Bek: VC funds will collaborate more on hardware and physical AI deals
Julien Bek · Inside Sequoia's Investment Committee | How the SpaceX & Citadel Deals Went Down | Julien Bek · Aug 24, 2026 · at 12:26
Julien Bek, Partner at Sequoia Capital, discusses how the shift toward physical AI and hardware startups changes early-stage venture dynamics.
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“In, in hardware now, for instance, which is like the new thing, right, that's consensus physical AI the time to get validation is just a lot longer, and so you have to invest early, hoping that those companies can get through those phases of experimentation and so instead of measuring these companies of how quickly they get from zero to a million in AR, You have to look at how quickly they get to, you know, a working prototype. but you're moving atoms, not bits. This is just a lot harder. It takes more time, and they just need a bit more capital. so I actually think that we'll see more collaboration because of that. funds will want to work with other capital partners to help those companies get to those milestones.”
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