00:36:22 · Shardul Shah, Molly O'Shea
[00:36:22] S0: I mean, our LPs, our limited partners, are such an important stakeholder in our business. We never take them for granted, And our belief is they're purely rational individuals that will invest in great fund performance. And so, we try to take that responsibility very seriously. Over the last twelve months, the number of investments, the dollars per investments across the industry have grown. And so, pacing for everyone has accelerated. And I think what used to be a 2.5 cycle, just in the last twelve months, has probably compressed a bit. Will it return to the normal fund cycle? Probably. But we don't think about optimizing on, time duration. We like diversity of exposure to different vintages. [00:37:13] S1: So as we talk about fund cycles and the evolution of venture capital in this market, how has the exit environment changed? I know we're in kind of an interesting period for IPOs. We're waiting on some very large ones. This year was supposed to be the year of mega returns, and some of them are getting delayed a bit, but also M and A has changed. The floodgates of M and A have opened up, and more people are becoming acquisitive. Even smaller companies are being acquisitive. So, how has the exit environment changed? [00:37:42] S0: We think really carefully about DPI. We also talk about not getting high on your own supply, so making sure we deliver returns to our limited partners is really important. The two drivers of that are IPOs and M and A. IPOs, exactly as you said, are waiting for the window to open or close in a given period of time.
00:37:42 · Shardul Shah, Molly O'Shea
[00:37:42] S0: We think really carefully about DPI. We also talk about not getting high on your own supply, so making sure we deliver returns to our limited partners is really important. The two drivers of that are IPOs and M and A. IPOs, exactly as you said, are waiting for the window to open or close in a given period of time. [00:38:05] S1: Which I've learned from the New York Stock Exchange, their media partner, you can never time. [00:38:09] S0: You cannot time it. But when you're in the right place at the right time, you have to have the courage to take advantage. So, the IPO window is out of our control. M and A has really accelerated. Again, we saw Wiz, we saw Cursor, we saw World Labs. Catalyst is really active, in supporting transactions. So, not only are public companies incumbents buying privates, but we're also seeing private to private mergers and transactions of a variety of different scale and magnitudes. So, the M and A environment is really healthy. The hardest part is when an entrepreneur has belief in themselves, and they've got a really interesting offer in front of them. What do they do? Do they stay independent, or do they sell? And the interesting thing is, most entrepreneurs, when you first meet them, will tell you, I'm on a mission, I'm never going to sell. It's deeper, and it's much more nuanced. And that's where, if you are the most influential investor, you can make an enormous impact on shareholder value in a judgment call where there is no truth.
00:38:09 · Shardul Shah, Molly O'Shea
[00:38:09] S0: You cannot time it. But when you're in the right place at the right time, you have to have the courage to take advantage. So, the IPO window is out of our control. M and A has really accelerated. Again, we saw Wiz, we saw Cursor, we saw World Labs. Catalyst is really active, in supporting transactions. So, not only are public companies incumbents buying privates, but we're also seeing private to private mergers and transactions of a variety of different scale and magnitudes. So, the M and A environment is really healthy. The hardest part is when an entrepreneur has belief in themselves, and they've got a really interesting offer in front of them. What do they do? Do they stay independent, or do they sell? And the interesting thing is, most entrepreneurs, when you first meet them, will tell you, I'm on a mission, I'm never going to sell. It's deeper, and it's much more nuanced. And that's where, if you are the most influential investor, you can make an enormous impact on shareholder value in a judgment call where there is no truth. [00:39:15] S1: I heard you on a podcast before talk about you sold at the IPO price, and then it skyrocketed, and your investors were calling you up, your LPs, and then it plummeted, and then no [00:39:27] S0: one called you. It was not my LPs, they were my partners. [00:39:30] S1: Oh, okay. [00:39:31] S0: My partners called when it looked like we left money on the table. They didn't thank me when the stock price plummeted.
00:39:31 · Shardul Shah, Molly O'Shea
[00:39:31] S0: My partners called when it looked like we left money on the table. They didn't thank me when the stock price plummeted. [00:39:39] S1: Oh, God. I only imagine. I know I asked you, What do you guys look for in a fund? And then then brought up DPI in this answer, but Bloomberg had reported your fund performance. I don't know what is or not like the most current, but as of January 2026, you had an 11X DPI on Index's twenty twelve fund compared with an industry average of 1.5X, so that's pretty crazy. And then a 5.1X DPI on Index's $780,000,000 growth fund that was raised in 2015, also reported in January. What other numbers can you tell
00:39:39 · Molly O'Shea, Shardul Shah
[00:39:39] S1: Oh, God. I only imagine. I know I asked you, What do you guys look for in a fund? And then then brought up DPI in this answer, but Bloomberg had reported your fund performance. I don't know what is or not like the most current, but as of January 2026, you had an 11X DPI on Index's twenty twelve fund compared with an industry average of 1.5X, so that's pretty crazy. And then a 5.1X DPI on Index's $780,000,000 growth fund that was raised in 2015, also reported in January. What other numbers can you tell [00:40:18] S0: I believe you. You know, people think I'm very analytical because I am cerebral, but the minute I invest in a company, I don't remember how much we've invested or what our partnership is. I know it sounds like total bullshit, but it's actually true. I don't remember because I don't care. It's all about creating the relationship. Number two, I wouldn't confuse outcomes with the judgment calls that go into our partnership deciding if we're going to invest, if we're going to double down into a company, how we're going to influence an entrepreneur. Outcomes can be a function of how effervescent the market is, right? And so, we're super proud of our returns. More than a single venture fund or a single growth fund, the consistency of TUBGASL performance over three decades is something we are really proud of, and it sets a really high standard of what we need to do for the next thirty years. So, I don't have any other numbers for you, but I'm hard at work to create more.
00:40:18 · Shardul Shah, Molly O'Shea
[00:40:18] S0: I believe you. You know, people think I'm very analytical because I am cerebral, but the minute I invest in a company, I don't remember how much we've invested or what our partnership is. I know it sounds like total bullshit, but it's actually true. I don't remember because I don't care. It's all about creating the relationship. Number two, I wouldn't confuse outcomes with the judgment calls that go into our partnership deciding if we're going to invest, if we're going to double down into a company, how we're going to influence an entrepreneur. Outcomes can be a function of how effervescent the market is, right? And so, we're super proud of our returns. More than a single venture fund or a single growth fund, the consistency of TUBGASL performance over three decades is something we are really proud of, and it sets a really high standard of what we need to do for the next thirty years. So, I don't have any other numbers for you, but I'm hard at work to create more. [00:41:24] S1: I love that. That's great. Because you're not into the data stuff, I think this question might be good for you. It's a performance question, but it has nothing to do with data or insights or numbers or whatever. [00:41:34] S0: Better. Thank you.