The Path from The Soviet Union to Building Multi-Billion Dollar Companies — Max Levchin

TL;DR: In the interview, Max Levchin shares the secret to a successful marriage and co-founder relationship, the leadership lesson from the movie *Ronin* — "Once there is doubt, there is no doubt" — and discusses the latest advances in brain-computer interface technology. ## The Secret to Marriage and Co-Founder Relationships Max Levchin believes the key to any good relationship is sustained effort. He says: "The secret to my marriage is: I still try to impress this girl. Every morning I wake up and think, how did I get her? I definitely don't deserve this. So, making an effort every day to impress your partner — that's the secret to a great marriage." He extends this model to co-founder relationships. Looking back on his many years of co-founding, some relationships were great and others didn't last. Levchin notes that people tend to blame themselves, but should instead examine the root cause of the breakdown between the two co-founders. Maintaining a healthy relationship requires continuous investment and proving yourself worthy of trust — just like in a marriage. ## Leadership and Decision-Making: Lessons from the Movie *Ronin* The host mentions that Levchin once contributed an answer to the billboard question in the book *Mentor Tribe*: a quote from the movie *Ronin* — "Once there is doubt, there is no doubt." The next line in the movie is: "That's the first thing they teach you." Levchin loves this quote because it has multiple layers of meaning: - **Don't doubt yourself**: You already know the answer; you're just too scared, too embarrassed, or too unprepared to accept it. - **Make a decision quickly**: Procrastination only makes things worse. - **Even if it's unpleasant, you have to do it**: So don't avoid it. Levchin admits to being "super into studying leadership" and has rewatched *Ronin* and *Seven Samurai* multiple times as leadership lessons. The host adds that he applies this quote to hiring and evaluating co-founders: "When you have doubts about a key employee or co-founder, the odds are extremely low. Your feelings are unlikely to improve." He reminds himself: "Once there is doubt, there is no doubt." If you're rationally trying to convince yourself to believe something that feels wrong, you probably already know the answer. ## Brain-Computer Interfaces: From Sci-Fi to Reality The host once lived in Japan and remains close with his host family from when he was 15. He asks Levchin if he has seen the 2006 Japanese animated film *Paprika*. The movie is about a psychiatrist who invents a device called the DC Mini that allows therapists to enter and record patients' dreams, but when the prototype is stolen, it triggers a series of events. In reality, researchers in Kyoto, Japan, are using fMRI and lucid dream subjects, combined with machine learning, to correlate brain activity with content. Though the resolution is still low, the progress is surprising. Levchin is very interested; he calls himself a "secretly hardcore brain-computer interface fan" and has studied the field seriously. He mentions that the density of the skull makes it difficult to get deep signals using traditional methods, often requiring shaving the head or other physical preparations. But he's excited about new developments like ultrasound: "We're finally starting to think about 'penetration' — not physically penetrating, but reaching a few inches into the brain, not just scanning currents on top of the skull." Additionally, focused ultrasound can target the nucleus accumbens for neuromodulation, treating substance abuse or addiction — a very cutting-edge area of research. ## Bonus: A Question from a Mutual Friend During the interview, the host mentions a question from their mutual friend Luke Nosek, implying the two have known each other for a long time, but the transcription didn't fully expand on that question. --- Source: The Path from The Soviet Union to Building Multi-Billion Dollar Companies — Max Levchin (https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2s&v=uOjgVxOfxXo)