Kwat Medetgul-Ernar

TLDR: What lights you up?! Opener for our 1517 Summit: 25 years ago I started working with homeschoolers. Those families changed the trajectory of my life. It’s where I got to see that real learning starts with passion and curiosity. 16 years ago, when Michael and I were on the founding team of the Thiel Fellowship, we called it an older young person’s homeschool program. And today, with 1517, we say we homeschool CEOs. I think that there is a lot that we can learn from homeschoolers about going against the grain, following curiosity, and getting a sense of what real learning looks like. In homeschooling there is a concept called “deschooling” — a transition time between being in a more institutionalized setting, to one of their own creation. It sometimes looks chaotic, “unproductive,” and purposeless. But this time period is when people start unraveling assumptions that have been shaping their lives, without them knowing it. By letting go of the rules, natural curiosity and passion can start to emerge. Over the next ten years, I think all of us are going to go through something like a collective deschooling period. We’re going to need to unlearn the assumptions that were put down before us by other people and institutions, ride the chaos, and emerge through to the other side with passion and curiosity. The path used to look clear. Work hard. Get good grades. Collect credentials. Climb the ladder. Success had a map. But the world we're entering is uncharted. Artificial intelligence is making information abundant. Institutions are failing us. Careers are becoming less linear. Entire industries are appearing and disappearing in just a few years. The old question was: "What should I do?" But today, I propose a new question: “What lights you up, when no one is watching?” That's a much harder question. Many people discover that when the external structure disappears, they're left with an uncomfortable feeling. Not freedom. Not excitement. Meaninglessness. Because for years, meaning was outsourced. A syllabus told us what mattered. A test told us what to learn. A boss told us what success looked like. A credential told us we were progressing. But what happens when fewer and fewer people can tell you what matters next? I think that's one of the defining challenges of the next decade. And I think the antidote is surprisingly simple. Start dreaming: What is the thing you can't stop thinking about? What rabbit hole do you disappear into? What topic makes you lose track of time? What project would you work on, even if nobody was grading it? All summed up: What lights you up? When we're young, we're often taught to treat those interests as distractions from the "real" work. I think the opposite is true. Those interests are clues. They're pointing toward the place where your curiosity, your energy, and your contribution intersect. The people who will thrive in the next ten years will be like shining beacons! They'll be the people who know how to follow genuine curiosity. The people who can create their own path. The people who can stay fascinated. The people who know what lights them up and have the courage to build around it. So welcome to your summit. When you meet a new friend today, ask “What lights you up?” May the answers surprise and delight and lead you into your next 10 years.

🎉 Today, we're excited to share that we've closed two new funds: @VersionOneVC Fund V ($78M) and Opportunities Fund III ($30M). 🎉 More + link to blog post in thread below...

Excited to share that we've closed two new funds at @VersionOneVC: Fund V ($78M) and Opportunities Fund III ($30M). Our focus remains the same — backing exceptional founders early, often before a category is obvious or crowded. We're investing globally at pre-seed/seed across AI, robotics, deep tech, biology, decentralized systems, and emerging ecosystems like India and Africa. The founders we're most drawn to aren't chasing trends — they're mission-driven people with unusual insight solving problems they understand intimately. Many of the most important companies of the next decade will initially look misunderstood or too early. That's where we want to be. Thank you to our LPs and community for their continued support. And above all, to the founders who give us the opportunity to be part of their journeys.