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Jan 13, 2015 · 19m · 20vc

20 VC 001: Guy Kawasaki of Apple, Motorola and AllTop.com

Harry Stebbings · 8m spoken Guy Kawasaki · 7m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In the inaugural episode of The 20 Minute VC, host Harry Stebbings interviews tech icon and investor Guy Kawasaki about early-stage investing, startup founder common pitfalls, and the legacy of visionary leaders like Steve Jobs. Kawasaki shares actionable insights on product-driven investing, recommended reading for entrepreneurs, and key productivity tools.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Harry holds 53.9% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Harry as informed peer 3.0 Guest teaching 3.0 Guest disagreement 2.0 Harry pushing back 2.2
05100:0010:001:40–3:49 · Harry as informed peer 2/10 Defining Success and Comparing Apple vs. Google Harry asks introductory questions comparing Steve Jobs to Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Guy explains Apple's multi-category impact while Harry agrees warmly as an Apple enthusiast without pushing back.3:49–6:53 · Harry as informed peer 5/10 Transition to Venture Capital and Startup Investment Criteria Harry shows strong research by linking Guy's blog framework on chief evangelism to his current role at Canva. Guy gently corrects Harry's inquiry on startup financials by explaining revenue is zero at the early stage.6:53–11:24 · Harry as informed peer 3/10 Startup Founder Pet Peeves and Book Recommendations Guy bluntly corrects Harry's suggestion that Steve Jobs underplayed projections. Harry pushes back on the subtitle of Guy's book, leading Guy to justify his choice not to label readers as dummies.11:24–14:49 · Harry as informed peer 2/10 Essential Productivity Tools, Personal Reflection, and Hobbies Guy discusses productivity tools like Chrome and Airmail along with personal reflections. Harry asks basic follow-ups regarding email client features without challenging the answers.14:49–19:44 · Harry as informed peer 3/10 Quick Fire Round and Show Conclusion Harry cites online retail statistics and industry figures during a rapid-fire session. Guy redefines the tech bubble discussion around individual company execution and weighs Tesla's mainstream challenges.1:40–3:49 · Guest teaching 2/10 Defining Success and Comparing Apple vs. Google Harry asks introductory questions comparing Steve Jobs to Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Guy explains Apple's multi-category impact while Harry agrees warmly as an Apple enthusiast without pushing back.3:49–6:53 · Guest teaching 3/10 Transition to Venture Capital and Startup Investment Criteria Harry shows strong research by linking Guy's blog framework on chief evangelism to his current role at Canva. Guy gently corrects Harry's inquiry on startup financials by explaining revenue is zero at the early stage.6:53–11:24 · Guest teaching 5/10 Startup Founder Pet Peeves and Book Recommendations Guy bluntly corrects Harry's suggestion that Steve Jobs underplayed projections. Harry pushes back on the subtitle of Guy's book, leading Guy to justify his choice not to label readers as dummies.11:24–14:49 · Guest teaching 2/10 Essential Productivity Tools, Personal Reflection, and Hobbies Guy discusses productivity tools like Chrome and Airmail along with personal reflections. Harry asks basic follow-ups regarding email client features without challenging the answers.14:49–19:44 · Guest teaching 3/10 Quick Fire Round and Show Conclusion Harry cites online retail statistics and industry figures during a rapid-fire session. Guy redefines the tech bubble discussion around individual company execution and weighs Tesla's mainstream challenges.1:40–3:49 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Defining Success and Comparing Apple vs. Google Harry asks introductory questions comparing Steve Jobs to Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Guy explains Apple's multi-category impact while Harry agrees warmly as an Apple enthusiast without pushing back.3:49–6:53 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Transition to Venture Capital and Startup Investment Criteria Harry shows strong research by linking Guy's blog framework on chief evangelism to his current role at Canva. Guy gently corrects Harry's inquiry on startup financials by explaining revenue is zero at the early stage.6:53–11:24 · Guest disagreement 3/10 Startup Founder Pet Peeves and Book Recommendations Guy bluntly corrects Harry's suggestion that Steve Jobs underplayed projections. Harry pushes back on the subtitle of Guy's book, leading Guy to justify his choice not to label readers as dummies.11:24–14:49 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Essential Productivity Tools, Personal Reflection, and Hobbies Guy discusses productivity tools like Chrome and Airmail along with personal reflections. Harry asks basic follow-ups regarding email client features without challenging the answers.14:49–19:44 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Quick Fire Round and Show Conclusion Harry cites online retail statistics and industry figures during a rapid-fire session. Guy redefines the tech bubble discussion around individual company execution and weighs Tesla's mainstream challenges.1:40–3:49 · Harry pushing back 1/10 Defining Success and Comparing Apple vs. Google Harry asks introductory questions comparing Steve Jobs to Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Guy explains Apple's multi-category impact while Harry agrees warmly as an Apple enthusiast without pushing back.3:49–6:53 · Harry pushing back 2/10 Transition to Venture Capital and Startup Investment Criteria Harry shows strong research by linking Guy's blog framework on chief evangelism to his current role at Canva. Guy gently corrects Harry's inquiry on startup financials by explaining revenue is zero at the early stage.6:53–11:24 · Harry pushing back 4/10 Startup Founder Pet Peeves and Book Recommendations Guy bluntly corrects Harry's suggestion that Steve Jobs underplayed projections. Harry pushes back on the subtitle of Guy's book, leading Guy to justify his choice not to label readers as dummies.11:24–14:49 · Harry pushing back 2/10 Essential Productivity Tools, Personal Reflection, and Hobbies Guy discusses productivity tools like Chrome and Airmail along with personal reflections. Harry asks basic follow-ups regarding email client features without challenging the answers.14:49–19:44 · Harry pushing back 2/10 Quick Fire Round and Show Conclusion Harry cites online retail statistics and industry figures during a rapid-fire session. Guy redefines the tech bubble discussion around individual company execution and weighs Tesla's mainstream challenges.

speaking balance: gold is Harry, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Harry 72.9% · guest 27.1%0:00 · Harry 72.9% · guest 27.1%3:00 · Harry 60% · guest 40%3:00 · Harry 60% · guest 40%6:00 · Harry 75% · guest 25%6:00 · Harry 75% · guest 25%9:00 · Harry 34.8% · guest 65.2%9:00 · Harry 34.8% · guest 65.2%12:00 · Harry 45.5% · guest 54.5%12:00 · Harry 45.5% · guest 54.5%15:00 · Harry 41.7% · guest 58.3%15:00 · Harry 41.7% · guest 58.3%18:00 · Harry 40.5% · guest 59.5%18:00 · Harry 40.5% · guest 59.5%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 7:28 Steve Jobs Forecast Rejection

Guy firmly shuts down Harry's conjecture that Steve Jobs underplayed financial forecasts, drawing on direct experience to correct the host.

 Hardest push from Harry ▶ 8:12 Book Subtitle Pushback

Harry directly challenges the framing of Guy's book title, arguing the content is accessible to non-technical users like his father despite being subtitled for power users.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 5:51 Early-Stage Revenue Reality

Guy corrects Harry's question about assessing financial metrics by pointing out that early-stage startup revenue is effectively zero.

 Harry holds his own ▶ 5:07 Connecting Blog Insights to Canva

Harry demonstrates thorough research by referencing Guy's blog post on chief evangelism and applying it to his move to Canva, surprising the guest.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicHarry as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementHarry pushing backWhy
Defining Success and Comparing Apple vs. Google 2211 Harry asks introductory questions comparing Steve Jobs to Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Guy explains Apple's multi-category impact while Harry agrees warmly as an Apple enthusiast without pushing back.
Transition to Venture Capital and Startup Investment Criteria 5322 Harry shows strong research by linking Guy's blog framework on chief evangelism to his current role at Canva. Guy gently corrects Harry's inquiry on startup financials by explaining revenue is zero at the early stage.
Startup Founder Pet Peeves and Book Recommendations 3534 Guy bluntly corrects Harry's suggestion that Steve Jobs underplayed projections. Harry pushes back on the subtitle of Guy's book, leading Guy to justify his choice not to label readers as dummies.
Essential Productivity Tools, Personal Reflection, and Hobbies 2222 Guy discusses productivity tools like Chrome and Airmail along with personal reflections. Harry asks basic follow-ups regarding email client features without challenging the answers.
Quick Fire Round and Show Conclusion 3322 Harry cites online retail statistics and industry figures during a rapid-fire session. Guy redefines the tech bubble discussion around individual company execution and weighs Tesla's mainstream challenges.

Statements from this episode (10)

Opinion
Kawasaki: Few people in history have changed the world like Steve Jobs
“Yeah, yeah, but in terms of changing the world, there's not too many people who come close to Steve Jobs.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 2:10
Opinion
Kawasaki: Apple changed more major industries than Google
“Yeah, no, I, I'm leaning towards Apple, and it's because Apple has made multiple changes, right? So they changed the face of computing, and they changed the face of phones, and then they invented the face of tablets, and you can't, you know, Google has definit…”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 2:46
Insight
Kawasaki: Product is the single most important factor when investing in startups
“I must admit that I think that the most important thing is the product.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 4:44
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Kawasaki: Startup founders always overestimate their financial forecasts
“Well, one thing that drives me nuts is that they always, always are so wrong in their forecasts. I've never seen one that undershot his projections.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 7:11
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Kawasaki: Steve Jobs never understated projections or achievements
“The last person in the world who underplayed it is Steve jobs. Trust me.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 7:34
Insight
Kawasaki: A startup fundamentally requires only making and selling
“Well, it's kind of simple, you know, somebody's got to make it, and somebody's got to sell it. That's it in a nutshell. And so this is about the guy or gal who's selling it, and then we have to find, you know, something else for the guy who is making it. So th…”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 10:54
Opinion
Kawasaki: Apple Mail feels designed for someone receiving ten emails daily
“When I use Apple Mail, it feels like somebody at Apple who gets 10 emails a day has designed it.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 12:35
Opinion
Guy Kawasaki calls Amazon an operational killing machine and endorses buying stock
“Because Amazon is a killing machine, and I use it as a, as someplace I buy from. Also, I publish through as a self-publisher, and I resell through using a traditional publisher, so I know how freaking awesome that company is.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 15:08
Opinion
Kawasaki: Tech is in a bubble, but macro conditions don't matter
“I believe it is, but I also believe, so what if it is or it isn't, you know, what really matters is your one company. Not the big picture.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 16:11
Opinion
Guy Kawasaki names Elon Musk as the closest equivalent to Steve Jobs
“Yeah, I mean, he's the closest thing we have to Steve Jobs right now, so.”
Guy Kawasaki Jan 13, 2015 ▶ 19:04
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