Silicon Valley Standout

Back after a holiday break and a pivot to video: Follow on Instagram or YouTube for interview highlights. Even with new accounts, the first set of these with Kam French did over 18,000 views - not bad for a first effort!

Luke Knepper is a Silicon Valley character straight out of central casting. After an undergraduate degree in Computer Science from Stanford, he wrote software at startups that were successfully acquired by larger companies. After returning to Stanford for an MBA, he transitioned into product management. Now, he focuses on what customers need and leads a team of engineers, designers, and marketers to build the right solutions at the right time. He's been working in his current role since before the company IPO'd in 2021.

As kind as he is smart, Luke has a passion for parenting. He and his wife dedicate much of their time outside of work to raising their kids and foster parenting. He's very encouraging that more people should get involved in the foster child system. He says, "it's more rewarding than I can describe" and is an option "even if you're not sure you're ready for your own children."

You can find him on Twitter @knep.

Luke's Eight Essentials

#1 West Bend Stir Crazy Popcorn Popper: 4pm is "popcorn o'clock" in our house! This thing is super fast and easy to clean. In a few minutes I have a healthy afternoon snack for the whole family. Through a lot of trial and error, I've found organic non-GMO popcorn and almond oil are the ideal combo.

#2 Raise.com: I check Raise anytime I'm making a purchase of $100 or more. It saves me money on Instacart, Uber, Doordash, Airbnb, Hotels.com, and lots of other things. Typically, I save 5-10%, which adds up to thousands in savings per year.

#3 UrbanSitter.com: This is a fantastic place to find babysitters or just extra help for around the house. I have huge trust in their service. I was a vendor to them for several years and have had only positive experiences as a customer.

#4 YouTube Premium: I save so much time skipping ads. It comes with YouTube Music too, so I don't have to share a Spotify algorithm with the kids. It's also great for catching up on NFL highlights when you can't catch the game. There was a specific point when I knew this was necessary: my kid woke up at 5am and I realized that putting on a YouTube show would buy me some extra sleep, except he kept waking me up to hit "skip" on the ads. Avoiding that is well worth a few bucks a month!

#5 Apple AirTags: I used to go through several expensive water bottles a year. These have helped my break that habit. Now, I put these everywhere: my wallet, my keychain, my jackets, the stroller, and our kid's diaper bag. They pay for themselves in not losing things.

#6 MuteMe Physical Mute Button for Zoom: I spend a lot of my day on Zoom. This lets me know I can quickly mute/ unmute video calls without having to hunt down the in-app button. That helps me avoid broadcasting things like the noise of my kids playing in the other room. It also just looks cool.

#7 News Over Audio: I don't have as much time to sit and read as I'd like. NOA reads me the news from a variety of popular sources while I'm driving, running errands, or doing housework. It's an easy way to stay on top of the news!

#8 Olipop: I love soda and used to drink a lot of the super sugary stuff. When I decided to find something healthier, I tried a lot of stuff, like La Croix. Ultimately, I found Olipop beat out everything else though. It's the most delicious good-for-you soda you will ever experience!

To hear more from Luke about his background, advice, and predictions about tech, check out clips from our interview on Instagram or YouTube.

Suggestions or comments? Just reply to any Eight Essentials email in your inbox or reach out directly.