Max Altman & Ben Braverman chart Saga VC's maiden voyage with Mark Suster | E1948

This Week in Startups is brought to you by… Mercury - Mercury is the fintech startups use for banking* and all their financial workflows. Paying bills, staying in control of company spend, and closing the books doesn't need to be so complex — that's why Mercury powers it all from the one thing every business needs: the bank account. Join 200K startups who use Mercury to operate at their best at http://mercury.com *Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group and Evolve Bank & Trust, Members FDIC. NetSuite - The number one cloud financial system, bringing accounting, financial management, inventory, and HR, into ONE platform. Giving you ONE source of truth. By popular demand, NetSuite has extended its one-of-a-kind flexible financing program for a few more weeks! Head to http://www.NetSuite.com/twist Curotec - Are you one of those companies that knows you need to be using AI, but you're not even sure where to start? Well, then, you need Curotec. They are AI experts, and they're offering TWiST listeners an AI Strategy Roadmap tailored to your business for $5000. That's 50% off the normal cost just for telling them we sent you. Check out http://www.curotec.com/twist and get $5000 off! * Today's show: Max Altman and Ben Braverman of Saga VC join guest host Mark Suster to discuss building up Saga VC’s maiden voyage fund (2:23), the advantage of witnessing “great” at the top of the industry (21:14), praise for Saga VC’s Thomson Nguyen (52:59), and more! * Timestamps: (0:00) Max Altman and Ben Braverman of Saga VC join guest host Mark Suster. (2:23) Building up Saga VC’s maiden voyage fund. (7:48) Saga VC’s reason to live and uniqueness. (9:48) Mercury - Join 200K startups who use Mercury to operate at their best at https://mercury.com (11:22) What Ben Braverman brings to Saga VC. (13:17) Ben speaks about what he learned working with Ryan Peterson at Flexport. (15:12) Max’s background that brought him to Saga and lessons he learned from Parker Conrad (19:58) NetSuite. By popular demand, NetSuite has extended its one-of-a-kind flexible financing program for a few more weeks! Head to http://www.NetSuite.com/twist (21:14) The advantage of witnessing “great” at the top of the industry. (25:54) The X-Factor in strong leaders and founders. (29:16) Curotec - Check out http://www.curotec.com/twist (30:27) Unique advantages Max and Ben on the foray into venture. (44:01) What Saga VC looks for in AI companies to fund. (52:59) Praise for Saga VC’s Thomson Nguyen in his absence. * Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp * Check out Saga VC website: https://www.sagavc.com/ Check out Saga VC on X: https://twitter.com/Saga_Ventures * Follow Max: X: https://twitter.com/maxaltman LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxhaltman/ * Follow Ben: X: https://twitter.com/braveben LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-braverman-a1120314/ * Follow Thomson: X: https://twitter.com/itsthomson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randomforest/ * Follow Mark: X: https://twitter.com/msuster LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marksuster/ * Thank you to our partners: (9:48)Mercury - Join 200K startups who use Mercury to operate at their best at https://mercury.com (19:58) NetSuite. By popular demand, NetSuite has extended its one-of-a-kind flexible financing program for a few more weeks! Head to http://www.NetSuite.com/twist (29:16) Curotec - Check out http://www.curotec.com/twist and get $5000 off * Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis * Follow TWiST: Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups * Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.founder.university/podcast