Podcast
The Twenty Minute VC
Inside‑baseball interviews with top investors and founders, delivered in fast‑paced episodes for anyone serious about venture capital.
Inside‑baseball interviews with top investors and founders, delivered in fast‑paced episodes for anyone serious about venture capital.
The Twenty Minute VC—often shortened to 20VC—is a long‑form interview series created and hosted by British investor Harry Stebbings. The first episode, released 13 January 2015 with Guy Kawasaki, set the template: concise yet candid conversations that decode how capital flows from firm to founder.
Over a decade the show has scaled from a bedroom side project into what X describes as “the world’s leading independent VC podcast,” drawing 300 000‑plus downloads per instalment in its early years and now topping 1 300 published episodes. Rephonic’s industry tracker counts 1 330‑plus episodes as of July 2025.
Format‑wise, Stebbings alternates between investor deep dives—think Benchmark’s Bill Gurley and Sequoia’s Doug Leone—and founder spotlights with operators such as Spotify’s Daniel Ek or LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman. Apple’s show page emphasises that each week also features a breakout entrepreneur, ensuring balance between capital allocators and capital raisers.
The podcast now anchors a broader media flywheel that includes a twice‑weekly Substack newsletter and a YouTube channel housing full‑video recordings. In 2020 Stebbings spun the brand into 20VC Fund, closing a $140 million debut and, in October 2024, a $400 million third vehicle geared toward European and US software bets. This tight coupling of media and capital gives listeners real‑time access to the deal‑flow lens of an emerging franchise while giving the fund differentiated sourcing.
“The Twenty Minute VC interviews the world’s greatest venture capitalists with prior guests including Sequoia’s Doug Leone and Benchmark’s Bill Gurley. Once per week, host Harry Stebbings is also joined by one of the great founders of our time, with prior founder episodes from Spotify’s Daniel Ek, LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman, and Snowflake’s Frank Slootman.”
Aspiring venture investors glean three core lessons.
First, long‑run fund performance depends on proprietary access, and Stebbings’ questions tease out the sourcing loops top firms guard most closely.
Second, founder empathy is a competitive moat; operator guests repeatedly note choosing backers who “have walked the road,” reinforcing the importance of domain credibility for new GPs.
Third, content itself is capital. The podcast’s evolution into a $400 million fund illustrates how distribution compounds into allocation rights—a model early‑stage managers can emulate with niche media.
Beyond mechanics, the archive doubles as an oral history of market cycles from 2015 seed exuberance to 2022’s reset, giving listeners longitudinal context for their own theses.
Harry Stebbings went from recording interviews in his parents’ kitchen at age 18 to landing on Forbes 30 Under 30 and running 20VC Fund, which now manages more than $600 million in assets. Before launching his own firm he spent a brief stint at Atomico and co‑founded Stride VC. His on‑air style—equal parts rapid‑fire and self‑deprecating—stems from a conviction that the best insights surface when guests forget the microphone is on. Outside the podcast Stebbings writes a popular Substack, invests personal capital alongside the fund, and mentors first‑time managers on building distribution through content.
Regular guests span every tier of the ecosystem. Legendary capital allocators like Andreessen Horowitz partner Peter Fenton and Lightspeed’s Ravi Mhatre dissect fund strategy, while emerging managers such as Contrary’s Eric Tarczynski share scrappier playbooks.
Operator episodes pair founders with scale stories—DoorDash’s Tony Xu explains marketplace unit economics, and Canva’s Melanie Perkins unpacks global design adoption.
The show also ventures beyond software: KKR’s Philipp Freise covers late‑stage private equity, and NYSE president Lynn Martin highlights public‑market crossover.
Roundtable specials known as The Memo convene multiple guests to break down live events such as the Figma IPO filing or AI agent platform wars.
Who hosts The Twenty Minute VC?
British investor Harry Stebbings, founder of 20VC Fund, is the sole host and executive producer.
When did the podcast start?
Episode 001 dropped on 13 January 2015 with guest Guy Kawasaki.
How often are new episodes released?
Apple Podcasts lists the feed as updated semiweekly, which in practice means two to three fresh episodes every seven days.
How long are episodes?
Despite the title, recent conversations frequently run 45–90 minutes as Stebbings prioritises depth over strict runtime.
How many episodes exist?
Rephonic tallies more than 1 330 episodes published between 2015 and July 2025.
What makes the guest list unique?
The show pairs marquee investors with unicorn founders, providing both sides of pivotal deals in a single catalogue.
Does the podcast generate deal flow for 20VC Fund?
Yes, TechCrunch notes Stebbings leverages the audience to access founders before traditional firms, a strategy validated by the fund’s $400 million raise.
Is video available?
Full‑length video versions are uploaded to the 20VC YouTube channel alongside shorts.
Where should new listeners begin?
Top‑downloaded episodes with Daniel Ek, Bill Gurley, or Reid Hoffman provide a quick primer on the format and depth.
Are transcripts or show notes provided?
Episode pages at thetwentyminutevc.com summarise key takeaways, and a Substack newsletter delivers transcripts within a week of release.
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