20VC: Sequoia's Shaun Maguire: Will We See WW3 Shortly | Why DEI is a Cancer for Society | Why Iran is the World's Greatest Evil | Why Trump is the Only Hope for Peace in the Middle East | Trump vs Harris: Who Wins & What Happens

**Shaun Maguire** (0:00)
I think there's a huge difference between having freedom of speech, being willing to use it, and having lots of information warfare. I don't think we had freedom of speech before Elon bought Twitter. I think we're moving away from free speech very quickly in Europe. The modern paradigm of DEI is toxic, woke ideology that is literally cancer for society. The Iranian philosophy, when you're losing, is to create chaos. So they're creating as much chaos in the world as they possibly can. The war in Ukraine, America could not have botched the initial response more.

**Harry Stebbings** (0:30)
Is Donald Trump the best chance we have of alleviating the soon to be World War III in the Middle East?

**Shaun Maguire** (0:37)
100%.

**Harry Stebbings** (0:38)
Why? This is 20VC with me, Harry Stebbings. And today we have a very special guest. Doug Leone described this individual as the most interesting man in the world. He's a partner at Sequoia. He's led deals in SpaceX, X, The Boring Co, and many more. Before Venture, he co-founded a cyber security company called Expanse, which Palo Alto Networks acquired for $1 billion. And before that, he worked for Darpa and was deployed to Afghanistan. Come on, that has to be the coolest bio for any guest ever on 20VC. It is, of course, Shaun Maguire, partner at Sequoia. This is perhaps the spiciest show we've ever done on 20VC. But before we dive in, when a promising startup files for an IPO or a venture capital firm loses its marquee partner, being the first to know gives you an advantage and time to plan your strategic response. Chances are, the information reported it first. The information is the trusted source for that important first look at actionable news across technology and finance, driving decisions with breaking stories, proprietary data tools and a spotlight on industry trends. With a subscription, you will join an elite community that includes leaders from the top VC firms, CEOs from Fortune 500 companies, and esteemed banking and investment professionals. In addition to must read journalism in your inbox every day, you will engage with fellow leaders in their active discussions or in person at exclusive events. Learn more and access a special offer for 20VC's listeners at www.theinformation.com/deals/20vc.
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**Shaun Maguire** (4:02)
Impossible.

**Harry Stebbings** (4:03)
But thank you so much for joining me, man.

**Shaun Maguire** (4:06)
It's great to be here. Thank you, Harry. I'm a big fan.

**Harry Stebbings** (4:08)
Listen, first question, dude. How did you go from a high school dropout to a PhD at Caltech? That's quite a jump.

**Shaun Maguire** (4:15)
With a big chip on my shoulder. Yeah, I mean, look, as a kid, I wasn't stupid, but I really hated school and hated my teachers. You know, I went to public school. I got a zero on my first Algebra 2 test for not showing any work. The teacher wouldn't change their mind. I offered to show my work, et cetera. Once I got a zero on that exam, like the highest grade I could get in the class was a C.