When Giants Don’t Go Public: Inside the $5 Trillion Private Tech Market

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a16z

Business, Software Eating The World, Culture, Innovation, Disruption, Entrepreneurship, Science, Technology

4.2 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 26 February 2026

⏱️ 47 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Bloomberg's Odd Lots hosts Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway speak with David George, general partner at a16z and head of the firm's growth fund, about why $5 trillion in tech market cap now sits in the private markets, how that figure has grown 10x in a decade, and what it means for founders, employees, and investors. They also cover SPVs, tender offers, the collapse of legacy software valuations, and why AI companies may be speed-running the path to public markets. This episode originally aired on Bloomberg's Odd Lots podcast.

Transcript

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0:00.0	If you actually want to invest in the highest growth, most promising companies that could be that next mag seven, chances are they're in the private markets.
0:10.8	You know, AI, first of all, I think these have the potential to be some of the best businesses ever created.
0:16.4	They're run by exceptional founders.
0:18.5	They're building products that have grown at rates that we've never
0:21.2	ever seen before. So, you know, they're kind of speed running the process of company growth.
0:27.8	Models are improving at a, like, eye-popping rate. You know, they can basically double their
0:33.2	ability to complete long-form tasks over six to seven months.
0:41.2	And so, you know, if you were to just arrest model development today,
0:46.5	I think we would have the chance to build 10 to 20 years of really interesting applications on top of it.
0:53.4	Highly valued private tech companies now represent about $5 trillion in market cap,
0:56.1	almost a quarter of the S&P 500.
1:02.6	Ten years ago, 88% of market cap creation for the best tech companies happened after they went public. For the recent crop of IPOs, 55% happened while they were still private.
1:09.3	David George runs the growth fund at A16Z.
1:13.2	This conversation, previously aired on Bloomberg's Oblats podcast, covers why companies stay
1:19.2	private longer, the SPV problem, why legacy software is getting crushed, and why outcome-based
1:25.8	pricing could be the business model shift that finishes
1:28.9	off incumbents.
1:30.9	Bloomberg's Oddlots hosts Joe Wisenthall and Tracy Allaway.
1:35.3	Speak with David George, General Partner at A16Z.
1:41.7	Hello and welcome to another episode of the Odd Lots podcast. I'm Joe Wisenthal.
1:47.0	And I'm Tracy Allaway.
1:48.4	Tracy, it feels like 2026 could be a big year for some mega IPOs that have been private for a while.
	...

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