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The latest episode of Sand Hill Road

Sand Hill Road
Sand Hill Road

What makes Silicon Valley the innovation capital of the world? It all starts on Sand Hill Road, considered the mecca of venture capital. Join us for insightful interviews from the heart of Silicon Valley with the VCs, start-ups and innovators behind the trending technologies of tomorrow. Hosted by NBC Bay Area business and technology reporter and host of Press:Here, Scott McGrew.

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2025 Summer VC Reading List
byNBC Bay Area

It’s our annual tradition—venture capitalists and startup founders share the books that shaped them. From sci-fi and civil rights to artificial intelligence and management, this year’s reading list offers insight into the minds of Silicon Valley’s most thoughtful leaders.

Highlights include:

Master of the Senate by Robert Caro, recommended by Casber Wang of Sapphire Ventures for its deep exploration of power and politics

Traffic by Ben Smith, cited by Joe Alalou of Daring Ventures as essential reading on how the social web shaped our modern world

The Sentence by Louise Erdrich, praised by Initiate Ventures’ Jessica Owens for its emotional depth and powerful storytelling

Read Write Own by Chris Dixon, a pick from Bobby Franklin of the NVCA to better understand the potential of blockchain beyond crypto

Even Cowgirls Get the Blues by Tom Robbins, a personal favorite of Wharton’s Lori Rosenkopf for its message on turning perceived flaws into strengths

Mindset by Carol Dweck, currently on Larry Gadea’s reading list

The Foundation Series by Isaac Asimov, a longtime source of inspiration for Imvaria’s Joshua Reicher

High Output Management by Intel legend Andy Grove, recommended by Avery Pennarun of Tailscale

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, the book Amit Kumar of Accel is gifting to friends

Prediction Machines by Ajay Agrawal, a favorite of Terry Doyle from TELUS Ventures for making AI approachable—even for his 89-year-old mother

And anything by Isaac Asimov, says James Joaquin of Obvious Ventures, who’s now funding a factory that grows diamonds

More than just a beach read list, these titles reflect the philosophies and obsessions of today’s investors. Dive into the full episode of Sand Hill Road for all the recommendations—and check our archives for past years’ picks.

Sand Hill Road is produced by Andrew Mendez under the leadership of Sara Bueno and Stephanie Adrouny

2025 Summer VC Reading List
2025 Summer VC Reading List
June 26, 2025
NBC Bay Area
The Systems Leader vs The Lone Wolf with Robert Siegel
June 19, 2025
scott mcgrew, Robert Siegel
From MySpace to Liquid Death: Mike Jones on Building Brands People Love
June 12, 2025
Scott McGrew, Mike Jones
Practicing Venture Not Performing It: Joseph Alalou’s Outsider Ethos
June 5, 2025
Scott McGrew, Joseph Alalou
Biotech and Bold Bets with Jessica Owens, Inititate Ventures
May 29, 2025
Scott McGrew, Jessica Owens
Masha Bucher Day One Ventures
May 22, 2025
Scott McGrew, Masha Bucher
Lori Rosenkopf’s Unstoppable Entrepreneurs
May 15, 2025
Scott McGrew, Lori Rosenkopf
Entrepreneurship through the eyes of Navin Chaddha
May 9, 2025
Scott McGrew, Navin Chaddha
Larry Gadea’s startup journey
May 1, 2025
Scott McGrew, Larry Gadea
Bobby Franklin’s unkillable movie monster
April 10, 2025
NBC Bay Area
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Scott McGrew is host of Press:Here, a weekly roundtable on NBC Bay Area featuring world class technology reporters in conversation with Silicon Valley CEOs and host of Sand Hill Road, a podcast about venture capital.

Scott works with Ernst and Young’s Northern California Entrepreneur of the Year, the Global CleanTech Forum, United Way and the Boy Scouts. He also helps foster excellent business journalism as part of the UCLA’s Gerald Loeb awards.

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