Brains, Bold Bets & Big Wins: Inaki Berenguer’s Playbook for Startup Success

In this episode of Ventures from the Valley, hosts Victor and Tom talk with Inaki Berenguer, a three-time founder and managing partner at LifeX Ventures. Inaki shares his journey from small-town Spain to building and exiting three startups, including CoverWallet. He unpacks strategies for startup growth, selecting the right investors, and navigating co-founder dynamics. The conversation also provides a forward-looking take on how AI transforms science and healthcare, offering powerful insights for founders and investors navigating today’s tech-driven world.

In this episode of Ventures from the Valley, hosts Victor and Tom talk with Inaki Berenguer, a three-time founder and managing partner at LifeX Ventures. Inaki shares his journey from small-town Spain to building and exiting three startups, including CoverWallet. He unpacks strategies for startup growth, selecting the right investors, and navigating co-founder dynamics. The conversation also provides a forward-looking take on how AI transforms science and healthcare, offering powerful insights for founders and investors navigating today’s tech-driven world.

What you will learn:

How academic excellence can translate into entrepreneurial success
The evolution of startup building across three successful ventures
Why choosing the right investors matters and the three key values they should bring
The importance of building a strong company culture
How AI is transforming healthcare and scientific research
Why distribution channels and pricing power are crucial for capturing value in AI-driven businesses
Why the speed of building valuable companies is accelerating in the AI era

Inaki Berenguer is Managing Partner at LifeX Ventures, a $100M fund investing at the intersection of AI and science. A serial entrepreneur, he founded and led three startups to successful exits: CoverWallet (acquired by Aon), Contactive (acquired by Fuze), and Pixable (acquired by SingTel). He also cofounded Agentero and iPronics. Inaki has held roles at Microsoft Strategy, McKinsey & Co., and conducted research at Intel and NEC Labs. A Fulbright Scholar and 14-time marathoner, he holds a PhD from Cambridge, an MBA from MIT, and degrees from UPV and Columbia University. He’s passionate about scaling innovation globally.