Scicomm Media

The Man Behind Grand Theft Auto VI and a $45 Billion Media Empire: Strauss Zelnick Strauss Zelnick has been one of the most powerful people in media for decades, and most people still don't know his name. He took over Take-Two Interactive while the company was under criminal investigation and was 6 months from bankruptcy. It had one product that made money (GTA); everything else was unprofitable. Since then, Take-Two has gone from a $700 million disaster to a $45 billion empire built on Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead, and NBA 2K. His management philosophy fits on a napkin: hire the best creative talent on Earth, don't interfere, and run a rational company. He's been doing that for more than 4 decades. This conversation was awesome. 0:00 Hostile Takeover With No Money 1:29 Becoming the New Media Guy 3:58 Lessons From Entertainment History 9:44 Why Hollywood Feared Games 11:52 Fox Turnaround and Barry Diller 20:54 Rupert Murdoch and High Stakes Calm 26:20 Taking the Leap to Crystal Dynamics 38:04 Bootstrapping Without Capital 43:57 Carl Icahn Connection 47:01 Take Two Proxy Coup 56:36 Turnaround Cost Cutting Playbook 1:01:37 Leading Creative Geniuses 1:06:24 Rationality Beats Magic 1:07:54 Borderlands Bet 1:09:28 GTA Timelines Pressure 1:11:22 Specific Goals Visualization 1:21:34 Service Leadership Mindset 1:31:52 Media vs. Entertainment 1:34:22 AI Productivity Reality 1:36:08 Why Hits Surprise Includes paid partnerships.

My conversation with @danawhite, president and CEO of the @UFC. 0:00 Founders Are the Best Storytellers 1:04 Buying the UFC for $2M 2:51 Excellence Is the Capacity to Take Pain 7:58 One Good Night's Sleep and "Fuck It, Let's Keep Going" 10:53 The Ultimate Fighter: A $10M Bet-It-All Moment 13:12 The Napkin Deal With Spike TV 22:00 Leaving Spike TV and the Phil Duman Story 28:24 First Event Profitable: What He Does Differently Now 32:30 Why Dana Sits Ringside Watching a Screen 34:07 Building a Team That Can Read His Mind 45:10 "Who the Fuck Are You and What Have You Done?" 51:55 Selling the UFC for $4+ Billion 57:32 Not Cutting a Single Employee During COVID 1:03:30 Firing a Sponsor Who Told Him How to Vote 1:07:45 There Is No Plan B 1:09:00 Joe Rogan: Doing the First 12 Fights for Free 1:12:37 Loyalty Is the Most Important Thing Includes paid partnerships.

It starts with discipline and hard work. @KenRideout_ tomorrow on Perform with Dr. Andy Galpin.

David Baszucki. Roblox. Tomorrow. April 26, 2026. Available everywhere you get podcasts. @DavidBaszucki @Roblox

Perform with Dr. Andy Galpin is back. New episode: How to Build a Strong Core & Abs 0:00 Core Training Myths 4:22 Why We Train Abs Wrong 7:27 Abs vs Core Explained 11:17 Look Feel Perform Goals 15:04 How Core Muscles Work 20:26 Stability and Anti Movement 24:00 Do Abs Need Daily Training 29:12 Spinal Safety and Crunches 31:37 Sponsor Eight Sleep 33:08 Testing Core Strength 41:42 Interpreting Test Results 47:02 Choosing Core Exercises 50:18 Isolation vs Compound Core 52:31 Contraction Intensity Rules 53:23 Size Principle Explained 56:16 Loading the Core Safely 1:00:14 Core Moves by Pattern 1:06:35 Program by Muscle Groups 1:08:01 Abs for Aesthetics 1:15:47 Aesthetic Programming Split 1:18:49 Core for Performance 1:21:15 Core for Back Health 1:24:17 Sample Week Template 1:29:22 Five Step Progression 1:35:54 Exercise Order Priorities 1:36:56 Rapid Fire Q and Belts 1:42:35 Final Wrap and Support Includes paid partnerships.

See you in a few days. Sincerely appreciate all of you who rock with me on this project. performpodcast.com

My conversation with Tony Xu (@t_xu), co-founder & CEO of @DoorDash. 0:00 DoorDash MVP in 43 Minutes 1:39 How Delivery Worked in 2013 3:17 Small Business Roots and Insight 5:48 Why Restaurants First 8:24 Palo Alto vs San Francisco 11:03 Early Customers and Unit Economics 15:22 YC Summer Three Questions 19:50 The Hidden Complexity of Delivery 22:02 Competing on Invisible Details 23:54 Chaos Data and Experiment Loops 30:58 Trust Reset Every Day 31:30 Stanford Game Meltdown and Refunds 34:41 Scaling Through Experiments 37:37 Customer North Star Metrics 40:10 CEO Customer Support Habit 42:55 Anecdotes Versus Data 46:52 Eternal Mission Local Economies 50:09 Turning Data Into Merchant Growth 59:12 New Products Beyond Delivery 1:01:14 Autonomous Delivery Strategy 1:05:06 Hiring Rhodes Scholar Navy SEALs 1:12:46 Driver Switch Experiment 1:13:42 Who Delivers and Why 1:15:33 Hiring for Action 1:18:07 Earned Secrets via Experiments 1:20:01 Money vs Problem Solving 1:21:18 Thousand Days of Hell 1:26:04 Staying Sane as CEO 1:30:07 Ignore the Stock Price 1:31:44 Two Operating Systems 1:35:17 Internal Venture Stage Gates 1:38:17 Learning from Founder Peers 1:42:29 Jiu Jitsu Lessons 1:44:37 AI Changes the Loop 1:47:01 Data Needs Action 1:48:24 Closing Thoughts Includes paid partnerships.

Tony Xu. DoorDash. Tomorrow. March 29, 2026. Available everywhere you get podcasts. @t_xu @doordash

My conversation with @EricJorgenson, author of The Book of Elon (@elonmusk). 0:00 Book Reveal 0:39 Build Useful Things 2:19 Engineering Talent Edge 4:26 Wired for War 6:47 Tip of the Spear 8:47 Burn the Boats 13:13 Facing Fear 15:16 Origin Story Myths 18:19 Know Business A to Z 22:17 Simplify and Fail Fast 25:35 Reality and Physics 28:18 The Algorithm Begins 30:34 Delete and Simplify 34:25 Starlink War Room 36:52 Repetition as OS 38:18 Step Three Simplify Optimize 38:43 Question Every Requirement 39:13 Tesla Battery Pack Delete 40:43 Repetition Installs Ideas 42:02 Step Four Accelerate 43:26 Design Org for Speed 46:06 Step Five Automate 46:29 Control and Clean Sheet 48:54 Vertical Integration and Costs 50:47 SpaceX Incentives and Mars 57:11 Frontier Unlocks Starlink 1:00:26 Time as True Currency 1:03:58 Speed Triage and Bottlenecks 1:10:11 Internalized Responsibility 1:12:56 Avoid Serialized Dependencies 1:14:31 Aligning the Team 1:15:07 Time Is the Constraint 1:16:00 One Metric Focus 1:18:03 Directional Predictions 1:19:06 We Must Make Stuff 1:25:39 Manufacturing as Moat 1:26:23 Speed and Direct to Customer 1:28:41 SpaceX Feasibility Study 1:33:07 Edge of Sanity Leadership 1:37:10 Bottlenecks and Integration 1:40:01 Design and Simplify 1:45:15 Catch the Rocket 1:48:14 Capitalism and Closing Includes paid partnerships.

Tomorrow's Huberman Lab episode is with Dr. Rhonda Patrick, PhD (@foundmyfitness), a biomedical scientist and science educator known for making complex health research accessible and actionable. Dr. Patrick and @hubermanlab discuss the exercise, nutrition and lifestyle practices most strongly linked to better health and lower disease risk, how fasting and specific training strategies affect cardiometabolic health, visceral fat and cancer risk, and what the research says about supplements ranging from omega-3s and creatine to specialized compounds like BPC-157 and NMN.

My conversation with Marc Andreessen (@pmarca), co-founder of @a16z and Netscape. 0:00 Caffeine Heart Scare 0:56 Zero Introspection Mindset 3:24 Psychedelics and Founders 4:54 Motivation Beyond Happiness 7:18 Tech as Progress Engine 10:27 Founders Versus Managers 20:01 HP Intel Founder Legacy 21:32 Why Start the Firm 24:14 Venture Barbell Theory 28:57 JP Morgan Boutique Banking 30:02 Religion Split Wall Street 30:41 Barbell of Banking 31:42 Allen & Company Model 33:16 Planning the VC Firm 33:45 CAA Playbook Lessons 36:49 First Principles vs. Status Quo 39:03 Scaling Venture Capital 40:37 Private Equity and Mad Men 42:52 Valley Shifts to Full Stack 45:59 Meeting Jim Clark 48:53 Founder vs. Manager at SGI 54:20 Recruiting Dinner Story 56:58 Starting the Next Company 57:57 Nintendo Online Gamble 58:33 Building Mosaic Browser 59:45 NSFnet Commercial Ban 1:01:28 Eternal September Shift 1:03:11 Spam and Web Controversy 1:04:49 Mosaic Tech Support Flood 1:07:49 Netscape Business Model 1:09:05 Early Internet Skepticism 1:11:15 Moral Panic Pattern 1:13:08 Bicycle Face Story 1:14:48 Music Panic Examples 1:18:12 Lessons from Jim Clark 1:19:36 Clark Versus Barksdale 1:21:22 Tesla Versus Edison 1:23:00 Edison Digression Setup 1:23:13 AI Forecasting Myths 1:23:43 Edison Phonograph Lesson 1:25:11 Netscape Two Jims 1:29:11 Bottling Innovation 1:31:44 Elon Management Code 1:32:24 IBM Big Gray Cloud 1:37:12 Engineer First Truth 1:38:28 Bottlenecks and Speed 1:42:46 Milli Elon Metric 1:47:20 Starlink Side Project 1:49:10 Closing Includes paid partnerships.

My conversation with @brian_armstrong, co-founder and CEO of @coinbase and @newlimit. 0:00 Crypto Power in DC 0:25 Market Structure Clarity 1:39 SEC Lawfare Origins 5:49 Suing the Regulator 9:09 Winning the SEC Case 11:11 Long Term Founder Mindset 12:20 Autism and Focus 15:04 Mission First Company Culture 21:10 Rebuilding From Scratch 23:05 Follow Your Nose 25:20 From Side Hustles to Coinbase 30:07 Argentina and Bitcoin Spark 32:33 Airbnb to Coinbase Nights 36:25 Finding a Co-founder 37:35 YC Without a Co-founder 38:41 Finding the Perfect Partner 40:18 Losing Money Per Trade 41:23 Support Backlog Chaos 43:29 Banking and Compliance Gauntlet 47:47 Raising Fast to Survive 51:36 Mission Values and Inspiration 57:54 Hiring for Spikes 1:02:14 Centralized vs Decentralized 1:05:51 From Bitcoin Wedge to Super App 1:07:59 How Coinbase Runs Today 1:11:00 Decision Speed and Risk 1:12:43 Internal Venture Bets 1:14:46 Funding Ideas Internally 1:15:18 Coinbase Marketing Experiments 1:16:56 Internet Native Shareholder Updates 1:21:58 Media Diet and Going Direct 1:26:47 Building a New Industry 1:31:44 Starting New Limit Longevity 1:36:17 CEO Stress and Routines 1:40:59 AI Agents at Coinbase 1:44:35 Base App Explained 1:46:47 Other Bets and SEZs 1:49:21 Closing Thanks Includes paid partnerships.

My conversation with @JasonFried, co-founder of @37signals. 0:00 Build Products for Yourself 1:40 Low Costs, Small Company, Enough Customers 3:06 Your Only Competition Is Your Costs 5:25 How 37signals Stays Lean 9:43 Rewriting Basecamp & Fighting Software Bloat 13:42 Why "Enough" Beats Growth 17:44 Product People vs. Business Shells 22:41 The "So What?" Mindset 27:45 Staying Close to Customers 34:43 The Reward for Good Work Is More Work 39:57 Six-Week Horizons & Compounding Decisions 45:20 Anti-Fragile Business With Tiny Units 50:55 Galápagos Product Design 52:44 Radical Authenticity Over Marketing Tricks 1:27:39 Rick Rubin & Intuition-Driven Building 1:42:25 Lightning in a Bottle & Knowing When to Stop 1:50:29 Defining Success: Pride in the Work 1:53:58 Independence Through Profitability 1:59:23 When Tech Adds Friction Instead of Value 2:04:11 Ruthless Editing & What Never Changes 2:08:14 Longevity as the Moat 2:17:28 Building by Intuition Includes paid partnerships.

Tomorrow’s Huberman Lab episode is with Dr. Lauren Colenso-Semple (@drlaurencs1), PhD, an expert in strength training, muscle building and nutrition. Dr. Colenso-Semple and @hubermanlab discuss the most effective resistance and cardiovascular training programs for women, including program design, exercise selection, sets, reps and rest periods, how menstrual cycles, menopause and birth control impact fitness outcomes, and dispel common myths about women’s training, fasting, cortisol and supplementation.

My conversation with Jimmy Iovine (@jimmyiovine_), co-founder of @Interscope Records & @BeatsbyDre. 0:00 The Corny World of Fame 0:54 The Impact of Social Media on Fame 1:27 Chasing Greatness: Personal Reflections 2:10 Technological Shifts in the Music Industry 3:24 The Streaming Service Dilemma 5:34 The Artist's Perspective on Streaming 6:39 Early Career and Influences 9:40 The Importance of Humility 11:19 Working with the Best: A Career Retrospective 13:07 The Role of Brutal Honesty 15:00 Navigating the Music Industry 33:50 The Birth of Beats by Dre 46:14 The Music Industry's Customer Problem 46:44 Vertically Integrating Culture and Fashion 47:13 Building Beats: From Music Videos to Headphones 48:03 Marketing is Empathy 50:28 The Journey of Beats Music 59:09 The Future of the Music Industry with AI 1:14:40 The Bend in the Pipe: Harnessing Fear and Obsession 1:29:12 Comparing Work Approaches with Dr. Dre 1:30:50 The Tortured Path to Success 1:32:41 Balancing Happiness and Ambition 1:35:22 The Importance of Peace and Therapy 1:49:30 Learning from Legends 1:55:57 The Influence of Bono and Dre 2:00:15 California Dreams and Career Milestones 2:07:20 Final Thoughts and Reflections Includes paid partnerships.

Jimmy Iovine. Interscope Records & Beats by Dre. Tomorrow. February 1, 2026. Available everywhere you get podcasts. @jimmyiovine_ @Interscope @beatsbydre

Tomorrow’s @HubermanLab episode is with @Dorian_Yates, six time Mr. Olympia champion (1992-1997) and overall fitness legend. They talk about how to build muscle while spending less time in the gym (high-intensity, low-volume training), along with other topics such as elite performance, hardship and motivation, cannabis use, psychedelics, and more.

Tobi Lütke. Shopify. Tomorrow. January 18, 2026. Available everywhere you get podcasts. @tobi @Shopify

There are good habits, and there are Atomic Habits. 💥 Author and human behavior expert @JamesClear stops by @hubermanlab to talk to host Andrew Huberman about how to make a change for the better. apple.co/HubermanJC

Tomorrow's Huberman Lab episode is with @JamesClear, author of Atomic Habits and expert on behavior change and habit formation. James and @hubermanlab discuss a simple framework for building habits that last—without relying on motivation or willpower. James explains why "getting started" is so critical and how to make habits stick even on bad days. They also cover how to break bad habits. No matter what your goals are for 2026, this episode offers actionable, zero-cost tools to build lasting habits.