Hello and welcome back to Equity, a podcast about the business of startups, where we unpack the numbers and nuance behind the headlines.

This is our Wednesday show, where we niche down to a single topic, think about a question and unpack the rest. This week, Natasha asked: How does the "build in public" mindset impact the way that startups are built? Alex and Natasha chatted through the difference between building in public, going direct, startup PR, and just straight-up hype.

We spoke about the challenges in community and recent examples that show the difficulty of building in public (and then clamming up).

The conversation included Launch House, Copy.ai, On Deck, Egnyte, and even Databricks. While we have very biased reasons for more companies to build in public -- we love to learn things! -- we tried to expand the conversation to include more perspectives.

We'll be back on Friday with our regular news roundup, an episode that may include a voice that you'll hear more frequently in the coming months!

Before we go, two programming notes (that help your wallet, too):

• First up, use code "EQUITY" for a special listener discount for Disrupt tickets. We're less than one month away!
• We also have a special for those impacted by layoffs. If you were laid off, go here to get a free ticket to TechCrunch Disrupt's Expo.

Equity drops every Monday at 7 a.m. PT and Wednesday and Friday at 6 a.m. PT, so subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast,Spotifyand all the casts. TechCrunch also has a great show on crypto, a show that interviews founders, a show that details how our stories come together and more!

Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. Bryce Durbin is our Illustrator. We'd also like to thank the audience development team and Henry Pickavet, who manages TechCrunch audio products.