%20-%20long.png)
%20AD.png)
Sam Wong: General Partner, Blackbird
Episode description
Published 15th October, 2025.
Episode #228 of The High Flyers Podcast features Sam Wong, General Partner at Blackbird Ventures, one of Australasia’s leading VC firms and the first investor in Canva. Born in Perth to Malaysian-Chinese and British-Indian parents, Sam went from packing Sound Blaster boxes to building Blackbird’s New Zealand fund while five months pregnant. A former lawyer turned founder turned investor, she’s known for her humility, conviction, and sharp judgment backing bold founders across the region.
Note: This is a replay of Episode 129, originally released in May 2023 — one of our most loved classics.
In this conversation, Sam reflects on her multicultural upbringing, the influence of her entrepreneurial family, and how feeling like an outsider shaped her worldview. She shares lessons from law, startups, and venture, including the “2 out of 10” feedback from Blackbird co-founder Niki Scevak that transformed her approach. We explore building a fund while pregnant, the challenges of starting from scratch in a new country, and her philosophies on courage, success, identity, and leadership — from her annual “fire yourself and reapply” ritual to Barack Obama’s reminder to “keep it about the work.”
It’s time to explore your curiosity — please enjoy.
______________
To support this podcast, check out our some of our sponsors & get discounts:
→ $1,000 off Vanta: Your compliance superpower — Vanta.com/high
→ Get up to 6 months of Notion’s Business plan for free with Notion AI included (worth $12K): Go to - https://ntn.so/highflyers & click “Apply Now”
______________
If you're keen to discuss sponsorship and partnering with us, email us at contact@curiositycentre.com.
Hosted by Vidit Agarwal, Founder of Curiosity Center and The High Flyers Podcast.
______________
Follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter
Get in touch with our Founder and Host, Vidit Agarwal directly Here
Contact us to discuss sponsorship opportunities, recommend future guests or share feedback, we love hearing how to improve!
Thank you for rating / reviewing this podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, it helps others find us and convince guests to come on the show!
Show notes
Timestamps
About us
The High Flyers Podcast is a "meticulously researched biography" that uncovers the untold stories of remarkable people and companies—redefining what it means to be a high flyer. Launched in 2020, it has ranked in the global top ten for past two years, with listeners in 27 countries and over 200 episodes released. A flagship product of the Curiosity Center, it has been featured in Forbes, Daily Telegraph, and at SXSW, offering raw, relatable insights from childhood to career, helping listeners become 1% better every day.
Some of the notable guests on the show include: Anil Sabharwal (He built/led Google Photos,
Google Chrome and Google Drive), Malcolm Turnbull (Former Australian Prime Minister),
Holly Kramer (Board Director at Woolworths and ANZ), Brad Banducci (Recent Woolworths
CEO), Jack Zhang (Airwallex CEO and Co-Founder), Craig Tiley (Tennis Australia CEO), Elena Verna (Head of Growth at Lovable) and more.
Contact us
We enjoy working with people and companies that align with our mission and values.
If that sounds like you, contact our team via the form.