Podcast with Paige Craig of Outlander VC: People Over Plans

Neal sits down with Paige Craig, Founder and Managing Partner at Outlander VC, the first-check fund that backs founders as early as humanly possible. Paige shares how growing up homeless, bootstrapping a defense tech company during the Iraq War, and years of studying what makes founders tick led him to build a 38-point framework for picking people - not plans. They cover physical AI, manufacturing, defense tech, and why first-time founders still get his first call. And yes, there are duck carnitas involved. Key Topics * Outlander’s first-check model: investing before product or metrics exist * The 38-point founder framework: vision, intelligence, character, execution * Why first-time founders often outperform repeat founders on a risk-adjusted basis * Bootstrapping a defense tech company in 2003 - driving into Iraq to win contracts * Physical AI as a 20-year defining theme * Manufacturing and industrial automation as the next frontier * The coming dislocation of creative talent from AI * Defense tech investment beyond the hype cycle Links & Resources * Outlander * Scale AI * Brad Feld Connect on LinkedIn * Paige Craig This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit risingtidepartners.substack.com/

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Podcast with Paige Craig of Outlander VC: People Over Plans is an episode from Tacos and Tech Podcast by Neal Bloom.

This episode is 34:56 long.

This episode was published on Apr 28, 2026.

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