Funding a Charter City: A Venture Capital Perspective with Patri Friedman

Venture capital and charter cities are an unlikely pairing, but it’s one that presents interesting possibilities. Today's guest, Patri Friedman, is the founder of Pronomos Capital, the Seasteading Institute, and a veteran in the charter city and competitive governance space. We kick off the show by learning more about Pronomos Capital, and why Patri decided to start a venture fund dedicated to charter cities. With his Silicon Valley experience, Patri brings a unique approach to charter city thinking. From there, we discuss some of the factors that have led to the charter city movement gaining traction, including shifts in government and investor mindsets. After this, we dive into the Seasteading Institute and what spurred Patri to establish the organization. We then delve into founding a charter city. While there are capital constraints, Patri believes that the shortage of capable founders is one of the biggest obstacles in the space. Founders need to have a unique skill set, where they are visionaries along with some on-the-ground, embedded local knowledge. Next, we look at how charter cities overlap with and diverge from Western governance models and how they can apply lessons as best practice. We round the show off by discussing some of the opportunities that COVID-19 has created in the charter cities space, what’s in store for charter cities in the next five years, and what Patri’s most excited about. Be sure to tune in today! Key Points From This Episode: •  Learn about Pronomos Capital, the first venture fund dedicated to charter cities and its motivation. •  Why Patri believes that the legal system of a charter city is similar to low marginal tech. •  The shortcomings of viewing governance as a product rather than a service. •  Why Patri believes the charter city movement has gained the traction it has recently. •  Changes Patri has seen in the charter cities VC space over the past two and a half years. •  How the shift