a16z Podcast

a16z Podcast: M&A and Innovation, Inside Out

Stephanie Cohen and Martin Casado

Posted November 16, 2018

As chief strategy officer of Goldman Sachs (and former global head of financial sponsors M&A), Stephanie Cohen has seen it all when it comes to the ins and outs of M&A. And what it means to innovate from within, especially at a large company.

Given Cohen’s unique vantage point and nearly 20-year tenure at Goldman Sachs, Casado — himself a veteran of both an acquisition (Nicira) and big company innovation (VMware) — interviews Cohen in this episode of the a16z Podcast, on the ways that big companies navigate innovation… both inside and outside. How do they make the decision to build vs. buy? How does one diversify perspectives? And so on. 

This episode is based on a fireside chat that originally took place at our annual a16z Summit event in November 2018.

More About This Podcast

The a16z Podcast discusses the most important ideas within technology with the people building it. Each episode aims to put listeners ahead of the curve, covering topics like AI, energy, genomics, space, and more.

Learn More