Inside CVC by u-path
Welcome to Inside CVC —Inside CVC by U-Path is the podcast where corporate venture capital meets strategy, leadership, and systemic change. Hosted by Philipp Willigmann and Steve Schmith, the show brings senior voices from across corporate venture, startups, investment, academia, and policy to the table.
Each episode goes beyond buzzwords to explore how capital, technology, and leadership shape the future of business and society. From AI and robotics to geopolitics, board governance, and inclusive innovation, Inside CVC is designed for executives and policymakers who want to understand not just what’s happening — but what to do about it.
Episodes
40 episodes
Inside CVC Encore: AI, Leadership, and the Future of Work with Peter Schwartz and Richard Socher
In this Inside CVC Encore, we revisit our conversation with Salesforce Chief Futurist Peter Schwartz and You.com founder and CEO Richard Socher. We explore what leadership looks like in a world where technological change is no longer sequential...
Inside CVC Encore: Tariffs, Trade Shock, and the New Geopolitical Operating System
In this Inside CVC Encore episode, Deborah Elms joins Steve and Philipp for a timely conversation on the Supreme Court’s ruling against the Trump administration’s use of IEEPA tariffs—and why the ruling did not end tariff uncertainty.
Inside CVC Encore: There's No Exit Strategy for the Water Planet: J. Carl Ganter on Supply Chain Risk, Desalination, and the CVC Opportunity
In this Inside CVC Encore from Season 1, Episode 1, we revisit his conversation with J. Carl Ganter, founder and managing director of Circle of Blue and a veteran storyteller whose work spans National Geographic, network TV news, and NPR...
Inside CVC: Sensing the Emerging Future: Otto Scharmer on Theory U, Deep Listening, and the Inner Conditions of Leadership
Otto Scharmer is a Senior Lecturer at MIT and the originator of Theory U, the foundation of U-Path. In this conversation, Otto walks Philipp and Steve through what it actually means to lead from an emerging future rather than the past, a...
Inside CVC: Olympic Gold Medalist Oliver Zeidler on Reinvention, Resilience, and Real Preparation
Oliver Zeidler made history at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, winning gold in the men's single scull and breaking the Olympic record by nearly five seconds in the semi-final. But he will tell you the medal wasn't won in Paris. It was won ...
Inside CVC: Joanna Massey on Board Governance in a Digital Age: AI, Trust, and Mass Incitement
In this episode of Inside CVC, Joanna Massey explores how AI and digital platforms are reshaping boardroom governance.The conversation examines how polarization, employee stress, and shifting expectations around free speech are impacting...
Inside CVC: From Summit to Platform: Inside the Global Vision for the CVC Open Innovation Community
The CVC Open Innovation Summit began as a small gathering of corporate venture, strategy, and innovation leaders looking for something missing in the market: a trusted environment where decision-makers could collaborate on the challenges shapin...
BONUS EPISODE: Deborah Elms on the U.S. Supreme Court’s Tariff Ruling and U.S.– Asia Trade
When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration illegally imposed tariffs under IEEPA, markets reacted fast. But relief quickly gave way to confusion.In this episode, Deborah Elms, Head of Trade Policy at the Singapore...
Inside CVC: Janet Foutty on Women’s Health, Influence Without a Title, and Closing the Healthspan Gap
What happens when you leave a world class platform like Deloitte without a plan, and then choose to spend your next chapter on a problem hiding in plain sight?In this episode of Inside CVC, we sit down with Janet Foutty, former CEO of De...
Inside CVC: Katharina Janus on Longevity, Caregiving, and Building an Aging Economy That Works
Longevity is not just a healthcare issue. It is a workforce issue. It is a competitiveness issue. It is an everything issue.In this episode of Inside CVC, we sit down with Katharina Janus, founder of Fourth Quarter Life and a longtime he...
Inside CVC: Edward Tenner on Unintended Consequences, Deep Organizations, and Boardroom Risk
What do the Hindenburg, the Titanic, Boeing, and the Challenger disaster have in common?According to historian and author Edward Tenner, they were not failures of incompetence. They were failures born from success, confidence, and blind ...
Inside CVC: Orchestrating Connection: Why Trust, Gratitude, and Community Drive Better CVC & M&A Decisions
In this episode of Inside CVC, we’re joined by David Homan, author of Orchestrating Connection, for a wide-ranging conversation on why trust, gratitude, and intentional community building are no longer “soft skills,” but ...
Inside CVC: Berlin CVC Open Innovation Summit, Part 2: From Urgency to Execution: Aligning Capital, Institutions, and Leadership in Europe
In Part Two of our special Inside CVC series recapping the CVC Open Innovation Summit in Berlin, the conversation moves from diagnosis to execution.Episode One explored urgency. Episode Two focuses on alignment.As Eur...
Inside CVC: Berlin CVC Open Innovation Summit, Part 1: Capital, Policy, and Risk
In late November, leaders from across Europe gathered in Berlin for the first European edition of the CVC Open Innovation Summit. What emerged was not another debate about whether innovation matters, but a far more urgent question: is Europe ac...
Inside CVC: Why Europe Fell Behind in Autonomy. And How It Can Catch Up with Christian Schumacher
Europe once led the world in autonomous driving. Massive public investment. Breakthrough demonstrations. Real vehicles on real highways long before autonomy was mainstream.So what happened?In this episode of Inside CVC, w...
Inside CVC: Trust as Currency. Congruency as Strategy. A Conversation with SGNL’s Jen Randle
In this episode of Inside CVC, Steve and Philipp sit down with Jen Randle, co-founder of SGNL, a strategic advisory and content firm known for helping leaders communicate with clarity, coherence, and purpose. Jen has spent her car...
Inside CVC: Kristin Slanina and Shifting Gears on Discomfort, Mobility, and Leading Transformation
Engineer, board director, and Shifting Gears author Kristin Slanina joins Inside CVC for a candid conversation on what it really takes to lead transformation in an industry that’s been “five years away” from disruption for more ...
Inside CVC: The Playbook Problem: Yaron Flint on Fixing Innovation From the Inside
Innovation inside large companies often runs on instinct, scattered pilots, and wishful thinking. Yaron Flint joins us to explain why so many corporates still lack a true playbook — and how a more structured approach can turn chaos into clarity...
Inside CVC: Resilience Over Sovereignty: Philipp Mueller on Europe’s Strategy for a Disrupted World
In this episode, Philipp Mueller, Vice President, Public Sector at DriveLock and Co-Founder of the European Resilience Summit Series, joins Inside CVC to explore why resilience — not sovereignty — is becoming Europ...
Inside CVC: The 16% Problem: Andy Binns on Why Corporations Struggle to Scale Innovation
In this episode of Inside CVC, hosts Steve Schmith and Philipp Willigmann speak with Andy Binns, co-founder and Managing Director of Change Logic, and co-author of Corporate Explorer and the forthco...
Inside CVC: Defending Europe’s Miracle: Gerald Knaus on the Future of Peace, Prosperity, and Democracy
In this powerful episode of Inside CVC, Steve and Philipp are joined by Gerald Knaus, founding chairman of the European Stability Initiative and author of The European Miracle and Its Enemies.Knaus reflect...
Inside CVC: Disability as an Innovation Superpower: Pete Horsley on Building Remarkable Futures
Disability is often seen through the lens of charity — but what if it’s actually one of the greatest drivers of innovation?In this episode of Inside CVC, hosts Steve Schmith and Philipp Willigmann speak with Pet...
Inside CVC: Gina Kline: Redefining Disability as Innovation
What if the greatest untapped driver of innovation isn’t found in Silicon Valley, but in the lived experience of people with disabilities?In this episode of Inside CVC, Steve Schmith and Philipp Willigmann sit down with Regin...
Inside CVC: Leading with Equity: Howard Ross on the Future of DEI, Bias, and Business Value
In this episode of Inside CVC, we sit down with Howard Ross—author, consultant, and one of the nation’s preeminent thought leaders on unconscious bias and organizational change. Howard brings a candid, historical, and forward-lo...
Inside CVC: Building Eurostack: Martin Hullin on Europe’s Digital Sovereignty and the Future of Innovation
Europe is at a crossroads in shaping its technological future. In this episode of Inside CVC, Martin Hullin, Managing Director of the Network for Technological Resilience & Sovereignty Europe’s Future Program Bertelsmann Sti...