Dreading an Upcoming Long Drive or Flight? Tune into Acquired and you will wish the trip was longer!
By John H. Robinson, Financial Planner (June 18, 2024)
Like millions of others, I started listening to podcasts during COVID when there was lots of solo time. I tried many different programs when I was working out or doing yard work, but, while I found a few that I enjoyed, I never found one that truly got me hooked. That changed earlier this year when I read this article in the Wall Street Journal – The Smartest People in the Room Are All Listening to the Same Podcast.
The article featured Acquired, a business/technology-focused show launched nearly a decade ago that has attracted millions of followers. The article noted that the show’s hosts, West Coast start-up gurus David Rosenthal and Ben Gilbert, are engaging raconteurs who are uniquely thorough in their preparation. Episodes typically tell the story of a single company or feature an in-depth conversational interview with a famous founder. Acquired episodes drop once per month and often run as long as four hours or more!
After reading the WSJ article, I was compelled to find out what I was missing. The long drive from Boston’s Logan Airport to my mom’s house in Vermont afforded an ideal opportunity to see if a podcast could really hold my attention for two and a half hours. The first episode I chose was a relatively brief 90-minute Interview with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. The story of Nvidia’s rise from a start-up that nearly failed to the AI juggernaut with the world’s largest market capitalization was positively riveting. Jensen struck me as remarkably down-to-earth and humble - and possibly the most intelligent person on the planet. I was similarly blown away by how knowledgeable and articulate Rosenthal and Gilbert are. The experience of listening to the Nvidia podcast was akin to reading a novel you can’t put down.
After the Jensen interview, Spotify automatically queued up the 3-hour Costco history. It was every bit as fascinating as the Nvidia story. When I pulled into my mom’s driveway, I still had nearly two hours left on the Costco podcast. I almost wished the drive was longer. When I went to bed that night, I put my headphones on and finished off the episode.
I am now an unabashed Acquired junkie. Every long walk to and from the office, every workout on the treadmill, and every trip to Safeway will find me with my headphones on. My favorite episode so far is Renaissance Technologies, which chronicles the creation of the most profitable algorithmic trading platform the world has ever known. Other favorites include the October 2023 interview with Charlie Munger, and the Visa, Lockheed, and Microsoft stories. The episode about venture capital firm Benchmark Capital and the 2024 3+ hour interview with Starbucks founder Howard Schultz are time well-spent too.
It is easy to see why the “C-Suite” crowd is hooked on Acquired. Each episode is a business school-level case study. But, as I can attest, the content is compelling to everyone. I am far from an early adopter, but, if you have not had a chance to listen to Acquired, I highly recommend it. Here is a link to the complete library of Acquired Episodes. Below are links to my Top 10 favorite episodes.
NOTE: Many of the more recent interviews are available on YouTube.
Nvidia CEO Jenson Huang (October 15, 2023)
Renaissance Technologies (Season 14, Episode 3)
Interview with Charlie Munger (October 29, 2023)
Costco (Season 13, Episode 2)
Microsoft (Season 14, Episode 4)
Benchmark Capital, Part 1 (Season 11, Episode 4)
Lockheed Martin (Season 12, Episode 5)
Visa (Season 13, Episode 4)
Starbucks Interview with Howard Shultz (Season 14, Episode 5)
Uber Interview with Dara Khosrowshahi (June 12, 2023)
John H. Robinson is the owner/founder of Financial Planning Hawaii and Fee-Only Planning Hawaii. He is also a co-founder of software maker Nest Egg Guru and the personal finance website NestEggPF.com
