20VC: Cognition CEO Scott Wu on Acquiring Windsurf: The Process, The Deal, The Rationale | Did Google Overlook a Goldmine in the Core Asset and Did Founders Leave a Sinking Ship | How Cursor and Cognition Deal with Ever Increasing Reliance on Anthropic

I I think there's an unspoken covenant that as a founder you go down with the ship. For for better or for worse, it's it's changed a bit over the last year and I and I think it's a bit disappointing, to be honest. I think there's some real truths to your point that often there are actually a lot of really valuable pieces that that get left behind. In AI code To be truly honest. If there was zero progress, the the world would still be entirely different.

This is 20 VC with me, Harry Stebbings. Now you wanna know how real time this episode is. It was recorded about 12 hours before you're listening to it. It was recorded late, late on Thursday night, and yes, 20 VC team worked through the night to edit it and turn it around. That is commitment for you. The only thing that anyone wants to talk about this week is Cognition buying Windsurf. What happened? Did the team get screwed over? What happens from here? How does it fit into Cognition's grandmaster plan? What does it mean for the space in terms of who wins? Cursor versus cognition versus clawed code. We unpack it all today with Scott Wu, co-founder and CEO at Cognition. But before we dive into the show today, Harvard Management Company is constantly seeking out the next generation of great investors and entrepreneurs. HMC has managed Harvard University's endowment for nearly 50 years and was one of the first institutional investors in venture capital. Their experience and long-term investment horizon makes them ideal partners to get world-changing ideas. on a path to viability and success. They work as a true partner, providing insightful perspectives to help managers succeed. I personally have had the pleasure of working with the HMC team and can say that they are truly exceptional partners and savvy investors. So whether you're launching your first fund or your fifth, HMC welcomes the opportunity to partner with both developing and establishing

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