E2: Applied Intuition on Scaling Culture for a $3B+ Start-Up. It’s All About Execution.

What this episode covers

Qasar Younis and Peter Ludwig of Applied Intuition join Erik and Jack for episode two of “1 to 1000." If you’re looking for SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR or HIPAA compliance, head to Vanta: https://www.vanta.com/1000  --- SPONSORS: Are you building a business? If you’re looking for SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR or HIPAA compliance, head to Vanta. Achieving compliance can actually unlock major growth for your company and build customer loyalty. Vanta automates up to 90% of Compliance work, getting you audit-ready in weeks instead of months and saving 85% of associated costs. 1 to 1000 listeners get $1000 off at: https://www.vanta.com/1000 Metaview is the AI assistant for interviewing. Metaview completely removes the need for recruiters and hiring managers to take notes during interviews—because their AI is designed to take world-class interview notes for you. Team builders at companies like Brex, Robinhood, Quora, and Replit say Metaview has changed the game—see the magic for yourself for free on your first 5 interviews: https://www.metaview.ai/1000 Pesto Tech is a hiring marketplace that makes finding great remote developers fast and easy. They use large language models to evaluate developers along dozens of parameters, including code quality, performance, and security. If you need to start hiring developers fast, all you have to do is answer 5 simple questions on their website: https://pesto.tech --- RECOMMENDED PODCAST: TURPENTINE VC Investor Erik Torenberg interviews partners at the top VCs in the world to learn their approach to the art and science of building a successful venture firm. Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1701006772 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3Yb8ErLRnyoAqn4Y6NegTx --- X / TWITTER: @qasar (Qasar) @jaltma (Jack) @eriktorenberg (Erik Torenberg) @AppliedInt @TurpentineMedia --- TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Episode Preview (00:42) The idea maze of Applied Intuition (06:21) Qasar and Peter's thoughts on YC's thesis for why founders start companies (09:39) Younger vs. older founders and what risks they should take on (13:51) Sponsor: Vanta (14:49) How to be a good founder: through experience (16:33) What industries should founders start companies in? (19:27) People, team, culture at Applied Intuition (21:05) In-office policy vs. remote policy (27:55) Sponsors: Metaview | Pesto Tech (29:33) Unpacking "radical pragmatism" (32:52) The discipline of living out company values (36:51) The challenges of values (40:06) What's Qasar changed his mind on since YC? (42:14) On recruiting (44:16) Qasar and Peter's unique insights on PMF (47:22) How did Applied Intuition know when they had PMF? (48:27) Multi-product companies (50:26) Last thoughts from Qasar This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at [email protected].