Rephonic
Artwork for Founders in Arms
Entrepreneurship
Artificial Intelligence
Consumer Startups
Fintech
Openai
Product-Market Fit
Remote Work
Amazon
Gaming
Longevity
Personal Finance
Startups
Social Networks
User Feedback
Large Language Models
High-Skilled Immigration
Silicon Valley
Fraud Detection
Kayak
Applyboard

In this weekly series, fellow startup founders Immad Akhund (Mercury) and Rajat Suri (Presto, Lima, and Lyft) explore current events in the world of tech, startup, and policy, offering insights from their distinguished careers and an array of expert guests. YouTube: youtube.com/@FoundersInArms Substack: foundersinarms.substack.com Instagram: instagram.com/foundersinarms TikTok: tiktok.com/@founder... more

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes99Founded3 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
ScienceTechnology

Listen to this Podcast

Artwork for Founders in Arms

Latest Episodes

This week, we're bringing back one of our most loved episodes on Founders in Arms. Ryan Gariépy is the co-founder and former CTO of Clearpath Robotics and Otto Motors, acquired by Rockwell Automation for $600M+ in 2023. He bootstrapped the company fo... more

YouTube

Marco Zapacosta is the co-founder and CEO of Thumbtack, the home services marketplace connecting homeowners with local pros for everything from plumbing to renovation. Started three weeks before Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008, Thumbtack has grown ... more

YouTube

Noah Smith is a writer and Substack blogger behind Noahpinion, known for his contrarian, data-grounded takes on economics, technology, and geopolitics.

What you'll learn:

• Why the viral Citrini "2028 Global Intelligence Crisis" post moved markets ... more

YouTube

We're bringing back one of our most loved episode on Founders in Arms.

Parag Agrawal is the co-founder and CEO of Parallel, building infrastructure for the agentic web. Previously CEO of Twitter, Parag now leads a company architecting how AI agents... more

YouTube

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Contact Information
Podcast Host
Number of Listeners
Find out how many people listen to this podcast per episode and each month.

Similar Podcasts

People also subscribe to these shows.

Recent Guests

Ryan Gariépy
Former CTO and co-founder of Clearpath Robotics and Otto Motors; VP of Robotics at Rockwell Automation
Rockwell Automation (VP of Robotics); former Clearpath/ Otto Motors
Episode: The State of Robotics in 2026: Ryan Gariépy on Hype, Reality, and Long-Term Thinking
Marco Zapacosta
Founder and CEO of Thumbtack
Episode: Thumbtack’s Marco Zappacosta on AI, Trust, and the Future of Marketplaces
Vishwas Prabhakara
Founder of Honey Homes
Honey Homes
Episode: Building a Services Business in a Tech World with Honey Homes' Vishwas Prabhakara
Max Mullen
Co-founder of Instacart and active investor
Instacart
Episode: Instacart's Max Mullen on Building Instacart and the Future of AI: First Live Founders in Arms
Mehul Nariyawala
Co-founder and president of Matic Robotics
Matic Robotics
Episode: How Matic Built an Intelligent Home Robot (While Others Failed) With Mehul Nariyawala
Jack Zhang
Founder and CEO of Airwallex
Airwallex
Episode: Building a Global Payments Platform with Airwallex's Jack Zhang
Ryan Gariepy
Co-founder of Clearpath Robotics and Vice President of Robotics at Rockwell Automation
Rockwell Automation
Episode: The State of Robotics in 2026: Ryan Gariepy on Hype, Reality, and Long-Term Thinking
Emmett Shear
Founder and CEO of Softmax, formerly co-founder and CEO of Twitch
Softmax
Episode: AGI, Alignment, and the Future of AI Power With Emmett Shear
Noah Glass
Founder and CEO of Olo
Olo
Episode: Embrace the Suck: How Olo Survived 10 Years to Product-Market Fit With Noah Glass

Host

Immad Akhund
Co-founder and CEO of Mercury, host with extensive experience in tech startups and angel investing.

Reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars from 30 ratings
  • Real Founder Stories & Advice

    Really enjoy the real founder stories and practical advice. Especially enjoyed the recent one with Joris Poort from Rescale!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    .-:-:-.
    United States7 months ago
  • Unique and amazing

    This podcast is incredible. Getting insights from founders like Raj and Immad is so valuable. They both have unique perspectives: Raj knows consumers (Lyft), hardware (Presto), community/messaging (Tribe), immigration (Lima); and Immad knows banking/b2b/PLG (Mercury), angel investing (prolific angel investor), and even space (sci-fi nerd). They also push back on each others perspectives constantly in a great way. I look forward to Fridays because of this podcast, these guys are great!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Wolf of Ball Street
    United States8 months ago
  • Best podcast about founders and startups

    Really enjoy listening to this one - tonnes of valuable insights and great stories from several experienced entrepreneurs

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Everand88
    United States10 months ago
  • A Disappointing Echo Chamber for the Overhyped Elite

    Founders in Arms bills itself as a tech-savvy deep dive into startups and policy, but what it delivers is a self-congratulatory slog through recycled Silicon Valley talking points. Hosts Immad Akhund and Rajat Suri, despite their pedigrees, seem more interested in reinforcing their own status than providing real insight. The discussions rarely rise above surface-level commentary, often devolving into vague anecdotes that serve little purpose beyond name-dropping.

    Worse, the show lacks structure... more

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    RedRedRaleigh
    United States10 months ago
  • Founders like me, but further along

    This show is like being coached by a massively more successful colleague. It’s super deep and super conversational and delivered by gents who have seen it all scaling and come out on the other side. I wish I had found this show a long time ago.

    Apple Podcasts
    4
    Suebeaux
    United Statesa year ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Some critical feedback suggests that the series can occasionally feel self-congratulatory or lacking depth in certain episodes.
The discussions are seen as valuable sources of inspiration for those in the startup ecosystem.
Listeners appreciate the authentic narratives from founders and practical advice shared.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#125
Philippines/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#172
Israel/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#238
Poland/Technology

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

The State of Robotics in 2026: Ryan Gariépy on Hype, Reality, and Long-Term Thinking
Q: What three areas would you invest in today in robotics as an investor?
Invest in areas with clear engineering risk but practical go-to-market execution, ensure the team has real domain experience, and target deployments where the design domain fits the customer needs (construction, airports, farms, etc.), while avoiding overreliance on a single, unproven business model.
The State of Robotics in 2026: Ryan Gariépy on Hype, Reality, and Long-Term Thinking
Q: Do you think humanoid robots will become mainstream anytime soon?
Humanoids have immense research value and potential in industry, but current cost structures, programming complexity, and real-world utility mean widespread adoption is likely still years away; other robotic forms may deliver more immediate, scalable impact.
The State of Robotics in 2026: Ryan Gariépy on Hype, Reality, and Long-Term Thinking
Q: What do you see as the biggest challenges facing robotics startups today?
The biggest challenges are aligning engineering risk with a viable go-to-market and a capable team that truly understands the end problem, rather than chasing hype ideas; hardware remains hard, manufacturing scale matters, and practical deployments in industry require a disciplined product and sales approach.
How AI Agents Will Reshape the Web with Parag Agrawal
Q: Can you give us an example of someone using Parallel?
Coding agents using Parallel's APIs to access the web for information like documentation or competitive analysis.
Building a Services Business in a Tech World with Honey Homes' Vishwas Prabhakara
Q: What challenges do you face as a startup?
The biggest challenge is gaining visibility and understanding from the broader market while pushing towards a large vision.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
Location
Interests
Professions
Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About Founders in Arms

What is Founders in Arms about and what kind of topics does it cover?

The series presents discussions led by experienced startup founders who analyze current events in technology, startups, and policy. Through insightful dialogues, listeners can expect to gain valuable perspectives from the hosts' own entrepreneurial journeys and their interactions with notable industry experts. The series stands out by fostering a community of fellow founders and tech enthusiasts, making it an appealing source of guidance and inspiration for those navigating the startup landscape.

Where can I find podcast stats for Founders in Arms?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for Founders in Arms. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to Founders in Arms and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does Founders in Arms get?

Rephonic provides a full set of podcast information for three million podcasts, including the number of listeners. View further listenership figures for Founders in Arms, including podcast download numbers and subscriber numbers, so you can make better decisions about which podcasts to sponsor or be a guest on. You will need to upgrade your account to access this premium data.

What are the audience demographics for Founders in Arms?

Rephonic provides comprehensive predictive audience data for Founders in Arms, including gender skew, age, country, political leaning, income, professions, education level, and interests. You can access these listener demographics by upgrading your account.

How many subscribers and views does Founders in Arms have?

To see how many followers or subscribers Founders in Arms has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

Which podcasts are similar to Founders in Arms?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Founders in Arms:

1. The a16z Show
2. Dwarkesh Podcast
3. All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg
4. Decoder with Nilay Patel
5. Planet Money

How many episodes of Founders in Arms are there?

Founders in Arms launched 3 years ago and published 99 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact Founders in Arms?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for Founders in Arms?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for Founders in Arms from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

View all the reviews in one place instead of visiting each platform individually and use this information to decide if a show is worth pitching or not.

How do I access podcast episode transcripts for Founders in Arms?

Rephonic provides full transcripts for episodes of Founders in Arms. Search within each transcript for your keywords, whether they be topics, brands or people, and figure out if it's worth pitching as a guest or sponsor. You can even set-up alerts to get notified when your keywords are mentioned.

What guests have appeared on Founders in Arms?

Recent guests on Founders in Arms include:

1. Ryan Gariépy
2. Marco Zapacosta
3. Vishwas Prabhakara
4. Max Mullen
5. Mehul Nariyawala
6. Jack Zhang
7. Ryan Gariepy
8. Emmett Shear

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

Find and pitch the right podcasts

We help savvy brands, marketers and PR professionals to find the right podcasts for any topic or niche. Get the data and contacts you need to pitch podcasts at scale and turn listeners into customers.
Try it free for 7 days