This week, we host Kate McAndrew, founding partner of Baukunst. We discuss the ‘art of building’ successful startups and VC firms as well as the philosophy and practices that have driven Kate to find and invest in groundbreaking technologies over her venture career. From building and leading a $100 million Fund I to championing innovative business models, Kate shares her journey and insights on taking risks, the importance of art and design in technology, and how to be the perfect board member for transformative companies. If you're curious about what it takes to build the future and create category-defining companies that matter, this conversation is for you. About VSC Ventures: VSC Ventures is an early-stage venture capital fund led by Jay Kapoor and Vijay Chattha where we invest in early-stage startups and support our founders with hands-on PR, storytelling, and go-to-market work with help from our award-winning PR agency VSC. Our fund has invested alongside Lowercarbon, NEA, Uncork Capital, Left Lane, Alley Corp, Obvious Ventures, Third Sphere, and other leading early-stage funds. Through our weekly conversations on our show CLIMB by VSC, we're excited to share our work with innovative companies like Paintjet, Glacier, Concrete.AI, Presso, ⁠⁠Ample⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Actual⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Sesame Solar⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Synop⁠⁠, ⁠and Vibrant Planet⁠⁠ in addition to highlighting companies and leading voices across the early stage ecosystem. Chapters 00:00:00 Trailer 00:00:44 Introduction 00:07:21 What's the secret to leading pre-seed rounds successfully 00:11:33 How do founders find the right Venture Capital fit 00:20:57 Focusing solely on the end goal can lead to failure 00:23:29 How do founders stay motivated for goals YEARS AWAY 00:33:26 Resume Versus Real Experience: What Matters Most? 00:35:40 How an Airbnb executive created a baby formula brand 00:41:36 Why some founders succeed without deep industry experience 00:45:54 How do Venture Capital Teams handle competition 00:49:50 Being too hard on yourself can doom your startup 00:53:19 Technology isn't the only answer to climate change