The debates
Is “get rich without getting lucky” a winner’s story?
Critics say the advice draws authority from his own success rather than from evidence. Mike Brock argues that tips like owning equity instead of renting out your time work mainly for people who already hold equity. He also says the short, confident form makes claims sound like wisdom that nobody checks. The Decoding the Gurus podcast called some of his lines pseudo-profound. Some Goodreads readers say the book leans heavily towards tech founders.
His framing is that wealth is a positive-sum game anyone can learn, and the tools he names are open to all: specific knowledge, accountability, and code and media that need nobody’s permission. Nivi pitched the podcast as timeless material for anyone, from a one-person cashflow business to a large company. The Almanack calls itself a set of ideas to reflect on, not a how-to.
Mike Brock, Notes from the Circus, 27 Jul 2026 · Decoding the Gurus, 18 Aug 2025 (transcript) · Goodreads: How to Get Rich (without getting lucky) · nav.al: Seek Wealth, Not Money or Status · Venture Hacks, 1 May 2019 · Harvard Book Store: The Almanack (2025 hardcover)
Crypto advocacy and his own stakes
He has backed crypto loudly and early. His MetaStable fund returned 539% over its life to mid-March 2017. At Token Summit that December he said money is “a bubble that never pops”. On 1 October 2025 he posted that Zcash is insurance against Bitcoin, and the coin surged. Some crypto outlets called it shilling and raised a conflict of interest, since he had invested in the company behind Zcash.
His case is about privacy. Bitcoin’s public ledger lets governments and banks trace users, while Zcash uses zero-knowledge proofs to hide sender, receiver and amount. In 2017 he also warned that the market was overheated and full of junk tokens. One report says he neither confirmed nor denied the criticism of the Zcash post.
Fortune, 26 Jul 2017 · CoinDesk, 6 Dec 2017 · Decrypt, 1 Oct 2025 · AMBCrypto, 2 Oct 2025 · TechFlow, 10 Oct 2025 · Wikipedia: Zcash
How open is AngelList, really?
AngelList promised to open up startup investing. Fast Company found in 2014 that some deals were visible only to chosen investors, and that by his own estimate about 75% of syndicate-backed startups got an AngelList email feature or prime placement. Chris Dixon warned that crowdfunding could erode the advantages of private companies. In 2026 AngelList’s USVC fund said it could not guarantee its planned quarterly redemptions.
He conceded that this market will never be fully transparent. He framed syndicates as micro-VCs with no fees and no lockup, where leads have real skin in the game. Of USVC he argued that public-market investors are last in line, and he pitched the fund as a way for ordinary investors to get in earlier, for a flat 1% fee.
Fast Company, 24 Mar 2014 · Decrypt, 22 Apr 2026
Airchat: the next big thing, or another Clubhouse?
Airchat caused a stir in tech circles in April 2024. Engadget called it gimmicky, noisy and confusing, with no clear purpose. TechCrunch found the default 2x playback unnatural and its moderation unclear. Failory asked whether early growth would last, as it had not for Clubhouse. By July 2024 the app had pivoted again, to topic channels.
He said there was no pressure to make money and that it could run on a shoestring. Co-founder Brian Norgard argued that voice removes stage fright because you can record as many takes as you like. The relaunch drew more than 30,000 downloads in five days.
Engadget, 18 Apr 2024 · TechCrunch, 13 Apr 2024 · Failory newsletter · TechCrunch, 9 Jul 2024 · Techmeme, citing Bloomberg, 16 Apr 2024
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