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The new competition for your cap table | Equity Podcast

The VC middleman is getting cut out faster than anyone expected. Family offices and private wealth firms are going direct: writing checks, taking board seats, even incubating companies from scratch. And more founders are starting to notice. In February alone, family offices made 41 direct investments, including one Midwest-based firm that led a $230 million…

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The VC middleman is getting cut out faster than anyone expected. Family offices and private wealth firms are going direct: writing checks, taking board seats, even incubating companies from scratch. And more founders are starting to notice. In February alone, family offices made 41 direct investments, including one Midwest-based firm that led a $230 million Series B into an AI chip startup.

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan caught up with Mitch Stein and Ari Schottenstein, founder and head of alternatives at ARENA Private Wealth, to find out what this shift means for founders, cap tables, and the future of AI investment.

Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

03:13 Why family offices are going direct now

06:03 The gen 2 & gen 3 family office shift

07:22 Is this strategic or just AI FOMO?

10:17 How Arena got into the Positron deal

14:30 Why founders want private wealth on their cap table

18:31 Due diligence on technical companies

21:56 Red flags founders should watch for

25:04 Are VCs threatened by this trend?

27:47 Taking board seats & level of involvement

34:17 Outro

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September 15, 2026

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Could a genetic mutation ever cause humanity to develop super powers? Anthropologist Agustín Fuentes joins WIRED to answer the internet’s burning questions about human evolution.

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ABOUT WIRED
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It’s real and it’s here! CNET’s Scott Stein has been playing with it for the last three weeks, here’s what he has to say about it so far. #valve #steamframe #vr #foveatedrendering #vrheadset #pcgaming

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Part Steam Deck, part VR headset and, yes, it plays Half-Life Alyx. Here’s everything I’ve discovered so far. Read more about the Valve Steam Frame on CNET.com: Steam Frame, Reviewed: Valve’s Ambitious VR Headset Feels Like an Experiment in Progress Timecode Chapters: 0:00 Valve Steam Frame 0:33 A Portable Steam Deck For Your Face 0:57…

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September 14, 2026

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Part Steam Deck, part VR headset and, yes, it plays Half-Life Alyx. Here’s everything I’ve discovered so far.

Read more about the Valve Steam Frame on CNET.com:
Steam Frame, Reviewed: Valve’s Ambitious VR Headset Feels Like an Experiment in Progress

Timecode Chapters:
0:00 Valve Steam Frame
0:33 A Portable Steam Deck For Your Face
0:57 Design
1:17 Ergonomic Pack
1:47 A Challenge for Glasses Wearers
2:19 Viewing Experience
3:09 Foveated Streaming
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8:50 How Is It As A Steam Deck
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11:26 The Future of VR, Headsets and The Steam Frame

Video Credits:
Host: Scott Stein
Scripted by: Scott Stein
Producer: Numi Prasarn
Camera: Numi Prasarn
Video Editor: Mitch Chang
Thumbnail Designer: Cole Kan

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#steamframe #valve #vrheadset #vr #virtualreality #vrgaming #vrgames #vrgameplay

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