Aya Peterburg – From a Buddhist Monk in India to Top-Tier VC: On Intuition, Humility, and Creating Your Own Reality

In this episode, I sit down with Aya Peterburg, Founder and Managing Partner at S Capital VC (alongside Haim Sadger). Aya is a woman whose career is paved with courageous pivots—from practicing law, to leading business development in startups, to becoming one of Israel's most prominent and respected investors. Our conversation, which began over coffee well before we hit 'Record', quickly dove into the behind-the-scenes of venture capital decision-making, but mostly focused on the human behind the entrepreneur. We discussed the power of intuition, the critical importance of humility, and why choosing an investor is sometimes a more fateful decision than choosing a co-founder.

From a Buddhist Monk to the "Feel Good Test": The Power of Intuition

One of the most fascinating stories Aya shares takes us back to when she was 20, traveling in Dharamshala, India. Out of hundreds of monks, something in the eyes and energy of one specific monk drew her to approach him and ask to learn about Buddhism. It later turned out he was the Dalai Lama’s personal translator and the head of the national library. This ability to "spot" people, to see the spark in their eyes and their potential, guides her to this day when meeting founders. We talk about the "Feel Good Test" and the fit between people. Aya clarifies that this doesn't mean looking for the "nicest" person, but rather examining the true alignment for a shared journey. It’s about checking in with your gut and asking: Do I feel comfortable in this situation with this person? Will we be able to hold a shared space and communicate respectfully even when disagreements and complexities arise down the road? This ability to listen to your gut is critical. Aya, like her partner Haim Sadger, believes that intuition isn't disconnected from data; rather, it’s a receptor that gathers countless data points from our environment, helping us feel who we can conquer the world with.

Humility as a Working Tool and Mental Resilience

A prominent value Aya adopted from Buddhism, which is incredibly relevant to our world, is humility. She reminds founders (and investors!) not to fall into the trap of arrogance. Even when raising massive amounts of money or achieving phenomenal success, reality can change in an instant. That’s why, when evaluating an investment, she doesn't fall in love with the product—because the product will likely change. Instead, she looks at the founder's mental resilience, their cognitive flexibility, and their ability to stand firm even when facing the market's "firing squad" or veteran investors.

Playing in an Arena Where You Can Win: Founder-Market Fit 

Aya admits with refreshing honesty: "I love to win." Driven by this mindset, she advises founders to carefully choose the arena in which they operate. She shares a story of a highly successful serial entrepreneur who wanted to found a Medical Device company out of a desire to "do good." Aya and the fund's team convinced him to drop the idea simply because he lacked Founder-Market Fit there. The message is powerful: the greatest success comes when we create a playing field perfectly tailored to our strengths, experience, and uniqueness, rather than trying to compete in spaces that aren't right for us just because they sound prestigious.

Don't Be Blinded by Mega-Rounds: An Investor is a "Catholic Marriage"

In a time when we constantly hear about monstrous seed rounds from American funds, Aya offers a reality check, especially for first-time founders. She reminds us that all that glitters is not gold, and a giant fund isn't always the right partner for every company. Her painful yet crucial insight is that while you can part ways with co-founders (as hard as that may be), you cannot get rid of an investor. They remain on your Cap Table for the entire journey. Therefore, she urges founders to invest time, do reference checks, and choose their investors with the same level of rigorous care as they would a life partner.

Closing Message: Create Your Own Reality

Aya drew much of her entrepreneurial worldview from her late father. As a child who loved drawing comics, his drawings were stolen and published in a newspaper without credit. Instead of sinking into victimhood or disappointment, he simply decided to start his own newspaper so he would have a place to publish his art. To Aya, this story is the essence of entrepreneurship and the human journey—the ability to take hardship, refuse to give up, and build, with our own hands, the reality and the arena in which we can grow and make an impact.