Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 1, 2015

*. What is the role of a VC for entrepreneurs? I suppose it can be different for every founder and for different VCs but I’d like to offer you some context on what I think it is and it isn’t. They are unique to you and not to each other situation that VC has faced. ” I responded. How can we know better?

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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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Entrepreneur's Handbook

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

It’s not about being rich, it’s about repeatedly building value What some people think will happen when you become a founder | source I love the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Let’s tastefully call this phenomenon: Rich Founder, Poor Founder. Most founders end up owning 5%-20%. 500m market cap = $25m-$100m for founder(s).

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founder VC venture capital entrepreneurship 144

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 4, 2014

Nowhere is the politics more difficult than with co-founders, which is why for years I’ve spoken publicly about “ the co-founder mythology.” ” Of course we all go into businesses expecting to be aligned with our co-founders but over time life changes. Equity for the future? We discussed it as a group.

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founder board culture advice 340

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.

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Revolution

NOVEMBER 28, 2023

One is “tentpole company,” or a category-defining startup that helps put their hometown on the map, both for investors and future generations of founders. We dive deeper into the definition in our 2022 Annual Report. Internally, we’ve begun using the term “founder-market-geography fit” to describe this idea. Let’s get into it.

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founder transportation innovation education 246

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 6, 2015

BBV has talked proudly about its large number of female founders. When you think back to your time at USV, FRC and BBV, can you identify a time you passed on a founder because of a blind spot or unconscious bias you possessed at the time and if so, what did you do going forward to not make the mistake again? Hard to believe.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2019

I became a VC 12 years ago in 2007 when the pace of deals was much slower. As I was trying to figure out the role I wanted to play in the VC world I decided I wanted to focus on businesses that were building deeply technical products to solve problems for business users. And my friend and Invoca co-founder Colin Kelley has done both.

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Gust

OCTOBER 8, 2014

Marc Andreessen kicked off another great debate on Twitter last night, one that I’ve been talking about incessantly in private circles for the past 2-3 years – what actually IS the definition of a seed vs. A-round. My view: “Spending any time or energy trying to game the ‘definition’ of your round of fund raising is a total waste.

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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. founder fighting.

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This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 21, 2021

I’m a female founder. I don’t have a technical co-founder. These are all of the things I heard from a founder that I recently backed. So what about all of the above statements—things that founders widely hold to be true barriers to fundraising? Nearly half of the teams I’ve backed have female founders.

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 27, 2010

And that was evident on today’s Angel vs. VC panel. The VC industry is segmenting – I have spoken about this many times before. The VC industry has different segments in it that have different fund sizes, different investment amounts and different risk / return expectations. Answer: Not much. It’s a shame.

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Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 22, 2011

When this first ran on TechCrunch I got the greatest comment in the world that I had to repeat here, “VC’s are like martinis: the first is good, the second one great, and the third is a headache.&# I understand the appeal of having many VC firms on your cap table. In my second company I had only 1 investor. I love that.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 3, 2011

But last week I noticed a blog post by a woman, Tara Tiger Brown, that asked the question, “ Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC Blog Posts? She has a quote from literally every major VC from whom you’d want to hear. And many of the best women founders. ” [it's short, you should read it].

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entrepreneurs entrepreneurship VC pitching 341

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 14, 2010

I believe the rise in angel investing is here to stay and the professionalization of this class (aka “super angels&# or “micro VC&# ) is a good thing for the VC industry and for entrepreneurs. maybe the best definition of ‘investing’ is ‘gambling with the odds in your favor.’ ”. Unfortunately that’s a myth.

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Both Sides of the Table

JULY 10, 2012

In driving down the costs of building businesses it’s driving down the age of startup founders and thus they’re starting companies where young people want to live – in urban environments. I think NY has always – by definition – been urban. These days it’s Santa Monica and Venice.

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technology incubation VC ventures 313

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 22, 2017

There was a time not too long ago when VC bios read "Fab investor", "Quirky investor", and "Gilt investor". Founders do most of the hard work. Most of the time, if that VC didn't back them, someone else would have and they would have been just as successful. Founders are in that boat, too. No one is perfect.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2014

We are often asked how companies get funded, why VCs make the decisions we make and what we’re looking for in entrepreneurs. I think this is a Seriously great example of how this process works for at least one VC – Upfront Ventures. I first met Andrew Stalbow , the founder & CEO of Seriously in August of 2013.

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media education VC financing 373

David Teten VC

AUGUST 30, 2021

Our proposal: governments systematically support funding for their diaspora founders, not just the local founders. I co-wrote this essay with Prabhat Gusain , currently the Chief of Staff at Caffeinated Capital; formerly an intern with Versatile VC ; and a 2021 MBA from UVA Darden. VC firms looking for fundable founders.

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investment investing founder VC 119

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2016

Dan asked Fred about “generational change” at USV and in the VC industry more broadly. Greg joined a bit earlier so has had more time to start to shape our investment philosophies and the strong opinions, well-through-through positions have been a breath of fresh air and definitely started to make changes in our thinking.

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TechCrunch

DECEMBER 19, 2022

For Black founders, who have rarely received more than 1% of total venture capital invested in startups, 2022 wasn’t kind, and 2023 doesn’t look promising given how things are going. To find out how Black founders are planning to manage their time, money, and expectations for the upcoming months, TechCrunch+ surveyed three founders.

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Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2011

I was hanging out the other day with my buddy Jody Sherman, founder & CEO of EcoMom. I was saying that I was happy it was all out in the open because I felt at least everybody could now understand the issues & opportunities from the perspectives of angels, entrepreneurs and VCs. But it’s not cutting VCs out.

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VC peer-to-peer investment investing 292

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

In 2010, Antonio Garcia Martinez, the founder of AdGrok, wrote, “New York will always be a tech backwater, I don’t care what Chris Dixon or Ron Conway or Paul Graham say.” Top founders want to live in a place where employees are serious about working hard. Lastly, your city needs to be livable—and that definition is changing.

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communities startup real estate mentorship 434

Dream It

AUGUST 29, 2019

For this reason, it would be ridiculous for a founder to ever tell a venture investor that they want to keep the company private. The exit strategy conversation should be nuanced, and founders should use it as a way to show investors you can think about things from different angles. In reality, exits are an outcome, not a strategy.

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strategy VC energy disruption 299

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2011

I recently spoke at the Founder Showcase at the request of Adeo Ressi. I spoke about how Amazon Web Services deserves far more credit for the last 5 years of innovation than it gets credit for and how I believe they spawned the micro-VC category. I said that I felt that Micro-VCs were the most important change in our industry.

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real estate entrepreneurs financing finance 309

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 5, 2019

There are some founders who see predictions about the future as a kind of promise—and so they hesitate and get uncomfortable around the idea of insisting that X, Y, or Z will happen. It’s a more complete answer in the mind of an operationally focused founder. that same founder will give the most unequivocal, most confident “Yes!”

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David Teten VC

MARCH 5, 2021

(co-written with Katherine Boe Heuck , a MBA candidate at MIT Sloan (class of 2022); past intern at Versatile VC ; and a current intern at Metaprop NYC.). We reviewed CB Insights’ global list of “40 of the Best VC Bets of all Time.” All of the 40 companies’ 92 founders were male. Of the 43 U.S. Of the 43 U.S.-based

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TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 2, 2021

Monique Villa is an investor at Mucker Capital , an early-stage VC fund investing in startups across the U.S. She is also the co-founder of Build In SE , a community of founders, funders and ecosystem partners committed to company building in the Southeast (#BuildInSE). Getting a seat at the VC table. and Canada.

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opportunity VC venture capital funders 101

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?

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Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 4, 2013

I guess this is the ultimate definition of implementing a business model when you’re not clear on strategy! One of the things I have observed over the years is that a hard charging sales oriented founder/CEO can often hide the defects in a product. I sometimes see VCs debate ad finitum about a company’s strategy.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 6, 2010

But in my experience as an entrepreneur and now spending my time amongst investors I can generalize that almost all VC investments in early stage technology & Internet investments come down to just four key factors. Everyone has their own definition of momentum (user numbers, revenue, channel partners, biz dev deals, whatever).

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TechCrunch

AUGUST 17, 2021

Prabhat Gusain is currently the chief of staff at Caffeinated Capital and was previously an intern with Versatile VC. David Teten is founder of Versatile VC and writes periodically at teten.com and @dteten. 6 career options for ex-founders seeking their next adventure. Next are VC firms looking for founders.

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investment founder investing VC 97

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

As entrepreneurs many people are driven to solve their personal issues right in front of them, which leads a disproportionate number of founders to focus on: music, bars, restaurants, photos, etc. Mission Driven I also am looking for founders that are on a personal mission to solve a big problem. But really it’s something I look for.

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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 31, 2011

I’m enjoying being a VC. I thought I’d talk a bit about the differences I’ve experienced between being an entrepreneur & a VC – you know, from “both sides of the table.&#. I’m sure everybody has their own definition of the attributes of an entrepreneur. VC meetings going well. 2 million in VC.

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entrepreneurs startup VC real estate 384

TechCrunch

OCTOBER 15, 2021

VC Lab , an accelerator for venture capital firms, wants to create investors who will back the rest of the world. Today, VC Lab is providing a set of freely available boilerplate documents intended to streamline the process, save everyone time and money and make fund governance structures more accessible.

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 27, 2012

Recently I wrote a post arguing to make the definition of a Startup more inclusive than that to which Silicon Valley, fueled by Venture Capital return profiles, would sometimes like to attach to the word. A Strong Pool of Tech Founders – Stating the obvious. This article originally appeared on TechCrunch. Here are mine: 1.

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 14, 2010

And we all know that Ron Conway is considered the savviest of angel investors and yet by definition not all of his investments succeed. The founders of Quora were respected technologists at Facebook and knew a thing or two about bacn and toast before setting up their highly sought after venture. Want to do a Q&A website?

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