Overview

• Newell works seven days a week from his bedroom aboard his superyacht, breaking up work sessions with multiple daily scuba dives and gym workouts.
• He describes his career as a long retirement, explaining that he only pursues projects he finds fun and entertaining.
• Outside Valve, Newell leads Starfish Neuroscience and Inkfish ventures and is contributing to an aerosol pathogen detection device.
• He forecasts that AI tools will allow non-programmers to scaffold coding abilities and potentially outperform veteran developers.
• He urges startups to focus first on delivering real customer value, arguing that capital will follow if products solve genuine problems.