# Live Episode! Clubhouse: Paul Davison and Rohan Seth

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2021-05-06
- Length: 55m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth

## Summary

Paul Davison and Rohan Seth, co-founders of the social audio app Clubhouse, discuss their journey from previous failed startups to building a platform that capitalized on the pandemic's demand for virtual connection. They detail the technical and social challenges of their earlier location-based app Highlight, the personal tragedy that led Rohan to found the Lydian Accelerator, and the iterative product development that transformed their initial 'Talk Show' concept into Clubhouse's live, ephemeral audio rooms. The founders also address the complexities of moderating live group audio, managing rapid scaling, and maintaining focus amidst intense competition from tech giants.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=0) Introduction: Paul Davison and Rohan Seth
- [1:56](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=116) Stanford, Google, and Early Startup Ventures
- [7:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=458) Building and Failing with Highlight
- [17:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=1078) Rohan’s Memory Labs and Personal Tragedy
- [24:16](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=1456) Reconnecting and the Lydian Accelerator
- [29:52](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=1792) From Audio Apps to Clubhouse’s Origin
- [37:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=2224) Product Evolution: Talk Show to Live Audio
- [43:53](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=2633) Moderation, Safety, and Community Guidelines
- [49:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-05-06-live-episode-clubhouse-paul-davison-and-rohan-seth#t=2994) Competition, Valuation, and Future Outlook

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Connected products & IoT](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/connected-products-and-iot)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Clubhouse (product)
- Highlight (product)
- Memory Labs (company)
- Lydian Accelerator (company)
- FonaFren (product)
- Talk Show (product)
- Pinterest (company)
- Open Doors (company)
- Twitter (company)
- Facebook (company)
- Discord (company)
- Instagram (company)
- LinkedIn (company)
- Slack (company)
- South by Southwest (other)
- Stanford (other)
- Google (company)
- Benchmark (company)
- Airbnb (company)
- Uber (company)

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- [Afterschool Podcast, Episode 1 - Rich Brilliant Willing](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2013-08-19-afterschool-podcast-episode-1-rich-brilliant-willing) (Core77 Podcast)
- [Hatch Duo: Industrial Design, Navigating AI, Branding, Hardware Innovation | Hard Tech Podcast #16](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hard-tech-podcast/2024-03-20-hatch-duo-industrial-design-navigating-ai-branding-hardware-innovation-hard-tech) (Hard Tech Podcast)
- [Rooting for the Home Team with Paul Freedman and Bryan Carmel](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2026-05-27-rooting-for-the-home-team-with-paul-freedman-and-bryan-carmel) (Oxide and Friends)
- [S7E18 Aaron Moncur | Building Pipeline, the Being An Engineer Podcast, and Engineering Communities](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2026-04-24-s7e18-aaron-moncur-building-pipeline-the-being-an-engineer-podcast-and-engineeri) (Being an Engineer)

## Citing this page

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