Jeff Horing, founding partner of Insight Partners, shares his approach to building one of the world's largest venture capital firms. In this rare interview, Horing discusses Insight's unique one-fund strategy, systematic sourcing process involving 60+ people, and how they've graduated 16-18 fund managers who started their own firms. He breaks down the "college-level math" behind evaluating software businesses, explains why gross retention matters more than net retention, and reveals his five ingredients for the perfect investment. The conversation covers Insight's evolution from growth equity to buyouts, their operational support platform with 130 people, and Horing's contrarian views on AI's impact on software companies. A masterclass in institutional venture capital strategy and execution.

Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
15:40 Five Ingredients of Perfect Investment
20:14 One Fund Strategy
28:02 Sourcing Evolution & Strategy
44:00 What Makes a Great Sourcer
55:14 AI Applications & Late Stage Deals
1:00:12 Pattern Recognition & Training
1:08:05 Scaling Judgment Without Breaking
1:29:01 AI Impact on Software
1:36:28 Drive to Win
1:38:53 Next Decade of Insight
1:41:40 The Kindest Thing

#VentureCapital #PrivateEquity #SoftwareInvesting #InsightPartners #GrowthEquity #StartupFunding #TechInvesting #InvestmentStrategy #AI #SaaS #stocks #investment

Presented by Ramp:
https://ramp.com/business-cards?utm_s

Sponsored by AlphaSense and Ridgeline:
https://www.alpha-sense.com/invest/
https://www.ridgelineapps.com/

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Patrick O'Shaughnessy is the CEO of Positive Sum. All opinions expressed by Patrick and podcast guests are solely their own and do not reflect the opinion of Positive Sum. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions. Clients of Positive Sum may maintain positions in the securities discussed in this podcast. To learn more, visit psum.vc