Being a Founder’s Founder | David Fialkow & John Werner | TEDxBoston

NOTE FROM TED: TEDx events are independently organized by volunteers. The guidelines we give TEDx organizers are described in more detail here: http://storage.ted.com/tedx/manuals/tedx_content_guidelines.pdf In this wide-ranging and deeply human talk, David Fialkow reflects on a life shaped by Boston roots, unconventional education, endurance athletics, and an unshakable belief in backing people—not just ideas. From riding in the Pan-Mass Challenge for over four decades to help raise more than one billion dollars for cancer research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, to co-founding General Catalyst, David traces how empathy, resilience, and storytelling have guided his work across investing, philanthropy, and filmmaking. He shares how General Catalyst was built with a singular mission: to be the best possible partner to founders—offering not just capital, but conviction, patience, and support through hard moments. Along the way, he reflects on missed bets, late realizations around AI, and why the next wave of transformation will come not just from platforms, but from how small and medium-sized businesses adopt new tools. Interwoven with venture and technology is David’s parallel career as a documentary filmmaker, producing Academy Award–winning films like Icarus and Navalny. He argues that storytelling is the most underrated skill in business and life—especially for founders navigating uncertainty. Ultimately, this talk is about endurance over flash, partners over power, and building institutions—whether firms, films, or movements—that stand for something larger than returns. David Fialkow is a co-founder and managing partner of General Catalyst, one of the world’s leading venture firms, managing more than $45 billion in assets. Over the past 25 years, he has backed category-defining companies including Circle, Stripe, Kayak, DataLogix, Livongo, and Anthropic, with a philosophy rooted in long-term partnership and founder empathy. Beyond venture capital, David is deeply committed to philanthropy and storytelling. He has participated in the Pan-Mass Challenge for over 40 years, helping fund breakthrough cancer research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He is also an Academy Award–winning documentary producer, with films including Icarus and Navalny, both of which used investigative storytelling to expose systemic injustice on a global stage. Known for his unconventional path and candid perspective, David believes the future belongs to builders who combine conviction with compassion—and who are willing to do hard things in service of something that lasts. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx