Transcript Summary: Dinner at 1618 Asian Fusion Restaurant (2025-05-12)

Participants

• Gary Sheng
• Matt Holm (Real Estate Professional)
• Stephan Spazier (Tesla Global Expansion, Former Austrian Diplomat)
• Zachary Smith (Creative Director)

Setting

1618 Asian Fusion Restaurant, located next to Gary's apartment in Austin. The participants ordered various Asian fusion dishes during their conversation.

Key Topics & Revelations

Personal Backgrounds & Connections

Stephan Spazier's International Background:

• Born in the UK, grew up in Austria
• Father was head of L'Oreal UK, then Germany, before leaving to buy a skiing company
• "My father, he was the head of L'Oreal UK. L'Oreal, the make-up brand. And then we moved to Germany when he took over the German market."
• Father invented the carving ski (parabolic shape)
• The family ski company (Kneissl) is 137 years old, "the oldest ski brand in the world"
• Served as a diplomat for Austria to Cairo and Bangkok
• Currently works at Tesla in global expansion
• Has musical background as a drummer for 15 years

Matt Holm's Life Journey:

• Age 53 (turning 54 soon), married for 28 years but in process of divorce
• "I got married at 25. I'm 50, almost 50, I'm 54 next month."
• Previously lived in a Volkswagen van traveling through Europe for 20 months
• Met his wife in Spain during these travels
• Suffered a bicycle accident that broke his neck, causing financial hardship
• "I was riding my bike to my work day job on Monday, and I got hit by a car and hit off. We were overcharged. My dad broke my back. I was laid out, couldn't walk for six months."
• Had a heart attack four years ago
• Now a successful real estate professional with significant holdings
• "My burn rate's like $150,000 a month right now."
• Owns 22 properties in his investment portfolio
• Currently selling a $42 million, 69-acre property

Zachary Smith's Creative Career:

• Lives in the same building as Gary (unit 6061)
• Suffered significant hand injury with nerve damage in Santa Fe, New Mexico
• "Cut every single nerve and tendon in my left hand."
• Types with an adapted method due to nerve damage
• Works as a creative director for various high-profile clients
• Added "$35 million" to Dave Rubin's yearly revenue
• Created successful media for AT&T, F1 Miami, Mary Kay
• Connects easily with influential people
• Organizes social events including an upcoming paintball gathering

Real Estate Market Analysis

Matt Holm provided extensive analysis of the Austin real estate market:

• "Second quarter 2022 is rates doubled. People's purchasing power is going to go down. They're like, oh, we'll wait for rates to go down. The market freezes."
• Despite market slowdown, population growth continues: "We've added conservatively 200,000 more people, all waiting on rates to go down before they put their total in."
• Supply constraints: "In the meantime, no one's developing new houses because there's no profit in it."
• Predicted market surge when rates decrease: "If 10% of those 200,000 people, which that's a very low number, that have been here for now going on 40 years, turn into a buyer, then [inventory will] vaporize."
• Invoked Warren Buffett's philosophy: "Be greedy when others are fearful, and be fearful when others are greedy."
• Predicted potential "hyperinflation in real estate in a city like Austin"

Trump World City Concept

Gary outlined a visionary concept for a new city development:

• "I want to create Trump's seat. I think he has a good idea about it being between Austin and Elon's factory. We might literally call it Trump World."
• Connected to Trump's "freedom cities" concept: "Trump in 2023 has been saying, freedom cities, new freedom cities. Okay, I'm just saying, let's name it Trump World."
• Proposal to include a World's Fair: "It's going to be the Trump World's Fair, right? It's going to be, and it's going to inaugurate Trump World."
• Timing aligned with American anniversary: "Trump said six months before he got elected, or five months, June of 2024, he was like, we are going to create the greatest year-long celebration In advance of the 2026, July 4th, 25th anniversary of the United States."
• Educational excellence focus: "In Trump city, or Trump world, or Trump world, we are going to produce the highest density of Olympians ever."
• Specialized schools: "Including specialized schools for every sport that matters...we're going to create schools that create future e-sports."
• Mentioned AI education approach: "You can learn basic knowledge through AI and Gamify learning."
• Economic structure: "I think there should be a, absolutely, a Bitcoin reserve, as part of the city, which I think should be a corporation."
• Entertainment elements: "I think there's gambling...So a lot of casinos, a lot of great restaurants, a lot of great golf courses."

Professional Challenges & Negotiations

Zachary Smith shared his challenges with client negotiations:

• "I increased his [Dave Rubin's] revenue by $35 million this year."
• "Guess how much he wanted to pay me for a full-time job there... A hundred K."
• "For helping $35 million? For adding $35 million to his yearly reoccurring revenue."
• "I was like, I just need something that's like, because right now it's literally just hourly."
• "So I'm like, basically like an employee for all these people, whenever they just get like so overwhelmed, they have so much work, and they call me and ask me to do things for them."

Matt Holm discussed his divorce negotiations:

• "We should try to work on being friends. And I'm like, I'm sorry, what? I'm like, I'm turning 54 next month."
• "Let me find an attorney that will just sit us down. I will take everything that's ever made, anything I made money on."
• "I'll set you up. I'm going to give everything away. I'm going to make sure you're taken care of. And if you call an attorney, all hell's going to break loose."
• "My plan is two. One, we sell our portfolio at a financial loss...We sell everything, we take the cash, we 1031 it into another property that I buy"
• "So then we sell everything, all 22 at one time. Roll all of it into two cash flowing assets. Self-storage, RV park, whatever."

Networking & Relationship Building

The conversation revealed various approaches to professional relationships:

Matt Holm on his networking philosophy:

• "I count on my radar with people. I count on having an intellectually stimulating conversation with people that bring something interesting to the table."
• "Someone described me as like, I create a campfire. And people want to stay in the warmth of the campfire."
• "I trust in the goodness of other people. And that's why I have my radar for people"
• "But I don't take the burn personally. I'm just like, I learned something today."

Zachary Smith on follow-through:

• "Reina's talking about things that she's looking for to solve in her life and who she wants to meet. And then I was like, oh, I know this. Boom, boom, boom, boom. I'll get you all connected."
• "And then I followed up on everything. And then she texted me and was like, that was fucking insane. Regular people do not follow through on things like that at all."

Gary Sheng on community spaces:

• "I understand community spaces. Like that's, I think part of my genius is understanding like, the right, the right space can, is, creates a night and day experience"
• "You just get the right vibe, I call them vibe ministers, right, that you just like make sure are inviting the right people and making sure everyone's having a good time"

Personal Connections Revealed

The conversation revealed several interesting connections:

• Gary's upcoming White House meeting with Paula White (Trump's spiritual advisor)
• Gary's connection to the "master architect of Shenzhen"
• Matt's travel to Dubai, Budapest, and Ibiza for crypto events
• Zachary's connection to Dave Rubin and various media figures
• Stephan's potential connection to the original carving ski invention
• Multiple connections to Olivia Dell (of the Dell family)
• Gary mentioned client Joe Liemandt (incorrectly referred to as "Joe Lamont" in conversation) is meeting with Trump Jr.

Future Plans & Opportunities

Several future-oriented discussions emerged:

• Gary's upcoming White House meeting on May 17, 2025
• Gary's interest in developing the "Trump World" concept
• Matt's planned travel to Denver and Spain
• Matt's upcoming purchase of a new home near Soho House
• Zachary's paintball event with various notable attendees
• Potential business restructuring for Zachary to better capture value
• Stephan's potential future acquisition of his family's ski brand

Concluding Observations

The dinner conversation revealed a group of well-connected individuals at different career stages, each navigating significant personal and professional transitions. Matt is managing a divorce and real estate portfolio restructuring, Zachary is seeking better business models for his creative work, Stephan is balancing his Tesla role with personal interests, and Gary is pursuing ambitious concepts including the "Trump World" development and meetings with political figures.

The free-flowing discussion jumped between personal stories, business concepts, market analysis, and philosophical approaches to relationships and business. The conversation demonstrated the value of in-person networking in building relationships and sharing ideas, even among people who had only recently met.