and zero investing track record into the most talked-about firm in venture capital. She unpacks how they weaponized transparency in an industry built on secrecy, why Fortune's cover story triggered a cartel meltdown, and the exact moment a casual lunch conversation became "Software Is Eating the World." This is the origin story of how A16Z broke every unwritten rule, made enemies of every top-tier firm, and permanently rewired what it means to build companies in public.
 
Resources:
Follow Marc on X: https://x.com/pmarca
Follow Ben on X: https://x.com/bhorowitz
Follow Margit on X: https://x.com/wennmachers
Follow Erik on X: https://x.com/eriktorenberg
 
Stay Updated: 
If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to like, subscribe, and share with your friends!
Find a16z on X: https://x.com/a16z
Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z
Listen to the a16z Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5bC65RDvs3oxnLyqqvkUYX
Listen to the a16z Podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a16z-podcast/id842818711
Follow our host: https://x.com/eriktorenberg
Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

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Palmer Luckey got fired from Meta for backing the wrong candidate—now he's the hero saving American defense, and that shift tells you everything about how fast the ground moved beneath Silicon Valley's feet. For decades, tech and defense were allies, then came 15 years of hostility so visceral that Google employees revolted over a Pentagon AI contract, and when leadership caved, only three people showed up to hear what border security actually involves. But something broke: COVID exposed our inability to make things, Ukraine revealed wars now iterate in days not decades, and suddenly the Harvard dorm room generation realized the people building satellites and drones weren't just necessary—they were the future, while legacy defense contractors still operate on Soviet-style five-year plans that guarantee cost overruns and obsolescence. Now the question isn't whether Silicon Valley returns to its Cold War roots, but whether America wins by becoming more like China's centralized system or doubles down on the chaotic creativity that built nine of the world's ten most valuable companies in 25 years—and the founders flooding into defense, energy, mining, and manufacturing suggest the second American century is just getting started.
Resources:
Follow Ben on X: https://x.com/bhorowitz
Follow Marc on X: https://x.com/pmarca
Follow Katherine on X: https://x.com/KTmBoyle
Follow David on X: https://x.com/davidu
Follow Erik on X: https://x.com/eriktorenberg
Stay Updated:
If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to like, subscribe, and share with your friends!
Find a16z on X: https://x.com/a16z
Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z
Listen to the a16z Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5bC65RDvs3oxnLyqqvkUYX
Listen to the a16z Podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a16z-podcast/id842818711
Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.
 

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Ben, Marc, and Erik Torenberg are joined by Brian Schimpf, Cofounder & CEO of Anduril, and Chris Power, Founder & CEO of Hadrian. Together, they dig into America’s defense production gap: why the U.S. can out-innovate but not out-produce—and what it will take to turn that around.
They discuss why U.S. war games show we run out of munitions in a week, the myth of “exquisite-only” systems, how to rebuild industrial capacity with software-led automation, financing factories like data centers, and what it takes to create real deterrence in a Taiwan scenario.
Timecodes: 
0:00  Introduction 
0:54  The Myth of Technical Superiority
3:31  Erosion of US Manufacturing
6:50  Challenges in Rebuilding Industrial Capacity
8:31  The Skilled Labor Crisis
15:01  Automation and the Future of Manufacturing
17:57  Supply Chain Vulnerabilities
26:05  Regulatory and Policy Barriers
36:49  Financial Engineering vs. Industrial Policy
46:15  US vs. China: Strategic Competition
46:55  The Taiwan Scenario & War Gaming
52:55  Demographics, Economics, and CCP Strategy
Resources: 
Find Chris on X: https://x.com/chris_power
Find Brian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bschimpf/
Marc on X: https://x.com/pmarca
Marc’s Substack: https://pmarca.substack.com/
Ben on X: https://x.com/bhorowitz
Listen to Us! 
Apple: https://bit.ly/3SdsfNt
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3SclPOr
Stay Updated: 
Find us on X:https://x.com/a16z
Find us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z
The views expressed here are those of the individual personnel quoted and are not the views of a16z or its affiliates. This content is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as legal, business, investment, or tax advice. Furthermore, this content is not directed at nor intended for use by any investors or prospective investors and may not under any circumstances be relied upon when making a decision to invest in any a16z funds. PLEASE SEE MORE HERE: https://a16z.com/disclosures/

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On this episode of The Ben & Marc Show, a16z co-founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz sit down with Erik Torenberg— General Partner at a16z and founder of the media company Turpentine—to unpack how the internet shattered the old media order and reshaped the way power works in America.
What begins as a look at the evolution of media quickly becomes something bigger: a conversation about truth, trust, and the collapse of institutional authority. They explore how social media became both an x-ray and an engine, why authenticity now beats polish, and how the rules of politics, and journalism, have permanently changed.
Together, they break down:
Why 2017 marked a structural break between tech and the press
The tension between objectivity, activism, and “speaking truth to power”
Why podcasters. not pundits, are setting the agenda
How the barbell strategy is reshaping media: short-form virality meets long-form depth
With stops at Watergate, the rise of Rogan, the fall of legacy gatekeepers, and the media playbooks behind Obama, Trump, and the Kardashians—this episode explores how we got here, what’s next, and what it means for founders, voters, and anyone trying to build (or tell) a story.
Timecodes: 
00:00 Introduction
00:40 The Evolution of Media: From Centralization to Disruption
02:33 The Internet’s Impact on Legacy Media
09:32 Activism in the Modern Tech Press
12:30 The Rise and Fall of Institutional Trust
15:07 Recognizing the Shift in Legacy Media
20:51 Journalism: Objectivity vs. Activism
25:08 Martin Gurri and the Collapse of Authority
28:30 The Trump Era and the Media Paradigm Shift
32:23 Decentralization: From Talk Radio to Social Media
37:04 Is Social Media an Engine or a Camera?
43:50 Ben’s Early Perspective on Media and Politics
49:49 Trump as a Bridge Between Legacy and Social Media
55:44 Media Training vs. Unfiltered Authenticity
57:57 Reality TV, Professional Wrestling, and the New Playbook
1:01:04 Drama, Partisanship, and the Age of Personality
1:03:13 How Cable News Became 24/7 Entertainment
1:09:27 The UFC’s Early Struggles for Media Access
1:14:44 The Barbell Effect: Short Clips vs. Long-Form Podcasts
1:29:30 The Tools of Subversion When Out of Power 
1:32:00 Media Strategy for Founders
1:37:16 The Power of Going Direct: Founders, Brands, and Audiences
 
Listen to Us!
Apple: https://bit.ly/3SdsfNt
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3SclPOr
 
Resources: 
Marc on X:  https://x.com/pmarca   
Marc’s Substack: https://pmarca.substack.com/
Ben on X: https://x.com/bhorowitz  
Erik on X: https://x.com/eriktorenberg
Erik's Substack: https://eriktorenberg.substack.com/
 
Stay Updated: 
Find us on X: https://x.com/a16z
 Find us on LinkedIn:  / a16z  
This information is for general educational purposes only and is not a recommendation to buy, hold, or sell any investment or financial product. Turpentine is an acquisition of a16z Holdings, L.L.C., and is not a bank, investment adviser, or broker-dealer. Individuals and companies featured during this podcast are not endorsing AH Capital or any of its affiliates (including, but not limited to, a16z Perennial Management L.P.). Any investments or portfolio companies mentioned, referred to, or described in this podcast are not representative of all a16z investments and there can be no assurance that the investments will be profitable or that other investments made in the future will have similar characteristics or results. A list of investments made by a16z is available at https://a16z.com/investment-list/.  All  investments involve risk, including the possible loss of capital.  Past performance is no guarantee of future results and the opinions presented cannot be viewed as an indicator of future performance.  Before making decisions with legal, tax, or accounting effects, you should consult appropriate professionals.  Information is from sources deemed reliable on the date of publication, but a16z does not guarantee its accuracy.

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