TechCrunch

APRIL 1, 2022

For decades, there were several blocks where angels and VC partners camped out at café tables, taking pitches between lattes. DeWitt, who became a VC after selling Drop, Inc. ” There’s an inherent power imbalance when asking a stranger for money, but “VCs should work to earn your trust,” writes DeWitt.

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TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 5, 2021

Demo days at startup accelerators are a pretty big deal around here. These events aren’t just a chance to review the latest cohort of hopeful entrepreneurs — they also showcase the technology, products and services that will compete for VC and consumer attention over the next few years. That startup was DoorDash, by the way.

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TechCrunch

MAY 26, 2022

TechCrunch has been covering the demo days of the seed-stage venture firm Pear VC since 2015. A lot of top firms show up, including from NEA, Lux Capital and Sequoia Capital. Of course, some VCs still get an early look, in part by mentoring the startups. A few things have remained true since that time.

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TechCrunch

APRIL 6, 2023

Even as Y Combinator reveals the latest startups in its cohort for this winter , we have poor news for founders: the global venture capital market shrank in Q1 2023, and it would have been even worse if it were not for a few mega deals, according to Crunchbase (disclosure: my former employer) and PitchBook reports.

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This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 26, 2012

I always get asked how to get into VC and so I think a lot about what it takes to do the job well. In venture capital, you say "no" a lot. Practicing the word no as many times as a VC does means you have to fight not to have your mind close on you. For some, VC is about the picking rather than the fostering and growing.

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TechCrunch

NOVEMBER 10, 2022

Another domino falls : It was probably already a fiasco, but Binance deciding to not buy FTX led Sequoia Capital to claim its minority stake in FTX as nothing more than some unrealized gains, Connie reports. Startups and VC. ” New crypto startups forged ahead during Alliance DAO’s demo day on Wednesday amid the FTX implosion.

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David Teten VC

MARCH 21, 2024

How can influencers raise capital for companies or funds, without running afoul of restrictions on “general solicitation”? The 2012 bipartisan JOBS Act was supposed to empower funds and individuals to raise capital more openly: to publicly advertise their track record and what they’re selling, just like almost every other industry.

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This is going to be BIG.

JULY 30, 2012

A number of VC firms have hired specialists in the area of recruiting. Given the proliferation of accelerators and incubators that pre-vet entrepreneurs, roll up their sleeves to help companies, and dress them up for demo days, the best and brightest are being showcased to look better than ever. It's happening on their side, too.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

I was having dinner with a friend last night and we were chatting about venture capital and a bit about what I’ve learned. Don’t even get me started on Demo Days. You could spent 20 days / year at Demo Days now. I guess if you’re in high-volume, low-differentiation mode perhaps this is efficient for you.

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David Teten VC

JUNE 9, 2021

Would you like to work with private equity and venture capital funds? There are relatively few jobs directly inside private equity and venture capital funds, and those jobs are highly competitive. See How to negotiate a partner role at a VC or private equity firm.) At Versatile VC , we’ve used all these models.

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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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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 13, 2011

I recently filmed a show for This Week in Venture Capital in which I talked about how to prepare for a VC meeting: whom you’ll meet, who should attend from your side, what materials you should bring and how you should run the meeting. I’m comfortable with introductions and then getting into the demo.&#.

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Both Sides of the Table

MAY 13, 2018

I always tell founders … “An investors job is to deploy capital and make a return. The typical VC process is as follows: They say there are three rules in property: Location, location, location. Same with VC. Somehow many first-time founders equate “sales” with something that is beneath them. these are simply guidelines.

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TechCrunch

JUNE 7, 2022

This year, we’re pleased to share hosting honors with Mayfield — a global venture capital firm with a people-first philosophy. This event draws an incredible mix of Silicon Valley’s startup community, including over 40 VC firms so far — a who’s who of founders, investors, tech makers and movers and shakers. Ticket price: $75.

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Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

When I was new at Venture Capital I was trying to figure out the business. As a VC you want to feel like you have “proprietary sources” of deal flow. It makes it extraordinarily hard to raise the next round of capital. So I stand by my well-read Quora post of why I don’t attend demo days. What stage?

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2009

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 linked to Brad Feld’s blog because I was so grateful for his series on term sheets and he was one of the biggest reasons that as a VC I felt compelled to blog. And covered we did.

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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 11, 2011

If you want a very quick primer on all the stuff nobody ever tells you about raising venture capital check out this video where Mark Jeffrey & I break it down on This Week in VC. All of this is covered in more detail on the TWiVC video above (and much of it is covered in text on this blog on the “ Raising VC &# tab).

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This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 16, 2014

How long does it take from first meeting a VC to getting cash in the bank? Here were the results: I would guess that getting a third of my deals from events is probably disproportionately high compared to other seed investors on the east coast--and that my VC intro percentage is probably somewhat low. Venture Capital & Technology'

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TechCrunch

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022

Fine Structures Ventures led with participation from J2 Ventures, SV Pacific Ventures, Quest Venture Partners, Amino Capital, Sand Hill Angels and Gaingels. Femtosense’s first-generation processor, the SPU-001, hasn’t begun demoing yet, and mass production is at least several months off (sometime in 2023).

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500

JUNE 9, 2020

As a VC firm, we’ve had to adapt many aspects of our business as well. From taking all aspects of our accelerators digital (including our Demo Day) to rethinking the opportunities of the future, we’ve taken this moment to analyze what innovations can come from this time and new opportunities that arise from our changing environment.

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frameworks investing investment disruption 202

TechCrunch

OCTOBER 27, 2020

For IndieBio, a science and biotech accelerator run by VC firm SOSV, this unprecedented year offered high stakes and new challenges. Today and tomorrow, the biotech accelerator is hosting its twice-annual demo day. Leaving the $3.2 In July, the founder and head of IndieBio, Arvind Gupta, left his position to pursue a role at Mayfield.

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 11, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series “ Pitching a VC.&#. The “Triple Play&# of VC Presentations. A large part of my series has been outlining what the typical VC PowerPoint presentation should look like. You want to build a dialogue where you get to know the VC with whom you’re meeting. I recommend it.

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This is going to be BIG.

MAY 11, 2015

That's one thing you have to realize about venture capital. In case you're curious what the deal funnel means for my time, I did that, too: Seeing an opportunity could mean an e-mail, a calendar request, a pitch at a demo day, a news item, a LinkedIn position change--really anything that makes me conscious that a new startup might exist.

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Haystack

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

.” Yet, this topic has become increasingly interesting in a world where tech startups are mainstream, Shark Tank is popular nationwide, where Y Combinator has opened Demo Day to more and more investors, where new funds sprout up every year, more and more. Harry interviews Barry Eggers , one of the four co-founders of Lightspeed.

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venture capital capital ventures VC 117

Y Combinator

AUGUST 23, 2023

Almost all of those companies raised their first rounds from investors that saw them debut at YC Demo Day. YC is undeniably an integral part of the venture capital ecosystem, helping to shine the first spotlight on many of the companies that go on to be featured high up in a huge font on the top VC portfolio pages.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 1, 2009

In my previous post, The VC Ice Age is Thawing (for now) I wrote about the reasons why the VC market came to a screeching halt in September 2008 and remained largely shut until at least April 2009. There are now signs the VC market has gathered pace meaning it’s a great time to be fund raising.

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Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 25, 2009

This is part of my blog series “ Pitching a VC.&#. I’ve sat through a lot of VC pitches and having been CEO of an enterprise software firm for many years I’ve also sat through many customer meetings with sales teams. The following are some tips for the debate style VC meeting. Tips in a debate led VC Meeting.

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This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 3, 2012

meet with tons of companies every week, work hard for their portfolio companies, and are on planes flying around to the important confereneces and demo days". 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.

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TechCrunch

JANUARY 8, 2022

Even to outsiders, the inner workings of startup accelerators has become familiar: pumped up on camaraderie and energy drinks, scrappy founders do product demos onstage before a room full of buzzy journalists and investors. Signaling risk happens when a VC chooses to not do pro rata, or follow-on investing, in an existing portfolio company.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 28, 2010

This was the first episode where Jason wasn’t on the show, which gave me the chance to have another VC on the show to discuss deals. Rustic Canyon is an LA-based, but geography-agnostic VC that is currently investing from a $200 million fund. VC Financings: 1. I keep meaning to get him drunk to spill the stories.

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venture capital capital ventures VC 270

TechCrunch

APRIL 9, 2021

Scale’s story starts with a pivot, and with a bit of rule-breaking, too — Wang went off the typical YC book by speaking to investors prior to demo day when Levine cold-emailed him after seeing Scale on Product Hunt. The Product Hunt spot wasn’t planned, either — Wang was as surprised to see his company there as anyone else.

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Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 14, 2014

I had witnessed a number of early-stage tech startups in LA raise seed capital from the Bay Area and relocate. Throughout all of these years I was a full-time VC so Launchpad really came out of evenings and weekends for me. Adam had a full time startup and then was doing consulting (he later raised a VC fund). And Jamie hers.

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Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 8, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series “Pitching a VC&# – the outline is here. You’ve pitched several angels and VC’s. Your friends and advisers tell you that this means you need revenue because in this economy VC’s will only fund businesses with revenue. Unfortunately your advisers are wrong.

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This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 19, 2015

Unlike venture capital funds, they don't make money directly off the multiples of their return. What's worse is that this end of the market is even affecting early stage VC mindset. If you're a VC and you think for a second that whether or not Square pricing at $2.9 Congratulations on your huge disappointment, Square.

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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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TechCrunch

SEPTEMBER 17, 2022

Somewhat relatedly, Y Combinator just wrapped up its latest Demo Day. VC Ann Miura-Ko is looking to help more students answer the question: Is this idea big enough? And then we’re sharing with one another how we would diligence it. And if the other people are interested in looking at the company, we invite them in.

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TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 13, 2021

In the rest of this newsletter, we’ll talk about the new career path to CEO, our favorite startups from Techstars Demo Day and the latest SPAC you should probably know about. Data about startups is helpful to understand directional trends and how the flow of capital works and changes over time. A triple-hitter Demo Day.

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