The 22-Year-Old Dropout Revolutionizing Social Apps | Ep 32

Explicit content warning

08/01/24 • 22 min

In this episode of UNinvested, Sahil Seth interviews Alexandra Debow, an NYU dropout and Thiel Fellow, who has founded Swsh, a social photo-sharing app. Alexandra shares her journey through entrepreneurship, the ups and downs of building multiple apps, and her relentless drive to solve meaningful problems. This conversation dives deep into the challenges and successes of young entrepreneurs and the mindset needed to thrive in the tech world.

What we explore:

Alexandra's biggest failure and lessons learned from building five different apps
The motivation behind choosing entrepreneurship over a traditional career path
The importance of community and risk-taking in Alexandra's entrepreneurial journey
Advice for young entrepreneurs on taking risks and de-stigmatizing failure
The transition from early ideas to the successful launch of Swsh
Balancing social life and the entrepreneurial hustle
The role of mentors and networks in a startup's success
Strategies for cold outreach and building meaningful connections
The unique challenges and advantages of being a young entrepreneur

Where to find UNinvested:

Website: https://www.uninvested.org/
X: https://x.com/UNinvested_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/uninvested

In this episode, we cover:

[00:00] Introduction to Alexandra Debow and her entrepreneurial background

[00:42] What drives Alexandra to be an entrepreneur

[01:16] The role of community and risk-taking in her journey

[01:57] Advice for young entrepreneurs and the importance of taking risks

[02:22] Embracing failure as a learning process

[02:53] The journey of building and pivoting through different apps

[04:26] Balancing social life and the startup grind

[04:50] The significance of product-market fit in a startup’s success

[05:50] Standing out in a crowded social media space

[08:50] The role of mentors and the impact of accelerators

[10:08] Effective strategies for cold outreach

[11:18] The value of persistence and resilience in entrepreneurship

[12:08] Balancing founder instincts with user feedback

[15:12] Examples of inspiring young entrepreneurs

[17:10] The importance of enjoying the entrepreneurial journey

[19:10] The impact of community and co-founders on startup success

What we explore:

Alexandra's biggest failure and lessons learned from building five different apps
The motivation behind choosing entrepreneurship over a traditional career path
The importance of community and risk-taking in Alexandra's entrepreneurial journey
Advice for young entrepreneurs on taking risks and de-stigmatizing failure
The transition from early ideas to the successful launch of Swsh
Balancing social life and the entrepreneurial hustle
The role of mentors and networks in a startup's success
Strategies for cold outreach and building meaningful connections
The unique challenges and advantages of being a young entrepreneur

Where to find UNinvested:

Website: https://www.uninvested.org/
X: https://x.com/UNinvested_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/uninvested

In this episode, we cover:

[00:00] Introduction to Alexandra Debow and her entrepreneurial background

[00:42] What drives Alexandra to be an entrepreneur

[01:16] The role of community and risk-taking in her journey

[01:57] Advice for young entrepreneurs and the importance of taking risks

[02:22] Embracing failure as a learning process

[02:53] The journey of building and pivoting through different apps

[04:26] Balancing social life and the startup grind

[04:50] The significance of product-market fit in a startup’s success

[05:50] Standing out in a crowded social media space

[08:50] The role of mentors and the impact of accelerators

[10:08] Effective strategies for cold outreach

[11:18] The value of persistence and resilience in entrepreneurship

[12:08] Balancing founder instincts with user feedback

[15:12] Examples of inspiring young entrepreneurs

[17:10] The importance of enjoying the entrepreneurial journey

[19:10] The impact of community and co-founders on startup success

Previous Episode

[5 mins] Venture Capitalist to Trump’s Vice President: JD Vance’s Story | EP 31

In this episode of UNinvested, host Sahil Seth discusses the background of JD Vance, the venture capitalist turned US senator for Ohio, who has been selected by Donald Trump as his running mate for the 2024 presidential election. Discover how Vance’s venture capital career, backed by notable figures like Peter Thiel, has influenced the tech world and what this means for the future of entrepreneurship, tech, and VC.

What we explore:

JD Vance's journey from the US Marines to venture capital
The influence of Peter Thiel on Vance's career
Vance's bestselling book "Hillbilly Elegy" and its impact
The founding of Narya Capital and its investments
The shift in political support among tech moguls
The debate over AI regulation and its implications for startups and big tech
Vance's stance on open-sourcing AI and its significance

Where to find UNinvested:

Website: https://www.uninvested.org/
X: https://x.com/UNinvested_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/uninvested

In this episode, we cover:

[00:00] Introduction to JD Vance and his selection as Trump's running mate

[00:32] JD Vance’s early life, military service, and education

[00:47] Transition to venture capital with Peter Thiel’s Mithril Capital

[01:15] Best-selling book “Hillbilly Elegy” and its impact

[01:42] Joining Revolution and focus on Midwest startups

[01:56] Founding Narya and notable investors

[02:26] Overview of Narya’s investments and Vance’s board role at AppHarvest

[02:46] The shift in political support among tech moguls

[03:31] Vance’s views on AI regulation and open sourcing

[04:31] Closing thoughts and the significance of the upcoming election for the tech world

Next Episode

[5 mins] Is GPT-5 Dropping Soon? OpenAI's Secret Project Strawberry | EP 33

In this episode of UNinvested, Sahil explores the buzz around OpenAI's potential new release, possibly GPT-5, and the mysterious "Project Strawberry." He discusses the significance of recent events, including a cryptic tweet from OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, and the sudden appearance of an "anonymous chatbot" on a popular AI testing platform. Sahil shares his thoughts on what these developments might mean for the future of AI and why this could be a major breakthrough.

What we explore:

The implications of Sam Altman's strawberry tweet and its connection to "Project Strawberry"
Background on OpenAI's secretive "Project Strawberry" and its possible link to GPT-5
The emergence of an anonymous chatbot on LMSYS Chatbot Arena and its potential significance
Speculations on Project Strawberry's advanced capabilities, including autonomous reasoning and decision-making
OpenAI's history of testing new AI models under anonymous names before public release
The concept of "Reasoners" in OpenAI's roadmap toward achieving superintelligence

Where to find UNinvested:

Website: https://www.uninvested.org/

X: https://x.com/UNinvested_

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/uninvested

In this episode, we cover:

[00:00] Introduction and disclaimer about GPT-5 speculations.

[00:22] Discussion on Sam Altman's cryptic tweet and its connection to Project Strawberry.

[00:51] Overview of the anonymous chatbot on LMSYS Chatbot Arena.

[01:16] Explanation of Project Strawberry and its potential link to GPT-5.

[01:55] Speculations on Project Strawberry's advanced reasoning capabilities and its implications for AI development.

[02:30] OpenAI's strategy for testing new models anonymously on public platforms.

[03:00] Analysis of the anonymous chatbot's performance on the leaderboard and its potential significance.

[04:00] Sahil's closing thoughts on the future of AI and the impact of Sam Altman's strategy.

[04:18] Final remarks on the importance of using AI and a personal message to listeners.

[04:31] Sahil expresses gratitude to supporters and discusses the passion behind UNinvested.

[04:37] Closing statement with details on the next episode.

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