Founders We’d Back on a Second Act

Fadell turned experience from the iPod and iPhone into Nest’s category-defining thermostat. He proved his product instincts could survive outside Apple.

Hoffman brings network access, recruiting power and LinkedIn experience to every new project. The next company still needs a product stronger than those advantages.

Murati’s OpenAI product and research experience gives Thinking Machines a credible starting team. The second act lets her design the laboratory culture herself.

Sutskever’s deep-learning record makes Safe Superintelligence a direct bet on scientific judgment. There is almost no ordinary product story to hide behind.

Luckey followed his forced exit from Oculus by building Anduril into a serious defense contractor. The second company is larger, harder and more consequential.

Kalanick applies Uber’s expansion intensity to CloudKitchens, a less visible network of delivery-focused real estate and food operations. Governance remains part of the assessment.

Lefkofsky built Tempus around clinical and molecular data after several consumer internet companies. The work is more technically demanding and potentially more useful.

Dorsey’s work at Block is most convincing when it focuses on payments and merchant tools rather than attempting to recreate social media.

Lore is using Wonder to combine restaurants, kitchens, delivery and media around prepared food. The ambition is excessive, but his e-commerce record earns attention.

Butterfield built Slack after Flickr, converting another failed game project into a widely adopted communication product. Few second acts changed workplace behavior so directly.