Ep 49: Albert Wenger, Managing Partner at Union Square Ventures

Today’s guest is Albert Wenger, Managing Partner at Union Square Ventures, a NY-based venture capital firm.

Before joining USV, Albert was the president of del.icio.us through the company’s sale to Yahoo and an angel investor (Etsy, Tumblr). He previously founded or co-founded several companies, including a management consulting firm and an early hosted data analytics company. Albert graduated from Harvard College in economics and computer science and holds a Ph.D. in Information Technology from MIT.

In today’s episode, we cover:

• Albert’s assessment of the problem of climate change and his concern level
• His views on what it will take to get the problem under control in the short term and long term
• The work they do at USV, their core expertise, and how that expertise can help
• The roles of innovation, policy, and collective action
• What types of innovation can be most impactful, and when
• The upcoming election and stakes
• Roles of China and India
• Roles of big oil and utilities
• How Albert would allocate $100B to maximize its impact in climate fight
• Albert’s advice for others looking to find their lane

Links to topics discussed in this episode:

USV: https://www.usv.com/

World After Capital: http://worldaftercapital.org/

Greta Thunberg: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greta_Thunberg

Extinction Rebellion: https://rebellion.earth/

Nori: https://nori.com/

John Maynard Keynes, Economics Policies for our Grandchildren: https://www.sloww.co/keynes-economic-possibilities/

Faye McNeill: https://cheme.columbia.edu/faculty/v-mcneill

Ecosia: https://www.ecosia.org/

Universal Basic Income: https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/universal-basic-income-UBI

How Much is Enough?: https://www.amazon.com/How-Much-Enough-Money-Good/dp/152267795X

You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at [email protected], where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.

Enjoy the show!

Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at [email protected].

Connect with MCJ:

• Cody Simms on LinkedIn
• Visit mcj.vc
• Subscribe to the MCJ Newsletter

*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant