Henry Ward, cofounder and CEO of Carta, has spent over a decade scaling his company from an early-stage startup to a 2,000-person industry leader. In this a16z Speedrun conversation with Games partner Josh Lu, Henry shares hard-earned lessons on: Hiring missionaries vs. mercenaries — and how to keep company culture intact as you scaleThe reality of product-market fit and why many founders try to sell too soonThe evolution of a CEO — from building a product to building a system around youInputs vs. outputs, and why companies should focus on the right leading indicatorsTransparency in leadership, including when (and when not) to shareThis episode is packed with candid insights and lessons on company building. Recorded live at the a16z Speedrun program, you can learn more at a16z.com/games/speedrun.   Resources:  Find Henry on X: https://x.com/henrysward Find Josh on X: https://x.com/JoshLu   Stay Updated:  Let us know what you think: https://ratethispodcast.com/a16z Find a16z on Twitter: https://twitter.com/a16z Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: https://a16z.simplecast.com/ Follow our host: https://twitter.com/stephsmithio Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

Technology doesn’t grow in isolation—it evolves in waves. Just as mobile, cloud, and SaaS shaped the internet of the past 20 years, so too could crypto, AI, and new hardware usher in an era of the internet that’s pro-innovation, pro-startup, and pro-creator.  Speaking with a16z Growth General Partner David George, a16z crypto Founder and Managing Partner Chris Dixon breaks down his vision for a new internet, from using crypto to decentralize AI infrastructure and kickstart network effects, to why AI will be this era’s native form of media just as film was in the 1930s. He also explores why the internet’s original covenant—where content creators traded free access for search traffic—is breaking today, and how a better internet could introduce entirely new business models for creators.  Right now, we have a choice to make: will the next era of the internet be shaped by a handful of centralized players, or transformed into an open ecosystem where power and control flow to creators across the globe? Resources: Watch the conversation here: https://youtu.be/gioxu1CVjhM   Read more, including the full transcript, here: https://a16z.com/ai-crypto-internet-chris-dixon/ Chris’s recent article on blockchain innovation: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/article/blockchain-ai-internet/ Find Chris’s book, Read Write Own: Building the Next Era of the Internet: Penguin Random House: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/744504/read-write-own-by-chris-dixon/ Penguin UK: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/459860/read-write-own-by-dixon-chris/9781804949245 For more resources on AI & crypto visit: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/?tag=ai-crypto,web2-to-web3 Stay Updated:  Let us know what you think: https://ratethispodcast.com/a16z Find a16z on Twitter: https://twitter.com/a16z Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: https://a16z.simplecast.com/ Follow our host: https://twitter.com/stephsmithio Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.