One of the week’s highlights in venture capital was a viral rage-bait marketing post from General Catalyst.
In a viral X post parodying the classic Mac vs. PC ads, venture firm GC (General Catalyst) released a “VC vs GC” video on Wednesday. The VC, portrayed by a tall actor in a baggy shirt and vest with a conspicuously large bald head, seemed to be a jab at Andreessen Horowitz co-founder Marc Andreessen. (Though Andreessen never appears that disheveled.)
The GC character featured a man with a full head of dark hair, white sneakers, and a penchant for staring directly at the camera, reminiscent of Justin Long’s cooler Mac character, contrasting John Hodgman’s more formal PC persona from the original ads.
GC questions VC about his robotic dog.
VC describes “Woof AI” and praises its benefits (no walking needed, no difficult goodbyes with the kids) declaring, “you’ll never want a real dog after this.” He mentions his firm is leading the seed round and invites GC to join the cap table.
GC remarks how people prefer real dogs and comments, “I’d love to hear more, but we actually have a really high bar around responsibility for these things.”
The video ends with VC kicking the AI dog, which then chases him off-screen. The post has amassed 2.4 million views, hundreds of shares and comments, and thousands of likes.
The underlying message seems to critique other VCs, particularly a16z, for funding any project, while GC maintains higher standards. (No response yet from GC.)
This argument isn’t baseless. Andreessen’s firm often invests in controversial startups like surveillance company Flock Safety, AI notetaker Cluely, and Adam Neumann’s Flow. However, the same criticism could apply to General Catalyst, which boasts a portfolio including Anduril, Percepta, and Polymarket.
The takeaway appears to show an a16z-like character kicking a dog, without actually doing so.
The video received a mixed reaction, with some finding it cringe-worthy while others enjoyed it.
Andreessen himself responded multiple times, calling it “smarmy,” and announcing, “Stay tuned for our upcoming ad campaign, ‘We’re the VC who doesn’t sneer at your idea.'” He continued, noting the accurate height portrayal.
Many noted that effective rage bait elicits a reaction from its target.
Numerous a16z partners and staffers defended Andreessen, attracting many comments. A highlight was from VSC Ventures VC Jay Kapoor: “GC vs. A16Z beef is like Kendrick vs. Drake for people who know what a 409A valuation is.”