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The future of Art + Museums 2.0 with Tom McLeod, Founder of Arkive

At the end of my company Omni, I was tracking something internally that I called speed to learning. Which isn't how fast you're making money, it's how fast is the company figuring stuff out.

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Episode Description

Tom McLeod, Founder and Executive Director of Arkive, joins the show to talk about:

  • Re-imagining the art museum and the founding story behind Arkive.
  • Breaking down the collectibles space and the evolution of NFT's and digital creative works.
  • Lessons learned from shipping 17 iPhone apps, and measuring "speed to learning" as Tom's ultimate KPI
  • Why the wave of Gen AI apps is very different than the rise of mobile apps.
  • Keeping love, passion, and business separate.

Episode Transcript

Tom McLeod

Founder and Executive Director

Tom McLeod is a 5x founder. Most recently, he was the CEO and Founder of Omni (exited to Coinbase in 2019). Currently, he is building Arkive, unlocking the value of Smithsonian-like museum treasuries by letting members curate a distributed collection of offline valuable cultural artifacts. Prior to Omni, he founded Pagelime (acquired by SurrealCMS in 2015), LolConnect (acquired by Tencent in 2012), and Imaginary Feet, which developed 15+ profitable iPhone apps enjoyed by over 10 million users. Along with a passion for tech and the arts, Tom has a dedicated interest in service and supporting diverse communities. He sits on the board of Camelback Ventures and advises numerous founders and startups. Originally from Plainfield, NJ, he and his family recently relocated from San Francisco to Santa Monica, where you can find him in search of his new favorite mall and movie theater.

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