Episode summary
Episode 359: Carolina Strobel of Antler Brazil: On Board Reboots and Ventures Promise
The Fiftyfaces Podcast
· · Hosts: Aoifinn Devitt · Guests: Carolina (Carol) Strobel
Summary
Carolina Strobel traces her path from law and Brazilian financial markets into venture capital, starting with training at Intel Capital in the United States and later moving to Redpoint e.ventures before founding Antler Brazil. She says the early Intel Capital experience was highly structured and taught her to evaluate deals through financial, business, and legal lenses, while also making her feel more seen than she had in Brazil. At Redpoint, she saw the same kinds of founders and technologies repeatedly, which pushed her toward very early-stage investing so she could broaden the pipeline.
She argues that venture in Brazil and Latin America is being constrained by high interest rates, limited liquidity, and weak exit markets, even though sectors like fintech, health tech, edtech, and clean tech remain strong. At the same time, she sees momentum in countries such as Mexico and Uruguay, and thinks lower-cost AI development could help Latin American startups build globally relevant products without relocating.
On boards, Carolina says public companies often need a “revamp” because traditional governance can be too conservative for new technology and business models. She believes directors with startup, legal, and operational backgrounds can bring fresh thinking, especially on AI governance. For startups, she prefers practical support over bureaucracy, often acting as a “WhatsApp away” mentor rather than a formal board member.
Key takeaways
- Carolina says she moved into venture capital after Intel Capital gave her structured training and a clear path to work on deals in Latin America.
- She argues Brazil and the wider region face a funding crunch because interest rates are high, liquidity is low, and exits are scarce.
- Carolina sees AI as a potential tailwind for Latin American startups because it can require less upfront capital and enable globally scalable products.
- She says public-company boards need a “revamp” and new expertise, especially around AI and changing business models.
- Carolina says female fundraisers and founders still have to prove themselves more in rooms dominated by male investors and decision-makers.
Notable quotes
“what the public companies need was a revamp in their board”
“they needed you know new life a fresh air in the board with new visions”
“we have better founders, better advisors, better experts”
“What I try to do is not to get this very serious or bureaucratic. It's much more I'm a what's up away from whatever you need”
“I think that regarding my career, people think that careers are typically linear or they used to be linear, right”
How the episode opens
What I figured out is what the public companies need was a revamp in their board. The board was too conservative in some cases or antiquate or with a different dynamic and they needed you know new life a fresh air in the board with new visions and that's exactly what you know people like me that have different experiences and backgrounds should be joining those boards to give a new life to the board and to give new ideas. I'm Ethan Devit and welcome to the 50 Faces podcast which showcases inspiring professionals in the world of investment and beyond by focusing on people and their stories.
I'm joined today by Karolina Strobel who is based in Sa Paulo and a founding partner at Antler Brazil. She's also a founder and operational partner at Redpoint E Ventures and holds a number of board roles including public companies in Brazil. Welcome Karolina.
Thanks for joining me today.
Thank you very much. It's a pleasure being with you today. Well, we were introduced through a mutual friend of mine and I've heard a great deal about your career journey and what you're working on today, but I'd love if you could just briefly walk us through that to take us through what you studied and how you ended up in venture ultimately.
Sure, absolutely. So, actually I'm a lawyer and after working in the financial market in Brazil, I had an opportunity to work for Intel Capital. So, in Intel Capital, I had a specific training on venture capital in the United States.
So I lived in the US for a couple of years doing deals for Intel Capital there and I had never done venture capital before. It was it's a funny story because my boss at the time she asked me in the interview Karina what do you know about venture capital private equity M&A?
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- venture capital ecosystem
- board reboots
- board roles in emerging markets
- imposter syndrome in finance
- latin america startups
Companies and tickers mentioned
- Antler Brasil
- Redpoint Ventures
- Benefit Street Partners
- PIMCO
Watch the episode
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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The Fiftyfaces Podcast, this episode and its artwork belong to Aoifinn Devitt. Octagon is not affiliated with the show; this page is an independent summary.
