Marc Rowan on Private Markets, Software Repricing, and Capital Allocation
5/27/202656 min
In 1990, Marc Rowan walked out of Drexel with his belongings in a cardboard box. Within a year, Apollo was managing $6 billion.
David Haber speaks with Marc Rowan, Cofounder, CEO, and Chair of Apollo Global Management, about building Apollo into one of the world’s largest alternative asset managers and how private capital is reshaping the global economy.
The conversation covers the rise of private credit, and why Rowan believes private markets are becoming increasingly central to financing the real economy. They also discuss AI, data centers, robotics, and the growing intersection between venture-backed technology companies and large-scale private financing.
Along the way, they reflect on leadership, institutional culture, and why enduring organizations must adapt rather than protect the status quo.
Resources:
Follow David Haber on X: https://x.com/dhaber
Learn more about Apollo Global Management: https://www.apollo.com
Stay Updated:
Find a16z on YouTube: YouTube
Find a16z on X
Find a16z on LinkedIn
Listen to the a16z Show on Spotify
Listen to the a16z Show on Apple Podcasts
Follow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg
Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsMark Rowan· Guest0:00
Ten stocks right now in the US are nearly fifty percent of the S&P, and they're all levered to the same trend. The same thing is happening in the global fixed income market. And so if you're an investor and you're looking for diversification, there's no place to get it other than private markets. Great companies, Anthropic, OpenAI, SpaceX, Anduril, every one of those companies is private, multiple trillion dollars, and yet most investors have zero exposure to them.
David Haber· Host0:24
Andreessen wrote this piece over a decade ago that software's eating the world, and that feels more true than ever as AI proliferates all parts of the economy.
Mark Rowan· Guest0:32
We operate under the assumption that every job is going to be replaced or enhanced. 2025 was just proof of concept that data centers and chips and energy were all needed. 2026, the market is starting to recognize that if this continues, everyone who is an investor is going to be- In 1990, Mark Rowan walked out of Drexel with his belongings in a cardboard box.
Speaker 20:55
Within a year, Apollo was managing six billion dollars. What started as a distressed investing firm in the aftermath of a financial crisis eventually became one of the world's largest alternative asset managers, spanning private credit, retirement services, and financing for some of the largest industrial and technology shifts underway today. Now another transition is happening. AI, robotics, energy infrastructure, and data centers are creating enormous new capital demands, forcing finance and technology to converge in ways that barely existed a decade ago. a16z's David