Podcast
Tacos and Tech Podcast
Hosted by Neal Bloom · EN
The Tacos and Tech Podcast highlights the builders of companies, technologies, ecosystems with a local flair for our lifestyle as well.
risingtidepartners.substack.com
risingtidepartners.substack.com
37episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
From Operator to Fund Manager
5d ago00:46:56Tap to summarizeEpisode SummaryNeal sits down with Will Alaynick, managing partner at Phase Two Ventures, for a fireside chat on what it actually looks like to go from building a company to running a venture fund. Will walks through his journey from operating a life science instrumentation startup - backed by a strategic investor who gave him governance, talent, and manufacturing access - to raising a fund focused on the tools and infrastructure layer of biotech. They dig into how fund managers evaluate deals differently than angels, why SBIR funding can be a double-edged sword, and what it takes to say no for a living.Key Topics* How a strategic investor provided governance, talent, and manufacturing - not just capital* Building Phase Two Ventures from operator pattern recognition* Evaluating life science deals through the lens of an ex-founder* SBIR funding as a signal - and when it becomes a distraction* The difference between angel deal evaluation and fund-level portfolio construction* Why most of the venture job is saying no - and how to do it humanely* AI's emerging role in life science - and why wet labs still matter* What angels should know before making the leap to managing a fundLinks & Resources* Phase Two Ventures* San Diego Angel Conference* Rising Tide PartnersConnect on LinkedIn* Will Alaynick* Neal Bloom This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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The Operator's Edge: From San Diego Angel Academy
2w ago01:03:01Tap to summarizeAngel Academy Session 3 brings together a panel of San Diego operators who crossed over to the investor side - including Katherine Chapin, Dane Chapin, Ken Potashner, and Bardia Moayedi with backgrounds spanning investment banking, corporate law, and consumer products. The conversation gets honest fast: what it means to bet on a founder who introduces herself as "just a mom," why losing money on a deal teaches you more than any pitch deck, and how San Diego's open, collaborative angel community creates a fundamentally different deal flow than Silicon Valley's closed-door networks.Key Topics* Operating experience as an angel investor's real edge* The "just a mom" story: why passion beats pedigree every time* Dane Chapin's board game company postmortem and what losing taught him* San Diego's open angel ecosystem vs. Silicon Valley's closed networks* Underestimating risk: the Coin investment and what it revealed* Co-investing with spouses and building shared conviction* Why brand obsession signals a founder worth backing* Pitch contests vs. relationship-driven deal flowLinks & Resources* San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC): https://sdangel.com* SDSU ZIP Launchpad: https://ziplaunchpad.sdsu.edu* Rising Tide Partners: https://risingtidepartners.coConnect on LinkedIn* Dane Chapin* Katherine Chapin* Ken Potashner* Bardia Moayedi* Neal Bloom This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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This Week in San Diego Tech News - May 2026
2w ago00:18:03Tap to summarizeListen & subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube.Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News!I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners.This week, I’m flying solo on the mic to unpack a busy week in San Diego tech.Before we dive in, we wanted to thank you and ask our listeners to help us grow the show, leave a review and share with one other person who should be more plugged in with the SD Tech Scene. Thank you for the support and for helping us build the San Diego Startup Community!Topics CoveredSuja IPO & San Diego’s Consumer Brand Pipeline* Suja Life IPO* Coca-Cola’s early investment thesis* San Diego as a premium wellness and consumer products launchpad* Comparison to other recent San Diego consumer brand IPOs* Why San Diego may be one of America’s best “test markets” for health & lifestyle brandsStone Brewing, Sapporo & Maria Stipp’s Exit Track Record* Stone Brewing acquisition news* The evolution of San Diego’s craft brewing ecosystem* Maria Stipp’s leadership journey across:* EcoATM* Lagunitas* Stone Brewing* Suja* Siete Foods board involvement* The importance of experienced operators recycling through ecosystemsFirestorm Labs Is on an Absolute Heater* Firestorm Labs raises $82M Series B* New $30M defense contract* Distributed manufacturing and edge logistics* “Factories in shipping containers”* Why modern defense tech is increasingly about adaptability and rapid production* Firestorm hosting the first annual Hardtech 50 Release PartyHardtech 50 + Next Wave 30* Why it became impossible to stop at just 50 companies* San Diego’s growing density across:* aerospace* robotics* autonomy* semiconductors* energy* ocean tech* manufacturing* - The rise of interdisciplinary founders and “things that move atoms”UCSD’s Deep Tech Infrastructure Push* University of California San Diego and advanced engineering initiatives* Supercomputing, fusion, AI infrastructure, and scientific tooling* The importance of compute, cooling, energy, and simulation infrastructure* The long-term impact of institutions like:* Qualcomm* General Atomics* San Diego Supercomputer Center* Navy-affiliated researchReferenced article: UCSD Guardian coverageScripps + San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance* Scripps Institution of Oceanography* San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance* Conservation, climate science, oceanography, and AI converging* Why proximity between institutions creates innovation densityReferenced article: Scripps announcement This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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What Two Operators Learned Writing First Checks
3w ago01:05:18Tap to summarizeAngel Academy Session 2 puts two founder-turned-investors on stage: Neal Bloom and Ashok Kamal. Both built companies, stumbled through first exits, and eventually landed on the investor side of the table. The conversation covers what actually changes when you go from pitching to writing checks — how to evaluate founders when there's nothing but a prototype, why saying no fast is a form of respect, and what most first-time angels get wrong about time horizons and portfolio construction. It's a candid, unscripted look at the operator lens that shapes how both of them deploy capital.Key Topics* Neal's founder-to-investor arc: aerospace to startups to fund manager* Ashok's path from recycled-backpack startup to NuFund* Why saying no quickly is the most respectful thing an investor can do* Being helpful versus intrusive as a post-investment supporter* First-check misconceptions: what new angels get wrong* Jockey versus horse — evaluating founders when traction is thin* NuFund's annual fund model and top-quartile performance* How to think about projections at the earliest stagesLinks & Resources* San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC): https://sdac.sdsu.edu* NuFund Venture Group: https://nufund.com* SDSU ZIP Launchpad: https://ziplaunchpad.sdsu.edu* Rising Tide Partners: https://risingtidepartners.coConnect on LinkedIn* Neal Bloom: linkedin.com/in/nealbbloom* Ashok Kamal: linkedin.com/in/ashokkamal This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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Podcast with Paige Craig of Outlander VC: People Over Plans
4w ago00:34:56Tap to summarizeNeal sits down with Paige Craig, Founder and Managing Partner at Outlander VC, the first-check fund that backs founders as early as humanly possible. Paige shares how growing up homeless, bootstrapping a defense tech company during the Iraq War, and years of studying what makes founders tick led him to build a 38-point framework for picking people - not plans. They cover physical AI, manufacturing, defense tech, and why first-time founders still get his first call. And yes, there are duck carnitas involved.Key Topics* Outlander’s first-check model: investing before product or metrics exist* The 38-point founder framework: vision, intelligence, character, execution* Why first-time founders often outperform repeat founders on a risk-adjusted basis* Bootstrapping a defense tech company in 2003 - driving into Iraq to win contracts* Physical AI as a 20-year defining theme* Manufacturing and industrial automation as the next frontier* The coming dislocation of creative talent from AI* Defense tech investment beyond the hype cycleLinks & Resources* Outlander * Scale AI* Brad FeldConnect on LinkedIn* Paige Craig This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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A portfolio approach to angel investing
Apr 2100:41:22Tap to summarizeThe 2026 San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC) kicks off with Angel Academy Session 1, hosted at SDSU's ZIP Launchpad. Neal Bloom walks a room of aspiring and returning angel investors through the fundamentals — what angel investing actually looks like, how the SDAC's group diligence process works, and why a portfolio approach matters more than picking one winner. With 135 startup applications on the table and a Decision Day set for May 29, the session lays out the full arc from learning to deploying capital.Key Topics* What angel investing is and why it's a learned muscle* The SDAC's group diligence model: applications to investment* Portfolio approach: deploying into 3–5 companies* Why in-person founder pitches change the calculus* The "Super Bowl" — May 29 Decision Day and what it means* Fund structure: $200K–$2M raise range, SPV side vehicles* Last year's fund: $440K deployed into three companiesLinks & Resources* San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC): https://sdangel.com* SDSU ZIP Launchpad: https://ziplaunchpad.sdsu.edu* Rising Tide Partners: https://risingtidepartners.co This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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The AI Strategy Gap
Apr 1400:57:39Tap to summarizeIn this weeks episode, I sit down with Grayson LaFrenz and Chad Lohrli, two of the co-founders of Cadre AI, the San Diego-based AI strategy and integration firm helping mid-market companies turn AI hype into P&L impact. They get into why 99 out of 100 business leaders still can’t point to measurable ROI from AI, how Cadre’s pod model mirrors the playbook Grayson used to build Power Digital into a record-setting exit, and why change management - not technology - is the real bottleneck. The taco question made an appearance.Key Topics* Why most companies have no real AI strategy* Grayson’s path from Power Digital’s PE exit to Cadre AI* Chad’s journey from hackathons and SDX to co-founding Cadre* How Cadre’s pod system verticalizes AI delivery* The maturity index that exposes C-suite blind spots* Why services businesses lose operating leverage at scale* Building reusable AI blocks across clients* Turning call recordings into an autonomous client intelligence system* Why change management is harder than the technologyLinks & Resources* Cadre AI* SDx Community* Power DigitalConnect on LinkedIn* Grayson LaFrenz* Chad Lohrli* Neal Bloom This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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Four Questions Before You Write the Check
Apr 700:29:19Tap to summarizeEpisode SummaryNeal Bloom takes the stage at the 2026 San Diego Angel Conference Knowledge & Networking Event at SDSU to walk a room full of aspiring and active angel investors through the four questions he uses to evaluate early-stage companies. Using live audience exercises - pitching Uber, Airbnb, and Palantir in one sentence, debating whether Viori was a pass or a miss - he turns startup evaluation from an abstract skill into something visceral and personal. This isn’t theory. It’s how the sausage gets made when real capital is on the line.Key Topics* The four-question framework for evaluating startups* Why clarity is a test of the founder, not the investor* One-sentence pitching exercises with Uber, Airbnb, and Palantir* Venture scale outcomes vs. good small businesses* Salt Couture vs. Reef vs. Vuori - three paths from the same starting point* How EBITDA, CAC, and growth get valued differently across business types* Excitement as signal, not hype* The calendar test: would you spend one more hour on this company?Links & Resources* San Diego Angel Conference (SDAC)* SDSU Fowler College of Business* Evo Nexus* NuFund* Vuori* Rising Tide PartnersConnect on LinkedIn* Neal Bloom This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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This Week in San Diego Tech News
Apr 300:17:53Tap to summarizeListen & subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube.Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News!I’m Neal Bloom from Rising Tide Partners.My co-host in this episode is Fred Grier, journalist and author of The Business of San Diego substack. He covers the ins-and-outs of the startup world including breaking news, IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A through his newsletter.Before we dive in, we wanted to thank and ask our listeners to help us grow the show, leave a review and share with one other person who should be more plugged in with the SD Tech Scene. Thank you for the support and for helping us build the San Diego Startup Community!April 2Manifold Security Raised $8MRybodyn Raised $10 FundingShield AI Raises $2BCondor Software Series AQ1 2026 Funding Report2026 Cool CompaniesCurated Events List – For full list – check The Social Coyote2026 SD Hardtech 50 Release Event - April 30TechCon SoCal May 21-23 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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Blueprint Equity’s $333M Bet on Early Growth Software
Mar 3100:47:58Tap to summarizeBlueprint Equity just closed a $333M Fund III - and they’re doubling down on a thesis that feels increasingly contrarian in today’s AI-fueled world.In this episode, Neal sits down with Sheldon Lewis and Bobby Ocampo, co-founders and managing partners of La Jolla-based Blueprint Equity, to unpack their “early growth equity” strategy - investing in bootstrapped SaaS companies doing $1–7M in ARR and growing fast.They share their journey from 2008 investment banking crash, near-billion-dollar exits, to building Blueprint from scratch. Along the way, they break down why they call themselves “anti-VC,” how AI is reshaping SaaS economics, and why raising less capital can actually create better founder outcomes.If you’re building in SaaS - especially outside Silicon Valley - this is one to study.Key Topics* What is Early Growth Equity?* From I Banking in 2008 to Building a Fund* The PayLease Story* Why They Call Themselves “Anti-VC”* How AI Is Changing SaaS (But Not Killing It)* Hands-On Portfolio Support* Fund III: $333M Closed* Why Great Companies Can Be Built AnywhereLinks & Resources* Blueprint EquityConnect on LinkedIn* Sheldon Lewis* Bobby Ocampo This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/subscribe
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