Why Popularity Became A Strategic Asset In Tech & Venture Capital (Dilan Sisu vs. Etien Yovchev)

Dilan Sisu, VC (e2vc) and Etien Yovchev, Co-founder (The Recursive) met in Sofia and decided to film a conversation that turned into a thoughtful discussion about the role of media and influence in venture capital. The discussion jumped from whether VCs secretly care about popularity (and why visibility can be a strategic asset, not vanity) to where the next unicorn founder is more likely to appear: through an AI recommendation 🤖 or at a small, well-curated party 🍸. 🎙️ They also explored whether age really matters for founders, whether early-stage teams should invest more in founder personal brands or company brands, when media relations should become a priority for startups, and why more investors are launching podcasts. And then the question every investor quietly wrestles with: how do you distinguish strong founder conviction from pure delusion? Running through all of this is a broader theme: visibility, social influence in venture capital, how VC brands are built, and how meaningful relationships actually form — both online and offline. 0:00 Do VCs secretly care about being popular? 0:12 Where you meet the next unicorn founder: AI vs (small) parties 0:34 Does age matter for founder success? 1:01 Personal brand vs company brand (and when to switch) 1:54 When PR/media relations becomes a real priority for startups 2:28 Why VCs start podcasts: visibility → relationships → deal flow flywheel 3:13 Big problems AI founders should solve next (health/education/robotics) 4:30 Why visibility matters for VCs in Emerging Europe vs SF competition 12:02 Conviction vs delusion: how to tell the difference in founders 25:29 Media + culture in an AI world: what happens when we don’t consume the same media