Andreessen says his bigger goal for a16z is to create a company that lasts. An alternative to a partnership is to build an investment company that’s managed like a business, which means it has management, multiple layers of staff, division of labor with specializations, and training programs, Andreessen said.
There are certainly precedents of small partnerships evolving into large corporations, which Andreessen can use as a model for a16z’s ambitions.
“Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, 100 years ago, looked like little venture capital firms,” he said. “Then their leaders, over time, turned them into huge franchises and big public companies.”