#51 Sam Lessin: A VC’s Take On Why Decentralization Is Inevitable
Tue Feb 03 2026
I sit down with Sam Lessin, Cofounder and General Partner at Slow Ventures, to unpack why he believes decentralization is inevitable.
Sam is an original thinker and really fun to talk to. He and the Slow team have built an impressive track record of being early and right. They’ve made early investments in Robinhood, Pinterest, Nextdoor, Solana, Airtable, and more.
In this wide-ranging and entertaining conversation, we discuss:
* How the Internet ironically became the greatest centralizing machine ever
* How the, “Physics of Technology” make centralization and decentralization inevitable cycles
* Why capitalism serves dollars, not people
* Why Slow Ventures invests in unpopular ideas and refuses to be specialists
* The brittle food system
* VC’s broken incentives
Enjoy!
Watch on YouTube; listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Recording date: December 17, 2025
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
01:44 Slow Ventures Approach To Investing
04:41 The Role Of Content In Venture Capital
07:41 Is Decentralization Inevitable?
15:24 Why The Internet Centralized Everything
17:43 Technology As Leverage To Decentralize
23:59 Incentive Structures In Decentralized Models
31:23 Early Facebook Days
32:09 Current Narrative In Silicon Valley
34:54 Delusion Of Greatness in Tech
37:09 Birth Of Slow Ventures
39:01 VC Challenges In Funding Decentralization
42:45 How AI Is Changing Seed Investing
45:47 Concept Of Memetic Warfare
49:33 Slow Ventures Etiquette School
51:32 Rapid Fire
Follow Jordan on X:
* https://x.com/jrwolfe
Links to Sam’s Work:
* X – https://x.com/lessin
* Slow Ventures – https://slow.co/
* The Slow Ventures Guide to Etiquette – https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Etiquette-Technology-Finance-Society/dp/B0G43P4PBD
Resources Mentioned:
* Meme Lord – https://www.memelord.com/
Remember to go direct!
Jordan
P.S. Build with love
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit goingdirect.substack.com
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I sit down with Sam Lessin, Cofounder and General Partner at Slow Ventures, to unpack why he believes decentralization is inevitable. Sam is an original thinker and really fun to talk to. He and the Slow team have built an impressive track record of being early and right. They’ve made early investments in Robinhood, Pinterest, Nextdoor, Solana, Airtable, and more. In this wide-ranging and entertaining conversation, we discuss: * How the Internet ironically became the greatest centralizing machine ever * How the, “Physics of Technology” make centralization and decentralization inevitable cycles * Why capitalism serves dollars, not people * Why Slow Ventures invests in unpopular ideas and refuses to be specialists * The brittle food system * VC’s broken incentives Enjoy! Watch on YouTube; listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Recording date: December 17, 2025 Chapters 00:00 Introduction 01:44 Slow Ventures Approach To Investing 04:41 The Role Of Content In Venture Capital 07:41 Is Decentralization Inevitable? 15:24 Why The Internet Centralized Everything 17:43 Technology As Leverage To Decentralize 23:59 Incentive Structures In Decentralized Models 31:23 Early Facebook Days 32:09 Current Narrative In Silicon Valley 34:54 Delusion Of Greatness in Tech 37:09 Birth Of Slow Ventures 39:01 VC Challenges In Funding Decentralization 42:45 How AI Is Changing Seed Investing 45:47 Concept Of Memetic Warfare 49:33 Slow Ventures Etiquette School 51:32 Rapid Fire Follow Jordan on X: * https://x.com/jrwolfe Links to Sam’s Work: * X – https://x.com/lessin * Slow Ventures – https://slow.co/ * The Slow Ventures Guide to Etiquette – https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Etiquette-Technology-Finance-Society/dp/B0G43P4PBD Resources Mentioned: * Meme Lord – https://www.memelord.com/ Remember to go direct! Jordan P.S. Build with love This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit goingdirect.substack.com