Podcast
Inflection Moments
Hosted by David Franklin · EN
Inflection Moments studies the world’s most successful entrepreneurs through the lens of the pivotal turning points in their career. The podcast is brought to you by David Franklin, a 3x Founder and investor in early-stage companies. If you would like to see more from Inflection Moments, head to inflectionmoments.com for our newsletter and bonus resources.
21episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
#37. William Randolph Hearst: Attention is Power
3d ago00:45:29Tap to summarizeWilliam Randolph Hearst was the founder of the Hearst Corporation, the media empire that grew from a single newspaper into one of the most powerful publishing businesses in American history, spanning newspapers, magazines, radio, and film. His episode on Inflection Moments explores how a wealthy but ambitious publisher transformed media into a force of mass influence, blending storytelling, sensationalism, and business strategy to capture attention at unprecedented scale.Hearst’s story runs from taking over the San Francisco Examiner in his early twenties to building a nationwide network of newspapers through aggressive expansion and fierce competition with rivals like Joseph Pulitzer. He pioneers what becomes known as “yellow journalism,” using bold headlines, human drama, and emotional storytelling to drive circulation, and, in the process, reshapes how media engages with the public. Beyond publishing, he expands into magazines, Hollywood, and politics, demonstrating an instinct for both audience psychology and platform leverage.His story is worth studying because it shows how distribution and narrative control can become forms of power as significant as capital or technology. For founders, the takeaways include how to capture attention in crowded markets, how to build media as both product and influence, and how to scale a platform by deeply understanding what audiences respond to. For investors, Hearst’s arc is a case study in the double-edged nature of influence: how building at the intersection of business and public opinion can create immense value, while also carrying profound responsibility.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(03:25) Inflection Point #1: The Letter(11:45) Inflection Point #2: The Invasion of New York(17:53) Inflection Point #3: You Furnish the Pictures, I'll Furnish the War(23:55) Inflection Point #4: The First Synergist(31:04) Inflection Point #5: The Fall(37:39) Common Threads(43:32) Closing ThoughtsConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#36. Holly Jackson: Co-Founder of SheSpot
1w ago01:03:00Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Inflection Conversations, we sit down with Holly Jackson, Co-Founder of SheSpot, to unpack the journey of building a brand in one of the most overlooked and misunderstood categories in consumer health. Holly shares the experiences, mentors, and early institutional lessons that shaped her thinking long before SheSpot existed, and how those influences showed up once she stepped into the reality of building a company herself.We talk through the founding story of SheSpot, the challenge of creating trust and traction in women’s sexual wellness, and the inflection points that forced Holly to sharpen her priorities as a founder. For founders, there’s a lot here on resilience as a daily practice. Holly reflects candidly on decision-making, staying grounded under pressure, and the importance of gratitude while building in a category that requires conviction, patience, and a willingness to challenge convention.Chapters(00:00) Introduction and Background(07:19) Mentors(11:15) Founding Story of SheSpot(17:59) Prioritizing as a Founder(30:29) Takeaways From The First Fundraising Round(43:40) Finding Creative Ways to Build a Business(48:54) Reflections & Advice to Early-Stage Founders(56:21) Rapid Fire Questions(01:00:56) The Power of GratitudeConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#35. Jony Ive: Designing Apple
2w ago00:40:32Tap to summarizeJony Ive is the former Chief Design Officer of Apple, where he led the design of iconic products like the iPhone, iMac, and MacBook, and later the founder of LoveFrom, a creative collective working across design, technology, and culture. His episode on Inflection Moments explores how a quiet, detail-obsessed designer helped turn Apple into the most valuable company in the world by making design, not engineering or marketing, the center of product strategy.Ive’s story runs from studying industrial design in the UK to joining a struggling Apple in the 1990s, where he forms a creative partnership with Steve Jobs that would define an era. Together, they simplify product lines, obsess over materials and user experience, and ship breakthrough products that feel both inevitable and magical. Ive’s philosophy becomes embedded in Apple’s DNA and influences an entire generation of designers and founders.His story is worth studying because it shows how taste, when paired with conviction and execution, can become a competitive advantage at massive scale. For founders, the takeaways include how to build products that feel intuitive rather than explained, how to align design and business strategy, and how to protect creative standards even under commercial pressure. For investors, Ive’s arc is a reminder that enduring value is often created by those who obsess over things others consider marginal: where craft, brand, and user experience compound into something far greater than features alone.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(03:27) Inflection Point #1: Almost Quitting Design(09:30) Inflection Point #2: Joining Apple(14:45) Inflection Point #3: The iMac(20:13) Inflection Point #4: Scaling the Philosophy(25:41) Inflection Point #5: Redefining His Role(31:02) Common Threads(37:40) Closing RemarksConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#34. Stephen Schwarzman: Go Big
3w ago00:41:12Tap to summarizeStephen Schwarzman is the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, which pioneered private equity at scale and helped redefine how capital is deployed across industries globally. His episode on Inflection Moments explores how a disciplined, intensely competitive operator built a firm that not only executes deals, but shapes entire markets through strategy, timing, and access.Schwarzman’s story runs from growing up in a family retail business to studying at Yale and Harvard, then cutting his teeth at Lehman Brothers before co-founding Blackstone in 1985 with Pete Peterson. Early on, the firm struggles to raise capital and credibility, but Schwarzman leans into relationship-building, rigorous analysis, and a willingness to pursue complex, high-stakes deals others avoid. Over time, Blackstone expands beyond private equity into real estate, credit, and infrastructure; turning scale, information, and network into a compounding moat.This story is worth studying because it shows how elite capital allocators think: how they evaluate risk, structure deals, and play long-term games in environments defined by uncertainty and competition. For founders, the takeaways include how to think like an investor in your own business, how to negotiate from strength, and how to build leverage through relationships and reputation. For investors, Schwarzman’s arc is a masterclass in institutional excellence; in particular demonstrating how discipline, patience, and strategic ambition can turn capital into an enduring business.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(03:08) Inflection Point #1: The Philadelphia Shop(08:46) Inflection Point #2: Lehman Brothers(14:27) Inflection Point #3: Founding Blackstone(20:24) Inflection Point #4: The Edgcomb Disaster(25:58) Inflection Point #5: Going Public(32:08) Common Threads(38:38) Closing RemarksConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#33. Tony Hsieh: Delivering Happiness
May 400:43:45Tap to summarizeTony Hsieh was the CEO of Zappos, the online shoe and apparel retailer that became legendary for its customer service and was acquired by Amazon for approximately $1.2 billion. His episode on Inflection Moments explores how a Harvard computer science graduate and early internet entrepreneur transformed a struggling e-commerce company into a cultural icon by treating happiness, not just revenue, as the core business metric.Hsieh’s story runs from selling his first company, LinkExchange, to Microsoft, to joining Zappos when it was close to failure, and making a contrarian bet: that the best way to win online retail was through extraordinary customer experience, not price competition. He embedded this philosophy into the company’s DNA: offering free returns, 24/7 support, and empowering employees to go above and beyond in ways that felt humanitarian and memorable.His story is worth studying because it challenges the assumption that culture is secondary to strategy, instead showing that culture can be the strategy. For founders, the takeaways include how to operationalize values, how to build loyalty through emotional connection, and how to create a company people genuinely want to be part of. For investors, Hsieh’s journey highlights the long-term value of intangible assets: demonstrating that when culture and customer experience are deeply aligned, they can become one of the most durable competitive advantages in business.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(03:18) Inflection Point #1: LinkExchange(09:54) Inflection Point #2: All-In(16:45) Inflection Point #3: The Warehouse Pivot(22:22) Inflection Point #4: The Culture Machine(29:20) Inflection Point #5: The Amazon Deal(36:14) Common Threads(42:37) Closing ThoughtsConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#32. Dario Amodei: Building The Most Powerful AI
Apr 2700:43:48Tap to summarizeDario Amodei is the co-founder and CEO of Anthropic, the AI research company behind Claude. His episode on Inflection Moments explores how a physicist-turned-AI-researcher became one of the central figures shaping the trajectory and safety of artificial intelligence at a moment when the stakes are global and irreversible.Amodei’s story runs from academic work in physics and neuroscience to joining OpenAI in its early days, where he becomes deeply involved in scaling frontier models and understanding their risks. In 2021, he makes a pivotal decision: leaving OpenAI alongside a group of colleagues to found Anthropic, driven by a conviction that AI systems must be built with safety, alignment, and interpretability at their core. That decision positions Anthropic as one of the leading players in the race to build powerful, reliable AI systems.His story is worth studying because it sits at the frontier of one of the most important technological shifts in history. This is where technical insight, ethical judgment, and strategic timing all collide. For founders, the takeaways include how to operate in ambiguity, how to build around first-principles beliefs even when it means leaving powerful institutions, and how to align mission with execution in deeply technical domains. For investors, Amodei’s arc raises critical questions about how to evaluate companies where the upside is enormous but the externalities are equally profound, and what it means to support builders shaping not just markets, but the future of intelligence itself.Chapters(00:00) Intro(03:32) Inflection Point #1: The Loss(08:19) Inflection Point #2: The Smooth Trends(14:07) Inflection Point #3: The Paper Nobody Read(19:59) Inflection Point #4: Building the Future at OpenAI(27:43) Inflection Point #5: Founding Anthropic(37:20) Common Threads(42:19) Closing RemarksConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#31. Anders Björkstål: Mastering Small Cap Investing
Apr 2001:22:03Tap to summarizeIn this first episode of Inflection Conversations, we sit down with Anders Björkstål to trace the path that shaped him into one of the most thoughtful small cap investors in the industry. From his early years in Sweden to managing capital at institutional funds in London, Anders shares how he built his investing craft from the ground up, and why his edge has come from looking where others don’t, thinking independently, and staying disciplined for longer than most.We talk about the moments that sharpened his philosophy: managing a student fund, learning hard lessons from early mistakes, developing a framework for spotting exceptional capital allocators, and understanding why corporate governance and founder culture matter so much in small caps. This is a conversation about patience, judgment, and what it really means to know what you own.For founders, there’s a lot here beneath the surface of public markets investing: what great investors notice, how long-term trust is built, and why the best businesses so often come back to aligned leadership, disciplined capital allocation, and a culture that compounds quietly over time.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(05:05) Formative Experiences as an Investor(12:42) Managing the University Student Fund(20:14) Compounding at 50% as an Investor(24:19) Corporate Governance in Sweden(33:35) Biggest Investing Mistake(40:13) Biggest Investing Win(47:09) Corporate Governance in Small Caps(58:21) How Your Investment Philosophy Evolves Over Time(01:03:34) The 3 Stages of an Investor(01:08:23) The Issue With Not Knowing What You Own(01:16:21) Quick-fire QuestionsConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#30. Andy Grove: Only The Paranoid Survive
Apr 1300:54:18Tap to summarizeAndy Grove is the former CEO and chairman of Intel, the semiconductor company that powered the personal computer revolution and became one of the most important technology businesses of the twentieth century. His episode on Inflection Moments follows how a Hungarian refugee who survived Nazi occupation and Soviet repression becomes one of the most disciplined, intense, and consequential operators in business history.Grove’s story runs from fleeing Budapest and arriving in America with almost nothing, to helping build Intel alongside Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore, to making the brutal strategic call that defines his legacy: exiting memory chips and betting the company on microprocessors. He pairs that clarity with an operating philosophy built on paranoia, candor, and confrontation. These ideas that later shape generations of founders and executives through books like High Output Management and Only the Paranoid Survive.His story is worth studying because it shows what real strategic inflection-point leadership looks like when the stakes are existential and sentimentality is a liability. For founders, you’ll take away how to confront painful truths early, how to build systems for rigorous decision-making, and how to separate identity from strategy when a company must reinvent itself to survive. For investors and backers, Grove’s arc is a blueprint for recognizing leaders who can navigate category transitions not by protecting the past, but by dismantling it before the market does.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(03:07) Inflection Point #1: Surviving The Holocaust(09:48) Inflection Point #2: Swimming To Freedom(17:16) Inflection Point #3: Beating Motorola At Their Own Game(25:55) Inflection Point #4: Killing Your Darlings(34:53) Inflection Point #5: When Paranoia Isn't Enough(43:24) Common Threads(52:05) Closing RemarksConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#29. Bernard Arnault: The Luxury Empire Builder
Apr 600:45:49Tap to summarizeBernard Arnault is the chairman and CEO of LVMH, the luxury conglomerate behind brands like Louis Vuitton, Dior, Tiffany & Co., and Moët Hennessy, and the man who assembled the most powerful portfolio in modern luxury. His episode on Inflection Moments follows how an engineer from a French construction family turns a distressed textile holding into a global empire by treating brands as compounding assets and creativity as a form of capital allocation.Arnault’s story runs from his takeover of Boussac, which owned Christian Dior, to decades of disciplined acquisitions, ruthless internal competition, and long-term stewardship across fashion, jewelry, wines, spirits, and beauty. What makes him different is that he doesn’t just buy brands. Instead, he protects their mythology, upgrades their distribution, installs elite operators, and compounds prestige without letting scarcity disappear.His story is worth studying because it shows what it looks like to build a holding company where taste, power, and financial discipline reinforce each other over decades. For founders, the takeaways include how to think about brand as an appreciating asset, how to balance creative freedom with operational control, and how to scale without collapsing exclusivity. For investors, Arnault’s arc is a masterclass in category leadership through portfolio construction, and proof that the right assets, held and managed correctly, can become more valuable precisely because they are not built for everyone.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(03:10) Inflection Point #1: The Real Estate Pivot(09:43) Inflection Point #2: The Boussac Acquisition(18:00) Inflection Point #3: Creating LVMH(24:32) Inflection Point #4: The Decentralized Management Style(31:28) Inflection Point #5: Long-term Vision(38:56) Common Threads(43:59) Closing RemarksConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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#28. Ingvar Kamprad: Efficiency as a Way of Life
Mar 3000:57:13Tap to summarizeIngvar Kamprad was the founder of IKEA, the furniture company that transformed how the world furnishes its homes by making design-driven living accessible to everyone. His episode on Inflection Moments explores how a farm boy from rural Sweden built a global retail phenomenon, which was anchored not by luxury or excess, but by radical efficiency, empathy for customers, and a deep belief in simplicity as the ultimate sophistication.Kamprad’s story runs from selling matches and fish as a teenager to founding IKEA in 1943 and pioneering the concept of flat-pack furniture: a design born from frustration when a table leg wouldn’t fit in a car. By reimagining the entire furniture supply chain (i.e. self-service warehouses, sleek Scandinavian design, and affordable pricing), he built a business that turned cost-cutting into a philosophy of empowerment. Even as IKEA expanded to dominate global markets, Kamprad lived modestly, drove an old Volvo, and reinforced the company’s values of thrift, humility, and functionality.His story is worth studying because it shows that innovation often comes from constraint, not abundance. For founders, the takeaways include how to turn practicality into brand identity, how to scale design thinking without elitism, and how to create operational systems that remain customer-centric across continents. For investors, Kamprad’s arc is a masterclass in sustainable growth, and the power of aligning product, culture, and mission so tightly that efficiency itself becomes a competitive moat.Chapters(00:00) Introduction(02:37) Inflection Point #1: The Foundation(12:11) Inflection Point #2: The Founding(19:53) Inflection Point #3: The Pivot(29:53) Inflection Point #4: The Flat-Pack(40:29) Inflection Point #5: The Boycott(47:23) Common Threads(54:14) Closing RemarksConnectFollow our channels below if you're interested in insights, ideas, and lessons from the greatest entrepreneurs in history:Newsletter: www.inflectionmoments.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/david-franklin8456/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0aqoOm53QLcOgyOkXFXNkO?si=a6474541e17f4db7Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inflection-moments/id1841530808YouTube: @InflectionMomentsIf you're enjoying the episodes, make sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel so you never miss an episode.
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