Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

I know I can’t be in every deal and I know that the easy part of being a VC is writing the first check in a deal. But if you’re a concentrated investor who takes board seats then you know the hard bit starts the day after. By definition this means others will doubt you. I don’t. Be a non-conformist.

VC 374

VC investing investment entrepreneurs 374

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 8, 2011

How about as a VC? Fred has basically always been a VC, Mike was a reporter, and Jim worked in product marketing and management consulting. Surely--but then I realize how difficult it is to be an early stage VC in NYC. Really never managed anything of significant or built anything major.". what has this guy done? What did I do?

VC 275

VC peer-to-peer board advice 275

David Teten VC

MAY 4, 2024

The CEO is hinting he’d like to get into VC or otherwise find a soft landing. You can only lose 100% of the capital you invest, but in VC you make high multiples on your capital on your winners. Every VC including us has a line of despair, when the investor will lose faith and will devote minimal effort to a company.

VC 52

VC energy capital technology 52

TechCrunch

JANUARY 21, 2022

“If you believe VR and immersive computing is the future — whether for consumer or business use cases — Activision helps Microsoft build a flywheel of content and technology that gets more users on board to this future.”. 500 Global’s Christine Tsai shares her 2022 VC predictions. Image Credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch.

VC 80

VC incubation angel investing investing 80

A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

OCTOBER 20, 2021

It has been enlightening, exciting, rewarding, but definitely not mainstream. Though I am on the board of Coinbase, I had not been aware of this partnership until I saw the tweet. We started looking at crypto ten years ago, starting investing nine years ago, and have had a front-row seat to its development ever since.

education 210

education board development investing 210

Revolution

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022

According to PitchBook , VC investments were down 30% in Q2 2022 compared with 2021, and IPOs hit a 50-year low. When deal-making slows, VC dollars typically favor the perceived market leader, starving other venture-backed businesses in the same space of capital. The more straightforward value actualization is, the lighter the lift.

startup 130

startup board VC venture capital 130

Y Combinator

JULY 15, 2019

One of the most common questions we hear from founders is “How do I manage my board?” It’s something that provokes anxiety, because this is the first time the founder/CEO is subject to external supervision, and the board has powers that include the firing of the CEO and the senior management. But first, what’s the purpose of a board?

board 96

board frameworks advice peer-to-peer 96

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 3, 2012

Age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, etc are all topics that are deeply emotional for people--and, by definition, personal. Of course, you don't always need that experience from a VC. An experienced entrepreneur who has raised money multiple times can be a great board member as well.

VC 257

VC board venture capital ventures 257

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 5, 2016

Just don't go picking someone who really doesn't compliment you just because it's some kind of VC rule. I've heard a lot of VCs tell founders they need co-founders--and that they wouldn't look at a business at a very early stage without a co-founder. The same holds true for VC funds.

founder 278

founder board VC construction 278

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

In some ways it feels like a company that has gone partially remote—where you still get certain types of interaction on “office days” that you can’t get at home, but it’s definitely not what it was. Each episode would take me about 15 minutes to edit and publish after we recorded it because I wasn’t going nuts on the editing side.

peer-to-peer 322

peer-to-peer board communities leadership 322

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

.” From the hyperbolic Jason Calacanis weighing in that “The petty VC’s did everything to deride [Naval, the co-founder of AngelList]” as though the industry was collectively s g its pants that AngelList was going to put us out of business. This is the same way VC firms, by the way. So there you have it.

VC 356

VC peer-to-peer board innovation 356

TechCrunch

DECEMBER 5, 2022

It’s now raised $16 million in new funds led by Founders Fund, the San Francisco-based VC, whose portfolio boasts names such as Airbnb, Spotify and SpaceX. This is 30% lighter, charges faster and comes with 500 GB of on-board storage. When estate agents use Giraffe360 , this essentially removes photographers from the process.

real estate 97

real estate founder VC ventures 97

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 21, 2014

It’s when the noise stops and you can actually get customer attention, press articles and VC meetings. Poorly implemented this category was the definition of shelfware. Make sure your board challenges you enough about long-term vision & innovation. It’s when the game slows. ” The Lessons of Shelfware.

incubation 354

incubation board VC innovation 354

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 29, 2011

Then I realized that it's probably not obvious what the dynamics are around how VCs tend to get introduced to companies and what works best for people, so I figured I'd blog about it. A lot of VCs ask to be introduced through someone. Talking to a VC is never a one shot deal. The Cold Intro. Multiple Touchpoints.

VC 286

VC pitching entrepreneurs networking 286

TechCrunch

JANUARY 11, 2022

Use alternative financing to fuel VC-level growth without diluting ownership. Investors are hungry for startups to throw their money at, but VC funding isn’t always the right option at all times or for every startup. Use alternative financing to fuel VC-level growth without diluting ownership. @yourprotagonist.

culture 87

culture financing finance VC 87

TechCrunch

MAY 19, 2021

Some of Tess’s investments and board positions include Rocket Lab, Spire, DroneDeploy, Iris and more. Tess was also recently named one of Forbes’ 30 under 30 in VC. She’s focused on sourcing and reproducing tech bets that have the potential to significantly improve society in fundamental ways.

disruption 62

disruption education board VC 62

Dream It

APRIL 12, 2020

During our recent Dreamit Kickoff week, Bullpen Capital Founder and General Partner Paul Martino ( @ahpah ) spoke with our Spring 2020 cohort about the state of the VC ecosystem in the current economic crisis. It will definitely happen for some venture funds, but the question is how widespread it will be,” states Martino.

ventures 334

ventures startup capital board 334

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 27, 2010

Sometimes it pays to jump on board before a lot of big questions have been answered—simply because you can feel the market starting to notice it and create mindshare momentum. Undaunted, he went back to work, got some great partners on board, and kept plugging away. I told him I just couldn’t get there on it.

VC 186

VC venture capital media board 186

TechCrunch

MAY 11, 2021

And the tech just wasn’t there; they were missing that interaction piece,” she explained, and certainly any player will recognize that the, say, iPad version of a game definitely lacks physicality. “They see the digital crossover is going to happen — people are playing online board games now.

social gaming 136

social gaming pitching VC innovation 136

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 26, 2015

You’d be surprised how many firms are “dictator VCs” – even those that don’t formally acknowledge it internally. When you’re newer in VC many partners choose to play it safe, doing smaller investments and not trying to bet on something that a “far out” risk. ” Guys?

venture capital 336

venture capital peer-to-peer capital ventures 336

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 11, 2014

It''s a solid exit to a company that has lots of revs, is growing, and together will form a very formidable player in the data backup space--one that can definitely be a public company in the next couple of years. We got the round done with some great names around the table--Jason Calacanis, Chris Sacca, and General Catalyst.

board 257

board venture capital entrepreneurship creativity 257

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 27, 2010

Sometimes it pays to jump on board before a lot of big questions have been answered—simply because you can feel the market starting to notice it and create mindshare momentum. Undaunted, he went back to work, got some great partners on board, and kept plugging away. I told him I just couldn’t get there on it. Maybe… maybe not.

VC 150

VC venture capital media board 150

TechCrunch

DECEMBER 15, 2022

Six active biotech investors we surveyed recently told us that the macro environment has definitely had a big impact on deal flow, valuations and M&A in biotech. ” Mittendorff isn’t alone in feeling this way. Where does that leave private biotechs?

financing 98

financing finance pitching venture capital 98

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 5, 2019

They just don’t like making solitary, definitive statements without making sure you know all the variables and caveats—so you can be as informed as possible and not surprised at all when things don’t go exactly according to plan as typically happens in a startup. that same founder will give the most unequivocal, most confident “Yes!”

founder 153

founder pitching leadership culture 153

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Incremental profits from companies that later sell for three to five times their original value at the time of their investment may be considered great successes for founders but relative failures for VCs, who must hit for the fences with every early-stage investment. Angel investors are more tolerant of this than VCs.

VC 62

VC venture capital board ventures 62

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 14, 2016

We also look for a cultural fit with Upfront, which includes the gravitas to deal with executives and founders at the startups we back as well as the other board members. He built an internal database of downstream VC investors so that as each company is ready to raise more capital they don’t have to start from scratch.

ventures 159

ventures peer-to-peer venture capital VC 159

TechCrunch

NOVEMBER 10, 2020

Investors included Amplo VC, Soma Capital and Y Combinator along with several individual investors. And so we definitely are going to be as inclusive as possible and are definitely thinking about that as we hire,” Lin said. million seed round today.

culture 78

culture board VC founder 78

TechCrunch

JULY 6, 2022

Back to the drawing board they go. Startups and VC. Celus wants to automate the way circuit boards are designed and picked up $25.6 million in new capital to leverage its artificial intelligence technology so that a printed circuit board could be redesigned in a matter of minutes, Paul writes. for 1 year, Ingrid writes.

board 93

board VC startup technology 93

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 19, 2015

He was also surrounded by business colleagues: Maker Studios employees, Disney leaders, YouTube leaders, VC investors and so forth. I had a board meeting for NextPlus and I heard from one of the board members that Nanea Reeves (President & COO) was losing her husband to cancer. Nanea’s response surprised me.

entrepreneurs 347

entrepreneurs peer-to-peer board leadership 347

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 4, 2014

I have seen it first-hand in my VC career many, many times. There were cultural challenges across the board. In many cases it’s easier if this person isn’t a board member or VC unless you have an extremely close or trusting relationship with them. And, yes, it is politics at its purest.

founder 340

founder board culture advice 340

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 14, 2017

As an early-stage VC I love this phase. After numerous discussions we held the line and all agreed as a board that profitability was much more important than chasing new markets and that perfecting our systems and methods was critical before we expanded and just increase the scope of our problems to solve. Startups are like families.

innovation 286

innovation startup board leadership 286

Berkonomics

MAY 21, 2015

Incremental profits from companies that later sell for three to five times their original value at the time of their investment may be considered great successes for founders but relative failures for VCs, who must hit for the fences with every early stage investment. Angel investors are more tolerant of this than VCs.

VC 100

VC venture capital board ventures 100

Hunter Walk

AUGUST 11, 2022

Nor Do VCs. While there are excellent counter-examples, your VC also likely didn’t spend their career as a marketing or communications leader! And definitely once they’re on board fulltime, marketing and comms will be even more valuable. Best Practices In Marking & Comms Are Highly Extensible.

founder 85

founder consulting construction board 85

Berkonomics

SEPTEMBER 19, 2019

And whether to warn your superiors or your boards about these unraveling events early. Email readers, continue here…] Whatever the problem, the person or board to whom you report does not want to hear about it after it has become a threat to the enterprise. Another of my board learning experiences.

board 48

board sustainability VC investing 48

TechCrunch

MARCH 7, 2023

However, it appears that even though VCs are proceeding more cautiously than before and taking their time with due diligence, they are still investing. CB Insights recently found that two of the largest global VC firms, Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, actually backed more fintech companies in 2022 than any other category.

advice 110

advice ventures sustainability investing 110

Y Combinator

MARCH 6, 2024

” Wei and her team eventually decided to build a job board just for nurses — and it was there she discovered a deep-rooted problem she could solve. ” So she turned collecting VC rejections into a game. I definitely felt crushed many times; people would say all sorts of mean things. I truly believe that.

health 79

health founder pitching advice 79

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 25, 2023

Does the VC think that a designer needs to be on the team from day one if you’re going to build a better version of Instagram? Does the VC think that a machine learning engineer needs to be there to build a real version of Tony Stark’s Jarvis? Let’s first talk about the definition of a co-founder. That’s fair.

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founder VC board pitching 352