WaitWhat is creating the most valuable independent portfolio of premium content IP that elevates human potential — with a contrarian strategy to scale.
Downloaded more than 130 million times, WaitWhat’s media properties have defined new genres in the areas of business (Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman), wellness (Meditative Story), and creativity (Spark & Fire). In everything WaitWhat creates, it aims to share hard-won wisdom from the most iconic people of the day, to newer voices, sparking curiosity and helping us live at the top of our potential.
Founded by June Cohen and Deron Triff — the former TED execs who launched TED Talks and led the media organization for a combined 17 years — WaitWhat’s approach to content is unique in the industry, with a passion for inventing new business models and building inventive partnerships.
Original Properties
Rapid Response
The pace of change in our culture is unprecedented and shows no signs of slowing. So what is most important to pay attention to when striving to innovate, create, and lead? From the team behind Masters of Scale, Rapid Response features candid conversations with today’s top business leaders navigating real-time challenges. Hosted by the former editor-in-chief of Fast Company, Bob Safian.
Listen
Meditative Story
Meditative Story combines the emotional pull of first-person storytelling with the immediate, science-backed benefits of a mindfulness practice. Every week, you’ll hear a new Meditative Story from a storyteller who will transport you to a time and place where everything changed for them — a story you might find yourself relating to deeply. As the story unfolds, mindfulness guide Rohan Gunatillake will offer gentle prompts designed to calm your mind and help you connect with your own observations, empowering you to feel restored.
Listen
Spark & Fire
Spark & Fire celebrates the creativity of the world’s most admired artists, musicians, architects, dancers, photographers, writers and more – turning the abstract idea of the “creative process” into a captivating, edge-of-your-seat hero’s journey. You’ll hear what was happening in the mind of a creator as they brought their iconic work to life — and you’ll gain specific, actionable insights into your own creative practice. These stories are told entirely in the artist’s own words, against a backdrop of original music for the prepared piano. Spark & Fire is a WaitWhat original.
Listen
Sleep Song: A Meditative Story Experience
Sleep Song from Meditative Story is a bedtime experience born out of our community’s love for the original music of the Meditative Story podcast. Here we take the immersive melodies from each episode and create a one-hour soundtrack to settle your mind, allowing you to wind down. As you shift into sleep, Sleep Song transitions from detailed, episode-inspired story songs into more abstract musical washes and tones that drift in and out of focus — becoming a dream score. Sleep Song is available to Meditative Story members and to subscribers on Apple Podcasts.
Listen
Should this Exist?
It’s the question of our times: How is technology impacting our humanity? On Should This Exist? we invite creators of radical new technologies to set aside their business plan and think through the human side: What is the technology’s fullest potential? And what could possibly go wrong? Show host Caterina Fake (the cofounder of Flickr, early investor in Etsy, and now a partner at Yes VC) drops listeners into the minds of today’s edgiest entrepreneurs and guides them through the journey of foreseeing what technology might do to us, and for us. Should This Exist? is a WaitWhat original series.
Listen
Sincerely, X (TED)
This original audio series features the first-ever anonymous TED Talks. It was created by WaitWhat cofounders Deron Triff and June Cohen ahead of the formal company launch. Hosted by June, the series goes in search of ideas in hiding — powerful ideas that can only be shared in secret. The series launched February 2017 on Audible, in partnership with TED, and premiered on iTunes in June 2017, hitting #1 on the podcast charts.
Listen
The Possible
“The Possible” was the first documentary series filmed in virtual reality. It was created by WaitWhat cofounders June Cohen and Deron Triff, in partnership with VR pioneers Chris Milk and Aaron Koblin of Within. The ground-breaking five-part series brings the viewer into places inaccessible to the public, reaching scientists and inventors at the moment of breakthrough. Each episode featured industry firsts — for example, filming from the stratosphere in a space balloon. The series was created with a sponsorship from GE and support from the Sloan Foundation.
Original Properties
Rapid Response
The pace of change in our culture is unprecedented and shows no signs of slowing. So what is most important to pay attention to when striving to innovate, create, and lead? From the team behind Masters of Scale, Rapid Response features candid conversations with today’s top business leaders navigating real-time challenges. Hosted by the former editor-in-chief of Fast Company, Bob Safian.
The pace of change in our culture is unprecedented and shows no signs of slowing. So what is most important to pay attention to when striving to innovate, create, and lead? From the team behind Masters of Scale, Rapid Response features candid conversations with today’s top business leaders navigating real-time challenges. Hosted by the former editor-in-chief of Fast Company, Bob Safian.
Meditative Story
Meditative Story combines the emotional pull of first-person storytelling with the immediate, science-backed benefits of a mindfulness practice. Every week, you’ll hear a new Meditative Story from a storyteller who will transport you to a time and place where everything changed for them — a story you might find yourself relating to deeply. As the story unfolds, mindfulness guide Rohan Gunatillake will offer gentle prompts designed to calm your mind and help you connect with your own observations, empowering you to feel restored.
Meditative Story combines the emotional pull of first-person storytelling with the immediate, science-backed benefits of a mindfulness practice. Every week, you’ll hear a new Meditative Story from a storyteller who will transport you to a time and place where everything changed for them — a story you might find yourself relating to deeply. As the story unfolds, mindfulness guide Rohan Gunatillake will offer gentle prompts designed to calm your mind and help you connect with your own observations, empowering you to feel restored.
Spark & Fire
Spark & Fire celebrates the creativity of the world’s most admired artists, musicians, architects, dancers, photographers, writers and more – turning the abstract idea of the “creative process” into a captivating, edge-of-your-seat hero’s journey. You’ll hear what was happening in the mind of a creator as they brought their iconic work to life — and you’ll gain specific, actionable insights into your own creative practice. These stories are told entirely in the artist’s own words, against a backdrop of original music for the prepared piano. Spark & Fire is a WaitWhat original.
Spark & Fire celebrates the creativity of the world’s most admired artists, musicians, architects, dancers, photographers, writers and more – turning the abstract idea of the “creative process” into a captivating, edge-of-your-seat hero’s journey. You’ll hear what was happening in the mind of a creator as they brought their iconic work to life — and you’ll gain specific, actionable insights into your own creative practice. These stories are told entirely in the artist’s own words, against a backdrop of original music for the prepared piano. Spark & Fire is a WaitWhat original.
Sleep Song: A Meditative Story Experience
Sleep Song from Meditative Story is a bedtime experience born out of our community’s love for the original music of the Meditative Story podcast. Here we take the immersive melodies from each episode and create a one-hour soundtrack to settle your mind, allowing you to wind down. As you shift into sleep, Sleep Song transitions from detailed, episode-inspired story songs into more abstract musical washes and tones that drift in and out of focus — becoming a dream score. Sleep Song is available to Meditative Story members and to subscribers on Apple Podcasts.
Sleep Song from Meditative Story is a bedtime experience born out of our community’s love for the original music of the Meditative Story podcast. Here we take the immersive melodies from each episode and create a one-hour soundtrack to settle your mind, allowing you to wind down. As you shift into sleep, Sleep Song transitions from detailed, episode-inspired story songs into more abstract musical washes and tones that drift in and out of focus — becoming a dream score. Sleep Song is available to Meditative Story members and to subscribers on Apple Podcasts.
Should this Exist?
It’s the question of our times: How is technology impacting our humanity? On Should This Exist? we invite creators of radical new technologies to set aside their business plan and think through the human side: What is the technology’s fullest potential? And what could possibly go wrong? Show host Caterina Fake (the cofounder of Flickr, early investor in Etsy, and now a partner at Yes VC) drops listeners into the minds of today’s edgiest entrepreneurs and guides them through the journey of foreseeing what technology might do to us, and for us. Should This Exist? is a WaitWhat original series.
It’s the question of our times: How is technology impacting our humanity? On Should This Exist? we invite creators of radical new technologies to set aside their business plan and think through the human side: What is the technology’s fullest potential? And what could possibly go wrong? Show host Caterina Fake (the cofounder of Flickr, early investor in Etsy, and now a partner at Yes VC) drops listeners into the minds of today’s edgiest entrepreneurs and guides them through the journey of foreseeing what technology might do to us, and for us. Should This Exist? is a WaitWhat original series.
Sincerely, X (TED)
This original audio series features the first-ever anonymous TED Talks. It was created by WaitWhat cofounders Deron Triff and June Cohen ahead of the formal company launch. Hosted by June, the series goes in search of ideas in hiding — powerful ideas that can only be shared in secret. The series launched February 2017 on Audible, in partnership with TED, and premiered on iTunes in June 2017, hitting #1 on the podcast charts.
This original audio series features the first-ever anonymous TED Talks. It was created by WaitWhat cofounders Deron Triff and June Cohen ahead of the formal company launch. Hosted by June, the series goes in search of ideas in hiding — powerful ideas that can only be shared in secret. The series launched February 2017 on Audible, in partnership with TED, and premiered on iTunes in June 2017, hitting #1 on the podcast charts.
The Possible
“The Possible” was the first documentary series filmed in virtual reality. It was created by WaitWhat cofounders June Cohen and Deron Triff, in partnership with VR pioneers Chris Milk and Aaron Koblin of Within. The ground-breaking five-part series brings the viewer into places inaccessible to the public, reaching scientists and inventors at the moment of breakthrough. Each episode featured industry firsts — for example, filming from the stratosphere in a space balloon. The series was created with a sponsorship from GE and support from the Sloan Foundation.
“The Possible” was the first documentary series filmed in virtual reality. It was created by WaitWhat cofounders June Cohen and Deron Triff, in partnership with VR pioneers Chris Milk and Aaron Koblin of Within. The ground-breaking five-part series brings the viewer into places inaccessible to the public, reaching scientists and inventors at the moment of breakthrough. Each episode featured industry firsts — for example, filming from the stratosphere in a space balloon. The series was created with a sponsorship from GE and support from the Sloan Foundation.
Who we are
WaitWhat is creating the most valuable independent portfolio of premium IP at the intersection of daily habit and human potential — with a contrarian strategy to scale.
Downloaded more than 130 million times, WaitWhat’s media properties have defined entirely new genres in the areas of business (Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman), wellness (Meditative Story), creativity (Spark & Fire) and technology (Should this Exist?). In everything WaitWhat creates, it aims to elicit the contagious emotions of wonder, curiosity, and mastery — infusing its content with “Wait, what?” moments that spark curiosity and help us live at the top of our potential.
Founded by June Cohen and Deron Triff — the former TED execs who launched TED Talks and led the media organization for a combined 17 years — WaitWhat’s approach to content is unique in the industry. Their passion for inventing new business models and building inventive partnerships make allies out of competitors.
The company’s success is rooted in its ability to scale each property beyond the podcast format, establishing an engaged community and ecosystem that extends into technology products, live experiences, story-driven learning programs, publishing, and first-of-their-kind partnerships.
Today, WaitWhat has assembled one of the largest bodies of timeless wisdom, available for free. When users engage with WaitWhat’s products or podcasts, they’re tapping the collective knowledge of generous mentors including President Barack Obama, Sir Richard Branson, Mark Cuban, Arianna Huffington, Yo-Yo Ma, Wynton Marsalis, Disney’s Bob Iger, Alex Rodriguez, Isabel Allende, Rubén Blades, David Duchovny, NetFlix’s Reed Hastings, Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr, Director Rian Johnson, On Being’s Krista Tippett, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, Pianist Lang Lang, Grammy winner Mickey Guyton, Tyra Banks, will.i.am and Adam Grant.
Developing beloved, original content will always be core to WaitWhat’s mission, but it’s only the first step. In May of 2021 WaitWhat closed its Series B in order to accelerate its ability to build a full suite of technologies and products to platform the organization’s content, and bring it more deeply into users’ lives. Along with Raga Partners, other Series B investors include Emerson Collective, Lupa Systems, Capital One Ventures, Maywic Select Investments, GingerBread Capital, Burda Principal Investments, Cue Ball Capital, and Reid Hoffman.
Based in New York City, WaitWhat has built a valuable team who are committed to the founders’ vision for inventing first-of-their-kind media platforms that endure and scale. The company’s vibrant culture is rooted in optimism, possibility thinking, and an uncommon willingness to embrace risk with intention to push the outer bounds of creativity and experimentation. The team — purposefully rich in diversity — treats each other with kindness and respect, and always supporting “yes, and”-style conversations.
And if you want to join us, drop us a note at [email protected].
Jeff Berman
Jeff Berman has had the kind of career that lends itself to the game Two Truths And A Lie. After starting as a public defender representing children facing life in prison, he moved to Capitol Hill where he served as Chief Counsel to US Senator Chuck Schumer. Jeff entered the private sector at MySpace overseeing policy before moving to the business side where he ultimately led the content, marketing, and sales teams. Jeff has run digital media at the NFL, been part of the first and only team ever to simultaneously chart 7 of the top 10 App Store apps, and most recently co-founded Magnet Companies where he helped launch TOGETHXR and LoveSeen along with leading the Series A investment in Dear Media.
After the 2016 election, Jeff helped start and continues to serve on the board of Protect Democracy, a non-partisan organization whose mission is as urgent as it is self-evident. He has been CEO and a re-founder of WaitWhat since September 2023.
June Cohen
Prior to co-founding WaitWhat in January 2017, June headed up media for TED, building its digital media operations from the ground up. In 2006, she launched TED Talks on the Internet. And in 2009, she introduced the TED Open Translation Project, the largest subtitling effort in the world, with 120 languages, 20K translators and 100K translations. She also co-hosted the annual TED Conference with Chris Anderson and co-founded TEDWomen with Pat Mitchell.
Deron Triff
Deron is the co-founder and Chief Business Officer of WaitWhat, the media organization behind Masters of Scale, Meditative Story and Spark & Fire. Prior to co-founding WaitWhat in January 2017, Deron served alongside June Cohen on the executive team at TED where he built nearly 100 partnerships that grew TED’s audience to over 100 million per month. His love and unique skill set for creating successful partnerships resulted in hits like the TED Radio Hour on NPR, TED Weekends on The Huffington Post, TED in Cinemas with Fandango, TED Shows on Netflix, TED English with National Geographic Learning, and international collaborations throughout Asia, Latin America, The Middle East and Europe. Deron negotiated significant funding for TED-Ed from Google and a joint venture with Simon & Schuster to relaunch TED Books, among other collaborations that brought millions of dollars in new annual revenue. Prior to TED, Deron served as Vice President of Digital Ventures for PBS, where he launched the kids cable network Sprout. He holds an MBA degree from McGill University in Montreal.
Jai Punjabi
Jai Punjabi is Head of Development and Production at WaitWhat. He produced the feature film Patang (The Kite), which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, played in competition at the Tribeca Film Festival, and earned a New York Times Critic’s Pick and 4 stars from Roger Ebert. Alongside his career in film, Jai has led product management teams at major digital media companies including Vimeo, TED, and Major League Baseball.
