Neal 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 cycle
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