Sam Marchant on Why MENA Founders Should Think Bigger

I am thrilled to have Sam Marchant a Partner at 21 Ventures, backing pre-seed and seed founders across MENA and Southeast Asia with $500K–$1.5M cheques in AI, FinTech, and Industrials. In this episode, Sam Marchant, a partner at Twenty One VC, shares his unconventional journey into venture capital, insights on investing in MENA and Southeast Asia, and the impact of AI on startups and investment strategies. Discover how regional markets are evolving and what founders need to succeed today. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Sam and his journey into VC 01:14 Sam's unconventional path into venture capital 02:09 Early entrepreneurial experience with a low sugar cereal business 03:00 Balancing IQ and EQ in VC decision-making 04:04 Launching AI-focused venture builder Inaugural 04:57 Joining Twenty One Ventures and regional market insights 07:15 Building media assets to highlight regional startups 08:32 Market inflection points in MENA and Southeast Asia 11:21 Sector focus: Overfunded and underfunded areas 13:51 Supporting founders beyond capital: fundraising, commercial, human 17:41 Leading rounds in a competitive market 20:32 Big vision and innovation in the Middle East 24:45 Key traits for founders: belief, focus, commitment 27:43 Cultural diversity and universal goals in Dubai 29:13 The future of AI agents and user experience 32:20 Building a media business to showcase regional talent Sam's Links LDN/ X – https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-marchant/ Website – https://www.21vc.com/ My Links Podcast: https://lifeselfmastery.com/itunes Newsletter: https://partner-grow.beehiiv.com/subscribe YouTube: youtube.com/lifeselfmastery Twitter: https://twitter.com/rohitmal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohit857/ Course: https://www.udemy.com/course/outbound-sales-mastery/