The Chainsmokers - Music & Markets

**Patrick O'Shaughnessy** (0:00)
Something I speak about frequently on Invest Like the Best is the idea of life's work. A more fun way to think about it is that I'm looking for maniacs on a mission. This is the basis for our investment firm PositiveSum, and it's the reason why I'm so enthusiastic about our presenting sponsor, Ramp. Not only are the founders, Kareem and Eric, life's work level founders certainly maniacs on a mission, they have created a product that is effectively an unlock for founders and finance team to do more of their life's work by streamlining financial operations, saving everyone their most precious resource, time. Ramp has built a command and control system for corporate cards and expense management. You can issue cards, manage approvals, make vendor payments of all kinds, and even automate closing your books all in one place. Speaking from my own experience using Ramp for my business, the product is wildly intuitive, simplistic, and makes life so much easier that you'll feel bad for any company who hasn't yet made the switch. The Ramp team is relentless, and the product continues to evolve to save you time that you would never have dreamed of getting back. To me, there is nothing more interesting than technologies that reduce friction for other entrepreneurs to be able to build the thing that they want to. So much attention has gone to cloud computing, APIs, and other ways of making life easy for founders. What Ramp has done and is doing is build yet another set of tools in this category. To get started, go to ramp.com. Cards issued by Celtic Bank and Sutton Bank, member FDIC, terms and conditions apply. Ridgeline is hosting their annual Basecamp conference this September 22nd through the 25th in Deer Valley, Utah. I will be there on sole over 50 top investment management firms from around the country. Now in its fourth year, Basecamp has become where the future of investment management is created. Ridgeline gets the most influential Chainsmakers in the same room learning and sharing ideas about the latest innovations that are drastically altering how this industry operates. It's truly a must attend event for anyone who wants to understand and be inspired by what's coming next for investment management. Again, I'll be there, but space is limited and attendance is curated. You can request an invitation by heading to ridgelineapps.com. Ridgeline gets me so excited because every investment professional knows the core challenge that they solve. You love the core work of investing, but operational complexities eat up valuable time and energy. That's where Ridgeline comes in. It's an all-in-one operating system designed specifically for investment managers and firms are flocking to Ridgeline for good reason. You don't have to put up with the juggling multiple legacy systems and spinning endless quarter ends compiling reports. Ridgeline has created a comprehensive cloud platform that handles everything in real time. Visit ridgelineapps.com to schedule a demo. I'm excited to introduce our newest sponsor, Arcana. Arcana is the world's most advanced portfolio intelligence platform trusted by institutional investors managing trillions in assets under management, including market-neutral, long-short, long-lonely, and capital allocators. Arcana enables portfolio managers, risk teams, analysts, and CIOs to drill into exposures and IDEO, construct optimal portfolios, and decompose performance at incredible granularity. Arcana is the only real-time, intraday system in the market, with extensive live scenario analysis, custom screening and tagging, and a slate of one-click, lightning-fast portfolio construction tools, mock portfolio trackers, reporting, and single-stock crowding. This is the kind of tool I wanted when I was managing public equities, and I am sure you will benefit from the insights the system has to offer. Visit arcana.io to request a demo and learn more.
Hello and welcome, everyone. I'm Patrick O'Shaughnessy, and this is Invest Like the Best. This show is an open-ended exploration of markets, ideas, stories, and strategies that will help you better invest both your time and your money. If you enjoy these conversations and want to go deeper, check out Colossus Review, our quarterly publication with in-depth profiles of the people shaping business and investing. You can find Colossus Review along with all of our podcasts at joincolossus.com.

**SPEAKER_2** (3:54)
Patrick O'Shaughnessy is the CEO of PositiveSum. All opinions expressed by Patrick and podcast guests are solely their own opinions and do not reflect the opinion of PositiveSum. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions. Clients of PositiveSum may maintain positions in the securities discussed in this podcast. To learn more, visit PSUMVC.

**Patrick O'Shaughnessy** (4:23)
My guests today are Alex Pall and Drew Taggart. You might know them as the Chainsmokers. We explore their fascinating evolution from scrappy DJs to global superstars to serious venture capitalists with their fund Mantis. Drew and Alex share how the same high-touch relationship-driven approach that built their music empire now defines their investment philosophy. Their frameworks for backing founders mirrors their artistic approach. They invest in obsessive individuals who will pursue their visions regardless of external validation, much as they've remained authentic to their sound despite industry pressures. We discuss parallels between creative iteration in music and venture investing, particularly around managing failure, maintaining intentionality in an age of abundance, and the importance of taste as a differentiating factor. Please enjoy this fascinating discussion with the Chainsmokers, Alex Pall and Drew Taggart.