Ample's modular battery system allows a Fiat 500D to hold six battery modules, while a Mitsubishi Fuso E-Cantor truck can be configured with 8, 16, or 24 modules.

General Partners in private markets are currently experiencing longer fundraising cycles.

In the last four months, there has been an increase in private market liquidity events, characterized by larger managers acquiring assets from smaller managers.

The Department of Defense and its innovation ecosystem are ineffective at terminating underperforming programs, allowing unsuccessful "zombie programs" to continue receiving funding.

Ample's co-founder John states that their modular system allows a driver to choose between carrying as little as 500 pounds or as much as 1,000 pounds of batteries, providing flexibility in vehicle we...

Many designated "innovation roles" within the US government are ineffective and fail to produce tangible results.

The encrypted messaging application Signal is widely used by government officials on Capitol Hill.

Cape is collaborating with the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) to develop technology for detecting cell-site simulators at protests.

There is a growing consensus that the future of warfare will be dominated by low-cost, attritable systems and other asymmetric capabilities.

Cape operates as an in-person company based on the belief that physical proximity is more effective for building team cohesion than a remote work configuration.

The US defense strategy should shift from investing in a small number of expensive, "exquisite" systems towards developing capabilities for asymmetric warfare.

The Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) is effectively accelerating technology adoption for the Department of Defense, particularly through the use of Other Transaction Authorities (OTAs).

Cape has intentionally structured its organization with a single, unified engineering team serving both commercial and defense customers, rather than creating separate divisions.

In the Russia-Ukraine conflict, both sides have used commercial cellular networks as a force multiplier and as a means for targeting missile strikes against each other.

John observes a trend of fee compression for long-only equity strategies, with a shift towards performance-based fees like "zero and 30" and away from traditional management and performance fee struct...

John's firm is exploring "picks and shovels" investments in the nuclear energy sector, such as fuel supplier Standard Nuclear, believing the trend towards nuclear power is durable.

John warns that many retail-focused private credit funds engage in levered cash-flow lending, and the value of that collateral has not yet been tested in a significant recession.

The U.S. national average price for a gallon of gasoline is currently above $4, its highest level since August 2022.

According to a recent poll, two-thirds of Americans report that current gasoline prices are putting significant financial pressure on their families.

John states that his firm, a16z, has reflected on passing on AI companies that were not perceived as the "category winner," underestimating the market's ability to support multiple venture-scale winne...