Podcast · 26 episodes
The Social Radars
by Jessica Livingston · English
Jessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy are The Social Radars. Carolynn and Jessica have been working together to help thousands of startups at Y Combinator for almost 20 years. Come be a fly on the wall as they talk to some of the most successful founders in Silicon Valley about how they did it.
Latest episodes
John Coogan, Co-Founder & Host at TBPNJohn Coogan’s startup-to-media story, centered on how TBPN (his daily live business/tech video+podcast) evolved from his ed-tech/food startup origins (Imagine K12 summer 2012 → Soylent → Lucy…21 May 2026 · 1 h 7 min
Ron Conway, Founder, SV Angel: Silicon Valley Bank CrisisThe March 2023 Silicon Valley Bank collapse, why it happened (unhedged interest-rate losses on treasuries/MBS), and how Ron Conway and allies pushed the U.S.28 Apr 2026 · 1 h 23 min
Justin Kan, Cofounder, TwitchJustin Kan’s origin story from Yale/Y Combinator (2005) through building JustinTV, pivoting to Twitch, and later starting other companies; includes lessons about launching early, product-market…15 Apr 2026 · 1 h 5 min
All episodes
John Coogan, Co-Founder & Host at TBPNJohn Coogan’s startup-to-media story, centered on how TBPN (his daily live business/tech video+podcast) evolved from his ed-tech/food startup origins (Imagine K12 summer 2012 → Soylent → Lucy…21 May 2026 · 1 h 7 min · 33 chapters
Ron Conway, Founder, SV Angel: Silicon Valley Bank CrisisThe March 2023 Silicon Valley Bank collapse, why it happened (unhedged interest-rate losses on treasuries/MBS), and how Ron Conway and allies pushed the U.S.28 Apr 2026 · 1 h 23 min · 34 chapters
Justin Kan, Cofounder, TwitchJustin Kan’s origin story from Yale/Y Combinator (2005) through building JustinTV, pivoting to Twitch, and later starting other companies; includes lessons about launching early, product-market…15 Apr 2026 · 1 h 5 min · 24 chapters
Paul Graham, Founder, Y CombinatorHow Y Combinator scaled after its first batch, what drove applicant growth, and the operational/community challenges of running YC—plus stories from demo day, office hours, and leadership transitions…19 Mar 2026 · 1 h 3 min · 26 chapters
Peter Reinhardt, CEO & co-founder, Charm Industrial; CEO & co-founder, SegmentPeter Reinhardt’s journey from MIT student startup Classmetric → Segment (analytics routing) → Twilio acquisition, then founding Charm Industrial, a carbon removal company that turns biomass into…3 Mar 2026 · 1 h 8 min · 29 chapters
Tom Blomfield, Partner, Y Combinator; Co-Founder, MonzoTom Blomfield’s career path from Oxford student startup to Y Combinator, then GoCardless pivoting into B2B bank payments, and finally co-founding Monzo after a chaotic co-founder/CTO episode.17 Feb 2026 · 1 h 10 min · 32 chapters
Spenser Skates, Founder & CEO, AmplitudeSpenser Skates (Amplitude CEO) recounts how Amplitude emerged from a failed YC startup idea (Sonalite, a text-to-voice app) and became a data analytics company focused on retention and user behavior.3 Feb 2026 · 1 h 17 min · 40 chapters
Christina Cacioppo, Founder & CEO, VantaJessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy20 Jan 2026 · 1 h 8 min · 35 chapters
David Kirtley, Founder & CEO of Helion EnergyJessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy7 Jan 2026 · 1 h 12 min · 33 chapters
Jared Friedman, Partner, Y Combinator; Co-founder, ScribdJessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy30 Dec 2025 · 1 h 10 min · 31 chapters
Jessica & Carolynn Announce Season 5!Jessica & Carolynn Announce Season 5!23 Dec 2025 · 3 min
Blake Scholl, Founder & CEO of Boom SupersonicBlake Scholl, Founder & CEO of Boom Supersonic8 Dec 2025 · 1 h 24 min
Founder Mode: Sajith Wickramasekara, Founder & CEO, BenchlingIn this episode, Jessica and Carolynn converse with Sajith Wickramasekara, the founder and CEO of Benchling, during the Y Combinator founder mode retreat.17 Oct 2025 · 13 min
Founder Mode: Jen Herbach, Founder & CEO, Adventris PharmaceuticalsIn this episode, Jessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy interview Jen Herbach, the Founder and CEO of Adventris Pharmaceuticals, a company focused on developing a cancer vaccine.7 Oct 2025 · 16 min
Founder Mode: Andy Lapsa, Founder & CEO, Stoke SpaceJessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy29 Sep 2025 · 15 min
Founder Mode: Emmett Shear, Founder, Softmax & TwitchJessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy23 Sep 2025 · 21 min
Founder Mode: Christina Cacioppo, Founder & CEO, VantaIn this episode, Christina Cacioppo discusses her experience in "founder mode," especially as Vanta has scaled to 1000 employees and reached significant revenue milestones.16 Sep 2025 · 13 min
Founder Mode: Kashish Gupta, Founder and co-CEO of HightouchKashish Gupta, Founder and co-CEO of Hightouch12 Sep 2025 · 20 min
Founder Mode: Paul Gross, Founder & CEO of Remora CarbonJessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy8 Sep 2025 · 14 min
Founder Mode: Chris Best, Founder & CEO, SubstackChris Best, Founder & CEO of Substack4 Sep 2025 · 28 min
Founder Mode: Jake Heller, Founder & CEO, CasetextIn this episode, Jake Heller, the founder and CEO of Casetext, shares his journey of discovering a revolutionary product during a weekend of experimentation with GPT-4, which led to a significant…29 Aug 2025 · 24 min
Founder Mode: Paul Graham, Founder, Y CombinatorIn this episode of *The Social Radars*, hosts Jessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy engage in a conversation with Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator.22 Aug 2025 · 17 min
Founder Mode: Brian Chesky, Founder & CEO, AirbnbIn this episode, Jessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy converse with Brian Chesky, the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, during the inaugural Founder Mode event by Y Combinator.22 Aug 2025 · 21 min
Ron Conway, Founder, SV Angel (Part 3)Jessica Livingston and Carolynn Levy9 Apr 2025 · 1 h 17 min