""Oh, I loved the [now-retired Lockheed recon aircraft] SR-71 when I was a kid," said Clark. "I remember my parents put me in a preschool interview, and I was telling people about the aerodynamics of F-16s. I don't know how much I really understood at the time, but I was definitely talking about it in building-block interviews with preschool and kindergarten principals.""
""There aren't that many companies that end up mattering in world history," he told Fortune. "I often talk about the alien test: If aliens were to come down to Earth and ask how the world works, what companies would appear in your description of the world?... The test at Thrive, for the companies we invest in, is that we need to believe they will appear on that list.""
Philip Clark pursued childhood ambitions in physics and aerospace, fascinated by aircraft such as the SR-71 and aerodynamics. Clark joined Thrive Capital in 2022 from 8VC and worked on Thrive’s investment in defense company Anduril, which reached a $30.5 billion valuation. Clark also worked on Thrive investments in OpenAI, Cursor, Wiz, Nudge, and Physical Intelligence. Thrive, founded in 2011 by Joshua Kushner, is known for making large, concentrated bets, including a major private investment in OpenAI. Clark was promoted to partner at Thrive and applies an "alien test" to evaluate long-term company significance.
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