Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2018

There’s a quick litmus-test conversation any early-stage VC will have with the founder and it’s one that you should be as prepared for as your elevator pitch. It goes something like this … VC: “How much money are you raising?” Founder: “$8–10 million” VC: “What’s your current burn rate?” This is a red flag for VCs.

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TechCrunch

MARCH 17, 2023

It’s too early to determine whether SVB’s downfall heralds a new era for venture capital, but based on anecdotal evidence, off-the-record discussions and chats with co-workers, it seems like we’re back to business as usual as far as pre-revenue startup fundraising is concerned. There’s plenty of tactical advice here, and much more to come.

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This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 23, 2012

I'm often the last one to leave an event, held back by the most persistant of entrepreneurs trying to squeeze as much advice as they can out of me. Often times, the advice is terrible or impractical. Venture capital is kind of like a knuckleball. I love public speaking, teaching and generally being helpful.

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This is going to be BIG.

JULY 23, 2018

I've seen this so many times over: A founder pitches a VC, or several of them, and then they come back from that process with all sorts of new strategy goals or worries that they need to be doing something differently. Any advice they have for you is going to be a bit broken. If it was, you'd run it very differently.

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This is going to be BIG.

MAY 5, 2015

So I asked a few founders that I've worked with and they mentioned a word that struck me--because I've never heard any of the hordes of people in my inbox asking for internships, VC job recommendations and advice, etc. I think of venture capital as a service business. mention about themselves. Generosity.

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Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 16, 2014

We’ve been dying to tell you all for a while that we had raised a new venture capital fund and of course given SEC filing requirements the story was somewhat already scooped by the always-in-the-know Dan Primack a few weeks ago. If you want to understand how the VC industry is changing there is a great primer in the link.

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Startup Grind

AUGUST 15, 2018

He has worked with several startups, invested in companies like Mayvenn, Gimlet Media, Blavity, Airspace Technologies, Codeverse, and many others Pitch your startup for a chance to meet with Cross Culture VC Q&A: What is your / your fund's mission? What is one piece of advice you’d give every founder? BUILD and EXECUTE!

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culture VC pitching media 111

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 14, 2024

We made connections, hopefully made a good impression, and potentially helped founders along their journeys with some advice or connections. It’s easy for a VC to just stick within your own networks and filter bubbles—and hard to scale being “open” without opening the floodgates.

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communities consulting creativity advice 316

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 24, 2021

In the beginning of my venture career, I knew of a firm that was involved in a highly competitive funding round that they ultimately failed to win. For years, he went on to advise other founders about how to generate VC interest, which really could have amounted to, “Be a warm body with a pulse in a sector that firm got shut out of a deal in.”

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TechCrunch

SEPTEMBER 1, 2022

The crew here at TechCrunch has done a lot of writing about making amazing pitch decks over the years, and I figured it was time that I put together a collection of all of it in one handy spot. Are you VC-investable? Before you start pitching. As a startup founder, you really need to understand how venture capital works.

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TechCrunch

AUGUST 18, 2023

Full TechCrunch+ articles are only available to members Use discount code TCPLUSROUNDUP to save 20% off a one- or two-year subscription “Starting a tech company today costs 99% less than it did 18 years ago when Y Combinator was started,” says Brett Calhoun, managing director and general partner at Redbud VC.

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StartupNation

MAY 24, 2021

While the pandemic has certainly had an impact on the startup space, speculations were off about one thing: venture capital. It didn’t dry up: Venture investors poured $150 billion into North American companies in 2020, up about 7% from 2019 levels. Part of this could be the result of the pitch. Most now occur online.

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David Teten VC

MAY 26, 2021

How do you raise money for your venture capital or private equity fund from family offices and high net worths? . I see five innovative new methods for raising capital which emerging managers such as Versatile VC are using, which I’ve ranked in roughly descending order of popularity: . Generally solicit under the 506(c) designation.

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Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2018

If you’ve read any of my ongoing series on fund raising from venture capitalist (episode 1?— ?controlling In order to understand how to “get to yes” with a VC you first need to understand how VC partnerships make decisions and then you can understand how to increase your odds of closing a deal. What do you want to know?

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TechCrunch

APRIL 26, 2022

In a TechCrunch+ guest post, he shared three fundamental pieces of advice for new founders. Klaviyo co-founder Ed Hallen’s 3 top pieces of advice for launching a startup. Why a16z pitched Deel to lead its Series A. Why a16z pitched Deel to lead its Series A. Full TechCrunch+ articles are only available to members.

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TechCrunch

MARCH 10, 2023

I’m not a market watcher or a financial expert, but here’s some advice: Panic is a luxury. Reporter Rebecca Szkutak spoke to VCs Haris Khurshid (Chalo Ventures) and Mac Conwell (RareBreed Ventures) to learn why some investors are starting to reject the traditional notion that fewer LPs are preferable.

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TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Lisa Wu, a partner at Norwest with investments like Calm, Plaid, Opendoor and Grove Collaborative, has a message for founders: Think like a VC during your pitch presentation. It is about picking a venture partner who will be there with you through the highs and lows.

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TechCrunch

JULY 15, 2021

At the TechCrunch Early Stage: Marketing and Fundraising event last week, Norwest Venture Partners ‘ Lisa Wu took the stage to discuss how founders can think like venture capitalists in all facets of their business. Pitch deck or pitch blurb? Timestamp: 21:50). So, everything is shifting these days.

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StartupNation

JANUARY 20, 2022

This is where venture capital comes into play. Defined as a type of private equity investor funding given to startups that have growth potential , VC can play a huge part in business growth success and can facilitate a number of startup-based costs. Must-Read: 5 Terms That are Killing Your Startup’s Pitch.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2013

And I am often approached by entrepreneurs in cities which don’t have a vibrant VC community. Just ask the people of Portland, Seattle, Boulder, Iowa, Princeton, Dallas or countless other cities that don’t have enough venture capital. It’s a goal to help you understand the life of a VC. Ask SuperCell.

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Startup Blogpost

OCTOBER 28, 2022

How do you determine if corporate venture capital is right for your startup? To help you determine if corporate venture capital is right for your startup, we asked startup founders, investors, and business leaders this question for their best pieces of advice. Be Sure You Have Similar Goals and Expectations.

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David Teten VC

NOVEMBER 23, 2020

Blue Future Partners, a venture capital fund of funds, recently interviewed me on ESG in venture capital. Here’s what I said: In your career in tech and VC, how has your focus on ESG responsibility changed over time? How do you leverage your VC expertise in politics? They were sold to Albertson’s for over $300m.

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TechCrunch

MAY 6, 2022

From the hottest year in startup venture capital history to a period of pessimism, how did we get to where we are today? We start with a historical run of stories beginning last December, threading through the start of the year until we reach the latest data from the VC ecosystem. Just how much has late-stage venture capital slowed?

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TechCrunch

DECEMBER 16, 2021

I’ve sat at both sides of the table as a founder and a VC, and I understand how difficult it is to get them on the same page. I’ve participated in a number of accelerators, including Disney and Techstars, and these programs gave me a noticeable advantage when I stepped into VC.

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Hunter Walk

AUGUST 23, 2023

Specifically I’ve had the chance to spend meaningful time over the years with Michael Mignano as he went from startup CEO to Executive/Angel Investor and now VC Partner at Lightspeed. I can vouch for his genuine optimism Hunter Walk: You got to work with a number of different VCs on your cap table for Anchor. Was I right?

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Entrepreneur's Handbook

MAY 23, 2022

You’ll receive the best practical startup advice straight to your inbox every week. Before you make the biggest financial decisions of your life, heed the advice of Rachel Greenberg , that’s earned her millions and saved her from losing it all: 1% of the time, 1% comes true? —?the Pitch when it’s fresh?—? S ometimes that’s true.

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TechCrunch

MAY 3, 2022

Pitch deck pro tips from a leading Silicon Valley venture capitalist. At TechCrunch Early Stage, Managing Editor Matt Burns hosted Lotti Siniscalco, a partner at Emergence Capital, for a session on pitch deck basics. ” Pitch deck pro tips from a leading Silicon Valley venture capitalist.

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This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 14, 2019

If you’re lacking for track record as a firm, here’s three exercises you should walk through to help turn your pitch and due diligence meetings from guesswork into something more substantive. Had you actually had your fund in the four years prior to today—which deals would you have legitimately been able to do?

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AsiaTechDaily

NOVEMBER 16, 2022

Register Startup founders need to be authentic and prepared when they get the chance to meet prospective investors, according to Rex Fong, founding partner at investment and advisory group Capitale Ventures. Fong’s Capitale Ventures is an investment and advisory group with expertise in complex, cross-border transactions.

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TechCrunch

DECEMBER 16, 2022

An example: “growth at all costs” is a fairy tale made possible by cheap money that helped venture capitalists set expectations for founders — and each other — for years. “Growth at all costs” is a fairy tale made possible by cheap money that helped VCs set expectations for founders — and each other. Team slide.

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AsiaTechDaily

MARCH 6, 2023

Register Startup founders wanting to pitch to investors to raise money should not get into the “sell now” part of the conversation immediately but must instead lay the groundwork first, according to James Walker, Associate Counsel and Investor at Draper Associates. And when did you first think about starting a fund?

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Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 14, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series Pitching a VC. Quick caveats: having fewer investors (3-5) is better than many investors (10-15) and PLEASE make sure you hire a great lawyer who has experience in doing start-ups to avoid pitfalls that will make VC harder down the line. They have advice to share. They are calling cards.

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This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 8, 2011

How about as a VC? If* you believe that a good venture capitalist should have launched their own company and exited, then I simply don't have that track record. Fred has basically always been a VC, Mike was a reporter, and Jim worked in product marketing and management consulting. Charlie is a nice guy, but his company failed.".

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This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012

It would be months before Foursquare's first round touched off a NYC venture frenzy. While my company may not have lasted, and even though I swore to myself that I wouldn't do another startup--this recently launched new venture is moving forward with the help of some fantastic partners. VCs pitch for money, too.

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TechCrunch

JANUARY 29, 2021

For our latest investor survey, Natasha Mascarenhas polled 13 edtech VCs to learn more about how “employer-led up-skilling and a renewed interest in self-improvement” is expanding the sector’s TAM. Here’s who she spoke to: Deborah Quazzo , managing partner, GSV Ventures. Image Credits: Bryce Durbin.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2009

On December 2nd, 2006 I wrote the blog post published later in this post when I was CEO of startup Koral about my experiences in pitching VCs. I had previously raised VC in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2005. In case VC’s haven’t figured this out yet, shit rolls downhill. My blog was wiped out. And covered we did.

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David Teten VC

JULY 27, 2021

We have collected a wide range of freebies, contests, accelerators, online communities, and VCs designed for student tech founders. I have been researching this both to support Versatile VC ’s portfolio companies and also as part of research for my new book, To University and Beyond: Launch Your Career in High Gear. 1) Your school.

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