Nick Krasney: Inside the Business Models: How To Achieve Success In The Growth Industry: Nick Krasney

Inventing the Future — From Harvard Dorm Rooms to Google Search with Nick Krasney
In this episode of the Growth Ventures Podcast, host Hamlet Azarian sits down with Nick Krasney, product manager at Google and co-founder of Philo, one of the first campus-based streaming services in the U.S. Nick shares his journey from early tech curiosity to founding companies, raising venture capital, scaling operations, and now shaping search at Google.

Whether you’re a founder navigating your first venture, a product builder curious about startup-to-enterprise transitions, or simply interested in the mind of someone who’s built and led across the tech spectrum, this episode is packed with valuable takeaways and candid reflections.

What We Covered with Nick

Humble Beginnings & Dorm Room Innovation

Nick’s love for invention started early, eventually leading to his first major venture—Philo, a streaming service born at Harvard. He shares how curiosity, timing (launching on the night Bin Laden was killed), and persistence led to viral campus adoption and institutional VC backing.

Building Philo: From Idea to Venture-Backed Reality

Nick dives into what it was like building Philo—raising capital, managing fast growth, and learning how to lead and build in real time. The big lesson? Execution at scale requires more than product-market fit—it takes storytelling, strategic clarity, and the ability to attract high-caliber advisors.

Radiant: The Power of Operational Insight

At Radiant, an IoT signage startup, Nick served as COO and brought order to a rapidly scaling business. He shares insights on managing churn, modeling growth with limited data, aligning GTM strategies across SMB and enterprise, and the importance of crafting internal narratives that unite teams.

Lessons in Leadership and Storytelling

A recurring theme: great product decisions rely on compelling internal storytelling. Leaders must explain not just what they’re building—but what they’re not building, and why. It’s a skill that builds buy-in, cross-functional clarity, and long-term momentum.

From Startup to Search: Product Management at Google

Nick now leads product within Google Search, focusing on projects like Chrome’s “Follow” feature and the health of the open web. He reflects on how building at massive scale changes everything—especially risk, responsibility, and process. Startups “wish” for certain problems; Google plans for them on day one.

Where Technology is Headed: Generative AI & Beyond

Nick shares his framework for evaluating what’s next—not just new inventions like generative AI, but when combinations of maturing technologies become affordable, possible, and valuable. He also explores emerging behaviors, like on-device intelligence and autonomous agent ecosystems.

Key Timestamps

01:45 – Nick’s early curiosity and invention mindset
06:30 – Starting Philo at Harvard and launching during a historic news event
10:45 – Raising venture capital and scaling the business
14:15 – Building great advisor relationships and the value of “just asking”
18:20 – Transitioning from Philo to HBS and learning the tools of business
22:00 – Leading Radiant: data, growth, and operational strategy
31:00 – Understanding churn and the art of strategic storytelling
38:00 – Joining Google Search and managing product at massive scale
46:00 – Generative AI, new toolchains, and the future of information
51:00 – Lessons on combining technologies and finding inflection points

Final Thoughts

Nick Krasney’ journey is a masterclass in curiosity-fueled execution—from inventing on campus and raising venture capital to leading high-scale product efforts at one of the world’s biggest companies. His insights span not just what to build, but how to lead, learn, and translate vision into scalable action.

For founders, product leaders, or tech explorers, this episode offers timeless wisdom on navigating ambiguity, aligning teams, and staying grounded while building what’s next.

Connect with Nick Krasney

LinkedIn: Nick Krasney