# How this foodie founder is revamping restaurants

> Ben Leventhal, the founder and CEO of BlackBird, and formerly the founder of Resy and Eater, is revamping the restaurant industry… with crypto. He shares his journey as a serial entrepreneur — including hard-won lessons learned in company-building — in conversation with a16z crypto General Partner A...

- URL: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/podcast/blackbird-ceo-ben-leventhal-csx-2024
- Authors: [Ben Leventhal](https://a16zcrypto.com/team/ben-leventhal), [Arianna Simpson](https://a16zcrypto.com/team/arianna-simpson)
- Published: 2025-01-24
- Updated: 2025-01-28
- Focus areas: company building
- Tags: web2 to web3, founder stories, CSX 2024 (NYC), podcast
- Format: podcast

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Ben Leventhal, the founder and CEO of BlackBird, and formerly the founder of Resy and Eater, is revamping the restaurant industry… with crypto. He shares his journey as a serial entrepreneur — including hard-won lessons learned in company-building — in conversation with a16z crypto General Partner Arianna Simpson.

[Embedded media](https://player.simplecast.com/6197ce7c-c436-4e47-a197-4774bb85959a?dark=true)

with [@benleventhal](https://x.com/benleventhal) [@AriannaSimpson](https://x.com/AriannaSimpson)

Welcome to web3 with a16z. How many of you are regulars at a favorite cafe, bar, or dinner spot? Probably a lot of you — but if you’re not, well, our guest today aims to make you one.

This episode features Ben Leventhal — the founder and CEO of BlackBird, and formerly the founder of Resy and Eater. In it, he shares his journey as a serial entrepreneur in conversation with a16z crypto General Partner Arianna Simpson.

Ben shares hard-won lessons learned in company-building, including navigating in wartime; the difference between measuring vs feeling when it comes to defining success; and more.

Today’s conversation [originally took place](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsMmz-10MRA) in the fall at our CSX Crypto Startup Accelerator in [New York](https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/tags/csx-2024-2). We’re currently accepting applications for our next cohort in the spring in San Francisco. Visit [a16zcrypto.com/csx](http://a16zcrypto.com/csx) for more information and to apply.

*As a reminder, none of the content should be taken as investment, business, legal, or tax advice. Please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information, including a link to a list of our investments.*

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Source: [How this foodie founder is revamping restaurants](https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/podcast/blackbird-ceo-ben-leventhal-csx-2024) — a16z crypto. Full archive: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts