In this episode of First Cheque, Cheryl and Maxine sit down with Laura Chambers, CEO of @Mozilla to dive into the transformative power of open source technology and its role in shaping the future of the internet and artificial intelligence. Laura shares insights on Mozilla’s unique nonprofit structure, the importance of transparency and accessibility in technology, and the critical need for an open AI ecosystem to drive innovation and equity. From the historical impact of open source software like Firefox to the current challenges of balancing ethical AI development with business needs, this conversation is packed with lessons for early-stage investors and tech enthusiasts alike. Laura also provides an inside look at Mozilla Ventures and the Builders Program, which are supporting the next wave of open-source innovators. Whether you're an investor, founder, or just curious about the future of tech, this episode is a must-listen!

00:00 Intro & Guest Highlights

00:21 Why We're Excited About Laura Chambers

03:14 Interview Begins: Laura's First Investment at Age 10

05:20 Open Source 101: What It Is & Why It Matters

07:08 Firefox vs Internet Explorer: The Open Source Origin Story

09:58 How Healthy Is the Internet Today?

13:50 Can You Actually Make Money From Open Source?

15:45 What If the Internet Had Stayed Behind Paywalls?

17:33 Gen AI Is the New Model T: We're Missing the Seatbelts

19:37 The Case For & Against Closed Source AI

21:35 Why Researchers, Academics & Governments Need Open Access

22:17 Where Are We in the Gen AI Infrastructure Cycle?

24:18 AI in Education: What Skills Do Kids Actually Need?

26:36 Older Generations & the AI Learning Gap

29:16 Open vs Closed: Who's Winning Right Now?

33:49 Meta's Llama & the Strategic Logic of Going Open

35:21 Advice for Founders & Investors Building on Open vs Closed Models

39:21 Inside Mozilla Ventures: What They're Investing In

41:31 Prompt Engineering Tips From a CEO (Say Please!)

46:13 The Biggest Brave Moment: Moving Her Family & a 17-Year-Old Dog to Australia

49:20 The Weight of Being CEO & What That Feels Like

1) Mozilla Ventures: Supporting startups focused on privacy, AI, and open source innovation. (https://mozilla.vc/)

2) Mozilla Builders Program: Investing in and mentoring early-stage entrepreneurs building ethical tech solutions. (https://builders.mozilla.org/)

3) Harvard University Study: Open Source Software’s $8 Trillion Economic Impact A study on the global economic value created by open source technology. (https://www.hbs.edu/ris/Publication%20Files/24-038_51f8444f-502c-4139-8bf2-56eb4b65c58a.pdf)

4) Anthropic Report on Bias in AI: Research highlighting the impact of bias and the importance of transparency in AI models. (https://www.anthropic.com/research/mapping-mind-language-model)

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Frontline’s Brennan O’Donnell has spent two decades helping companies expand across borders, first as an operator at Google and later as a growth investor backing Series B to D businesses. In this episode, Cheryl and Maxine unpack what’s shifted at growth stage in the last 12 months, why the market is still a barbell of “hot or not” deals, and how AI is finally producing application layer companies mature enough for growth rounds.

They go deep on Frontline’s transatlantic model: seed investing across Europe to help founders raise a Series A and enter the US earlier, and growth investing in the US to help companies expand into Europe with a hands on, concentrated portfolio approach. Brennan breaks down the four pillars Frontline uses to drive international expansion timing, go to market, talent and org design, and location plus the biggest traps founders fall into, like trying to launch in too many markets at once or optimizing for revenue targets instead of learning.

You’ll also hear why the UK and Ireland are the default first step for 97 percent of US companies entering Europe, when Europe becomes a CEO level priority, how relationship driven sales cycles vary across countries, and why developer led community building can beat traditional sales led expansion for certain AI products. Brennan closes with his Big Cojones moment: moving to the Bay Area for a temporary Google job with everything in storage, then doing it again to help build Google’s European HQ in Dublin.

03:14 Brennan’s first investment: Mode Analytics and a lawn mowing business in Texas

06:49 What’s changed at growth stage and why “growth” is a different world

08:30 Why AI enablement came first and app layer is finally ready for Series B plus

10:10 The new risk: fast revenue that’s concentrated and not yet durable

14:22 Frontline’s model: Europe seed plus US growth and why it’s unique

15:58 What Frontline looks for: category leaders and a line of sight to a 5x outcome

16:20 The rough revenue range where growth starts paying attention

23:22 The four pillars of expansion: timing, go to market, talent, location

26:00 Timing: the 10 percent pull, exec maturity, and why waiting too long is risky

29:36 Why Europe expansion has to be a CEO level company priority

38:04 Build or buy: why most companies compete into new markets rather than acquire

39:10 Developer community expansion as a new go to market wedge

41:44 Market selection: why nearly everyone starts with London or Dublin

43:56 “Success amnesia” and why you must optimize for learning not quotas

48:28 Relationship driven sales cycles and how Europe varies market to market

52:43 Big Cojones moment: taking a temp Google job and betting on himself

54:26 Doing it again: moving to Dublin in three weeks to help build Google Europe

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As 2026 kicks off, Cheryl and Maxine open the year with their annual First Cheque wrap, a grounded, opinionated take on what actually shifted in Australian tech and venture, and what that means for the year ahead.

They break down why 2025 marked a genuine inflection point for the ecosystem, from Canva’s secondary and a surge in M&A to fresh signals that long-awaited liquidity is finally starting to flow. Despite minimal government support, Australia quietly proved itself as one of the most capital-efficient venture markets globally, producing unicorns at roughly twice the rate of the US per dollar invested.

The conversation also tackles the harder truths investors and founders need to reckon with in 2026: early-stage funding compressing while late stage heats up, corporate venture capital retreating, and the gender funding gap sliding backwards. Looking forward, Cheryl and Maxine share their predictions for the year ahead, where funding volumes may land, why seed remains the toughest stage, how AI valuations could trigger a market correction, and why energy and infrastructure may emerge as the next premium asset class.

00:00 – Intro: End of year energy: why 2025 felt different to 2024

03:55 – Election fallout and the government’s “nothingburger” for startups

05:24 – Canva’s secondary and the first real signs of liquidity returning

09:49 – Aussie tech M&A heats up: Canva, Linktree, Jolt, and more

12:09 – The stat that changed the narrative: Australia’s unicorn efficiency

16:14 – The weirdest trend of the year: early stage down, late stage up

18:27 – Tech jobs, data centers, and the infrastructure bet Australia is making

22:52 – Why deep tech and climate are pulling venture dollars again

28:21 – The gender funding gap got worse (and why)

33:09 – Corporate VC is pulling out: what happened to strategic capital

37:02 – 2026 predictions: funding totals, seed pain, and where capital flows next

44:00 – AI bubble risk: tourism, ROI pressure, and the domino effect

47:42 – Hot take: electricity is the next valuation premium

49:00 – Will diversity bounce back in 2026? (vibes, but also logic)

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