Masters of Scale

The buzz in Silicon Valley around AI agents has many asking: What’s real and what’s hype? Box’s co-founder and CEO, Aaron Levie, joins Rapid Response to help decipher between fact and fiction, taking listeners inside the fast-paced evolution of agents and its impact on the future of enterprise AI. Plus, Levie unpacks how AI is really being adopted in the workplace, what it takes to legitimately build an AI-first organizati...

John Green has spent his career telling stories — through novels, YouTube videos, and educational projects like Crash Course. Now, he’s on a mission to eliminate tuberculosis: a curable disease that still kills more than a million people every year. In this episode, Green joins host Jeff Berman to talk about how we could scale solutions to this global health crisis — and how to leverage obsession, creativity, and community...

Amid polarization, AI disruption, and eroding trust in institutions, retired four-star general, Stanley McChrystal, argues that what leaders need now more than ever, is character. Head of the business consulting firm McChrystal Group, Gen. McChrystal returns to Rapid Response to discuss his new book on the subject of character. From AI ethics and modern warfare to hot-button issues like Signalgate and transgender serv...

To scale sustainably, founders must not neglect their mental health. Arianna Huffington learned this the hard way after collapsing from burnout while leading The Huffington Post. She talked with host Reid Hoffman about how that wake-up call sparked her next venture, Thrive Global, which helps companies build cultures that prioritize well-being. With work wellness insights from Huffington, Chris Yeh and Dr. Matt Walker, thi...

When Ju Rhyu moved to South Korea for a corporate job, she noticed people unapologetically wearing hydrocolloid pimple patches on their faces — on the street, at the office, anywhere. She soon realized no one had cornered the US market yet on this skincare secret, and Hero Cosmetics was born. Rhyu joins host Jeff Berman this week to reveal the lessons she learned as a first-time entrepreneur who built a brand that earned a...

Bill Gates announced this week that he will shutter his philanthropic foundation in 20 years – but not before using it to give away $200 billion to fight global diseases. In this archival episode from 2019, he tells host Reid Hoffman the story of how it all started – and how he learned to scale his impact as a philanthropist.

In Part 2 of this special two-part conversation, we’re talking with Bill Gates about the biggest su...

When Elon Musk stepped into the White House spotlight and brought his DOGE chainsaw, no one was better poised to cover the fallout than WIRED. The tech journalism outlet knew Musk’s playbook from the get-go, from years of covering his companies and his takeover of Twitter. WIRED’s Global Editorial Director Katie Drummond joins Rapid Response to take us inside Musk’s transformative, head-spinning time at President Trump’s s...

Dr. Iman Abuzeid didn’t set out to disrupt the healthcare hiring system. But after she began listening more closely — especially to nurses — what she heard was an industry full of friction, delays, and burnout. Fixing that friction became the foundation for Incredible Health, a hiring marketplace now used by more than a million healthcare workers. In this episode, Dr. Abuzeid talks with host Jeff Berman about her strategic...

In his return to Rapid Response, the billionaire entrepreneur, NBA owner, and CEO of Wonder, Marc Lore, told us he plans all his meals with AI – and he loves it. It’s just one part of his vision for transforming our relationship to food and health. His startup Wonder has already acquired Blue Apron, Grubhub and the media brand Tastemade, and he shares how that’s all laddering up to a superapp for meal time. Plus, while man...

Spring cleaning season is in full swing, and this week, we’re revisiting Reid Hoffman’s chat with Adi Tatarko, co-founder and CEO of Houzz, an online platform for home remodeling and design. In this episode recorded in 2021, Tatarko tells the story of founding Houzz with her husband after their own home renovation project turned into a nightmare. They’ve grown Houzz into a bustling platform and marketplace for homeowners, ...

As the founder of World Central Kitchen, renowned chef and humanitarian José Andrés has truly mastered the art of leading through crisis. José returns to Rapid Response to share insights from his new book, Change the Recipe — a candid collection of personal stories that doubles as a playbook for navigating uncertainty, breaking rules, and leading with heart. José also explores how AI is poised to reshape the food industry,...

As CEO and co-founder of Modern Animal, Steven Eidelman is challenging the status quo of veterinary care — an industry long overdue for innovation. In this episode, Eidelman unpacks how Modern Animal is rebuilding the system to better serve vets, pet owners, and their furry companions. With about 600 employees and a rapidly expanding footprint, it’s a scale story full of lessons for anyone who is tired of business as usual...

Amid tariff whiplash and the rejuggling of global trade, GE Vernova’s CEO Scott Strazik is finding a way to stay “relentlessly optimistic.” Strazik returns to Rapid Response to share how the company plans to continue its success as one of Wall Street’s top-performing stocks, despite looming supply chain disruption, and an evolving conversation about climate and the energy transition. Strazik also reflects on rising trends ...

Wellness is no longer just an employee perk — it’s an imperative business strategy. Cesar Carvalho, co-founder and CEO of Wellhub (formerly Gympass), joins host Jeff Berman to make that case and share his vision for the B2B platform providing wellness services and gym access to people worldwide via their employers. Hear why he quit his consulting job and Harvard Business School to start the company, now valued at $2.4 bill...

Many prominent law firms have recently found themselves in President Trump’s crosshairs. Skadden Arps’ attorney, Rachel Cohen, encouraged the firm to fight the government’s pressure, only to have her attempts rebuffed and to be effectively forced out from the firm. Cohen joins Rapid Response to share her dramatic story, and fears about how the rule of law is changing in America. Rachel’s experience raises questions about t...

Reid Hoffman shares the inside story this week of his bold new venture to disrupt cancer drug development: Manas AI. He chats with Jeff Berman to reflect on why he co-founded the company, the lessons he’s using to scale it, and what advice he has for fellow entrepreneurs and investors about how to make the most of AI in any industry.

Rapid Response podcast conversation on Superagency: https://mastersofscale.com/reid-hoffman...

It's been a wild few years for Snowflake, from a record-breaking IPO to a plummeting stock price to a data-breach scandal. Sridhar Ramaswamy took over in the heat of the turmoil and helped steady the ship, in part by betting big on AI. Ramaswamy returns to Rapid Response to share lessons from the company's turnaround, including insights behind high profile partnerships with OpenAI and Anthropic, how Snowflake embraced Chi...

Serial entrepreneur Julia Collins is tackling climate change with her latest venture, Planet FWD. It’s a B2B platform helping brands make their supply chains better for the environment – and their bottom lines. Julia joins host Jeff Berman to share lessons learned from her earlier endeavors in the food industry, which involved a failed unicorn, pizza robots, Danny Meyer, and sustainable snacks.

Read a transcript of this epi...

Tomorrow, NPR’s CEO Katherine Maher goes before a DOGE subcommittee in Congress to defend the public media outlet’s case for federal funding. Maher returns to Rapid Response for the first time since taking on the CEO role to preview her testimony, sharing how funding cuts would impact Americans’ broad access to crucial news and information, particularly in rural areas. Maher also reveals why the company has pivoted its DEI...