TBPN's Run of Show: The Desperate Search for Storytellers
Plus: SpaceX IPO updates, Databricks' series L, and more
Happy Tuesday.
We’re live right now on YouTube and 𝕏.
The current thing is the viral WSJ piece about companies “desperately seeking ‘storytellers’”…
Let’s get to it.
Today’s lineup
Linear Co-Founder and CEO Karri Saarinen at 12:30 PM
776 Foundation Fellow Pranav Myana at 12:45 PM
Liquid Death Founder and CEO Mike Cessario at 1:00 PM
General Medicine Co-Founder Elliot Cohen at 1:20 PM
Machina Labs Co-Founder and CEO Ed Mehr at 1:30 PM
Databricks Co-Founder and CEO Ali Ghodsi at 1:40 PM
Daily Op-Ed, by Jordi Hays
You don’t need a storyteller
According to friend of the show Katie Deighton at WSJ, companies are desperate to hire storytellers.
Hiring “storytellers” is not a new phenomenon (the title began to appear in the early 2000s) but it makes sense that companies feel the need to hire them right now.
Why? Because it’s never been more obvious that the best storytellers in the world create billions of dollars of value for their companies and create massive advantages using only their words. Their words are so powerful that no matter where they appear on the internet they draw millions of views and create a vortex of talent, capital, and customers. The reality distortion field that emerges often results in 100x+ P/E ratios.
Of course every company in the world wants this. The problem is that it’s impossible to “hire” the most elite storytellers because they are founders. Think Elon, Karp, Palmer. I call these types “Joe Rogan CEOs.”
The internet is noisier than ever with thousands of startups competing for mindshare (when every startup has a great launch video, no one does) and yet these storytellers consistently break through and dominate the timeline. Even though generative AI allows marketing teams big and small to massively increase their output, it is often not even 1% as effective as one of these founders going on a podcast or even just posting stream of consciousness on 𝕏.
The white pill for savvy marketing teams is that even as we’re seeing an exponential increase in content production, I’m not sure we’re seeing an exponential increase in great ideas. That means companies large and small (that don’t have the luxury of having an elite storyteller like Elon, Karp, or Palmer on the payroll) still have a chance to break through the noise and be remembered.
As I reflect on 2025, there were only a handful of corporate “storytelling” moments that I really remember. And each worked for a different reason.
Anduril – Don’t work at Anduril
Their “chief storyteller” makes a cameo, but the campaign stands on its own.
Astronomer - Thank you for your interest in Astronomer (featuring Gwenyth Paltrow)
No notes. Will be studied.
Ramp – Expenses should do themselves
Executed in just a couple weeks, with a low budget, and benefited from a little luck sprinkled in (Eagles got it done).
Anthropic – Keep Thinking
Human-centric, empowering, cool.
Friend.com – Buy every billboard
Friend did something absurd, which we can call the “buy every billboard” strategy. Many people have criticized the campaign and the product, but the results from an awareness standpoint are undeniable. Avi spent $1-2M and became a household name (at least on the coasts). Many brands have spent 10x that amount this year and you still don’t know their names. This campaign showed me that billboards can have increasing returns to scale.
Hiring a storyteller to “craft narratives” and “tell your story internally and externally” is fine. But if the goal is to be remembered (and you lack a “Joe Rogan CEO”), remember that one great campaign is worth 100,000 posts.
Headlines
Lightspeed raises over $9B in capital for a new family of funds…
➜ NYT: In A.I. Boom, Venture Capital Firms Are Raising Loads More Money…
The Information: OpenAI hires an executive from Google to lead M&A
Sama teases new image model release…
Reuters exclusive: Nasdaq seeks to extend trading hours, as Wall Street gears up for 24/7 move…
WSJ: Companies Are Desperately Seeking ‘Storytellers’…
Notion announces $300 million tender offer at an $11 billion valuation...
Databricks raises $4B Series L at $134B valuation…
WSJ: SpaceX Starts a Wall Street Bake-Off to Hire Banks for Possible IPO…
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Technical Terminator founder type + Storyteller Deal Maker is the new Steve and Woz combo.