Building Lattice & Alt Capital: Jack Altman On Investing & Operating

"Joining a company as early as possible, right after achieving product-market fit, offers the greatest career advantage." – Jack AltmanJack Altman epitomizes the true "Investor-Operator." As the co-founder and former CEO of the multi-billion-dollar startup Lattice, and now a full-time investor with his $150 million venture fund, Alt Capital, Jack has successfully navigated both sides of the entrepreneurial journey. It’s clear he excels in every aspect, and we were thrilled to have him on the show.In this episode, we delve into Jack’s career trajectory, from his early days in tech to how he gained the insight to launch Lattice. Jack shares the invaluable lessons he’s learned from building and scaling Lattice to a Series F company, and how those experiences have shaped his approach to investing.Here’s a breakdown of what we covered:1:20 – How Jack got into tech and landed at a fast-growing startup5:30 – Joining an early-stage company vs. starting your own: which provides better learning?11:30 – The launch of Lattice and pivoting to achieve product-market fit (PMF)14:14 – How to recognize when you’ve found PMF19:20 – Best practices for scaling companies: “If your product won’t be used 10 years from now, you’ll never build a lasting, valuable SaaS business.”21:15 – Jack’s early fundraising mistakes and what he’d do differently24:30 – The top three traits every founder needs30:15 – Transitioning to investing: "My hobby is other startups"39:20 – How being a founder prepares you to be an investor42:40 – How to become a Level 6 investor (Link to Tweet)46:20 – Why point solutions won’t cut it—compound startups will generate the biggest returns51:45 – Investing in AI and the rise of ‘killer apps’58:54 – Investment strategies: should you aim to create returns by incubating or seed funding?1:04:00 – Recap with Tyler & SterlingFor more on Alt Capital, visit altcap.com.Check out Jack’s hierarchy of investors on X (formerly Twitter).Discover more insights from Investor-Operators on the IO Podcast:YouTube: @IO-PodcastX: @IO__podcastTikTok: @io_podcast