E3: Chris Bakke on Negotiating with Elon Musk and Setting Up An M&A from Day One (3x exits)

Ever wonder what it's like to get a call from Elon Musk, wanting to buy your company? In this episode, Sasha sits down with serial entrepreneur Chris Bakke to find out.

Show Notes

Ever wonder what it's like to get a call from Elon Musk, wanting to buy your company?

In this episode, Sasha sits down with serial entrepreneur Chris Bakke to find out. Chris is the co-founder behind several successful startups, including Laskie, which was acquired by Elon Musk's X, and Interviewed, acquired by Indeed. Chris shares insights on: building a content-driven growth strategy as a founder that's led to his 200k+ follower base, navigating the M&A process and negotiating a deal directly with Musk, transitioning from founder to his current role in building X's job search platform, and much more.

This show is a part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: www.turpentine.co

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This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.

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X/Twitter:

@sashaorloff (Sasha)

@chrisjbakke (Chris)

@turpentinemedia

TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Chris Bakke Intro

(02:49) Laskie and what got Chris excited about it

(04:03) Content as a growth strategy

(07:29) How Chris found his content voice

(12:50) What’s the next thing in content

(19:32) Best practices as a founder to set up M&A as a future path