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. Will a financial crisis affect how venture funds deploy capital? Paul Martino, General Partner at Bullpen Capital.

ventures 334

ventures startup capital board 334

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 26, 2015

One of the least understood parts of the venture capital industry and venture capital firms is how investment decisions actually get made. I understand that and actually think it’s ok because that partner gets experience with making investments, sitting on boards, finding co-investors, managing founder relationships, etc.

venture capital 336

venture capital peer-to-peer capital ventures 336

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? Or that venture capital is a meritocracy? I don’t have enough traction.

advice 446

advice pitching venture capital VC 446

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. Path 1: Venture-backed startup 90% chance of $0. Most founders end up owning 5%-20%.

founder 144

founder VC venture capital entrepreneurship 144

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2021

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of talking to Samir Kaji on the Venture Unlocked podcast about a wide range of topics that we as venture capitalists think about everyday, including: How to build a generational firm?—?retaining Let me explain. It’s the mid and bottom funnel that’s hard.

investing 375

investing investment ventures pitching 375

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2014

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. So this was definitely an introduction I was going to take. Tech Market Analysis Upfront Ventures' Watch this space. (as

media 373

media education VC financing 373

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 8, 2014

Changes in the Software World & in Venture Capital. This meant: Less capital to start a company thus the rise of “micro VCs” Younger, more technical founders (not as big of a leap to take a risk on a 24-year-old when it’s $250k and not $5 million. And then the world changed. Changes in the Startup Ecosystem.

startup 390

startup communities venture capital angel capital 390

TechCrunch

APRIL 19, 2022

Conductive Ventures raised a $200 million Fund III to continue its focus on investing in founders where other venture capital firms did not see the potential. Conductive Ventures launches $100 million enterprise fund. Carey Lai and Paul Yeh started the firm in 2017 after Lai had been with IVP and Yeh with Kleiner Perkins.

support 98

support ventures founder venture capital 98

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.

communities 434

communities startup real estate mentorship 434

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 22, 2012

Viewing the article through the lens of a venture capitalist there’s much to agree with under the mantra of “growth!” He also nails the reason why venture capital is still necessary to grow large businesses quickly in a world where the costs of running startups have fallen dramatically. Growth, again. And headlines.

startup 390

startup VC venture capital entrepreneurs 390

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 5, 2019

It’s not actually surprising that investors bought into it, considering that for a long time, VCs have focused on one particular archtype of leader as being more worthy of venture investment than others—the bold, confident visionary who will talk big in the pitch meeting. that same founder will give the most unequivocal, most confident “Yes!”

founder 158

founder pitching leadership culture 158

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. Take Google as an example.

strategy 299

strategy VC energy disruption 299

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 11, 2018

When I was a startup founder, I had this same issue. That's when I had a conversation with Max Ventilla, the founder of AltSchool, who at the time was running Aardvark. Yeah, I definitely wasn't putting in that kind of volume. At Brooklyn Bridge Ventures, we run a series of events called Stackup Talks.

board 298

board culture collaboration development 298

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. Co-founder discontent. Reference checking is to confirm or disprove a strong, positive intuition you already have about founders that could lead to an investment or a pass. Health destroying stress.

VC 374

VC investing investment entrepreneurs 374

David Teten VC

AUGUST 30, 2021

Our proposal: governments systematically support funding for their diaspora founders, not just the local founders. Founders who want to build companies and need funding. In many ecosystems outside of the major tech hubs, founders face cultural, legal, reputational and other hurdles to building a successful tech company.

investing 119

investing investment founder VC 119

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

Today Upfront Ventures is announcing that we’ve backed Rebecca Kantar ’s startup Imbellus , a company designed to assess human potential and ultimately change the way we teach children. We led a $4 million investment along with Thrive Capital, GLG and Sound Ventures. But really it’s something I look for.

incumbents 270

incumbents entrepreneurs education pitching 270

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.

communities 378

communities startup venture capital capital 378

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 22, 2017

There are a lot of ways the startup world describes venture capitalists that portrays a certain power dynamic, real or perceived, that I believe is at the heart of so many of the industry's problems. Founders do most of the hard work. Founders are in that boat, too. Influencers. Kingmakers. Power brokers. Visionaries.

VC 333

VC advice pitching opportunity 333

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

If you track the venture capital industry it would be hard to miss the conversation going on this week over AngelList “Syndicates.” But Jason is one of the smartest thinkers in our industry so while style points in his eye-poking post might be low, he’s definitely scratching at something important. founder fighting.

VC 356

VC peer-to-peer board entrepreneurs 356

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 18, 2014

We live in interesting times where working at a startup is glamorized to the point that many founders even refer to their team members as “rock stars,” which to my ears is cringe worthy. Great programmers are artists, for sure, but rock stars is about the last definition I’d choose.

startup 419

startup peer-to-peer entrepreneurs education 419

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 23, 2015

At Brooklyn Bridge Ventures , I want to be part of the first money to go into a company, no matter what you call it. New venture funds get raised all the time--and big ones, too. That''s a huge jump, not only in terms of how much a founder will attempt to bite off and chew, but also in price. It''s like cash in your wallet.

entrepreneurs 392

entrepreneurs capital investing investment 392

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 4, 2018

It’s an entirely fair question—and the risk is that limited partners, founders, or other VCs might not want to work with me because I’m vocal about my political views. I suspect, though, there are even some founders out there who could be put off by the things I write and probably how I write them. We get judged all the time.

investing 264

investing investment communities founder 264

Entrepreneurs' Organization

MAY 28, 2021

Contributed by Julia L F Goldstein, the founder of JLFG Communications , which helps businesses share their world-changing ideas through clear and concise content. During an online business workshop in December 2020, the presenter asked me whether our venture was a hobby or a business. But I could change my perspective and my goals.

entrepreneurs 306

entrepreneurs strategy sustainability finance 306

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 25, 2016

I told them that was b t and they should, because founders need decisive investors who can be helpful, not ones that sit on the sidelines and outsource their decisions to other investors. There's no official definition of a lead other than someone who puts down a term sheet, helps gather the round, and who is most active with the company.

investing 284

investing investment support entrepreneurs 284

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. Venture capitalists often come from an operating background. Venture Capital. Asian Venture Capital Journal (free trial).

consulting 128

consulting venture capital board capital 128

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.

VC 85

VC founder venture capital creativity 85

Hunter Walk

JUNE 26, 2023

Chris Neumann (of Canada’s Panache Ventures ) checks these boxes so I asked him to come on my blog (currently less consistent, hopefully still the other two) for Five Questions. Hunter Walk: So why venture capital, why early stage, and why Canada? After DataHero was acquired, I felt like it was time to try something new.

founder 111

founder ventures culture advice 111

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.

ventures 97

ventures startup VC strategy 97

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 1, 2015

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. I see this on a regular basis like the founders – Josh Mangel & Aaron Peck – at Skurt who are asking the obvious question of why renting a car an airport sucks so badly.

VC 353

VC advice consulting frameworks 353

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 24, 2017

I don't think there's ever a time when I feel more like I'm raining on parades as when founders tell me how interested other VC firms are in investing. I've seen it time and time again where founders, understandably apprehensive about fundraising, read too much into their engagement with investors--especially non-partners at firms.

founder 295

founder investing investment VC 295

Founder Bounty

JANUARY 21, 2025

If its a top tier accelerator like Ycombinator you should definitely do it. But not ALL are equity, however if its YC definitely take it or apply if you have not done so. The answer is YES. I have worked in finance and well as been though Techstars and have seen it all in the world of startups.

accelerator 103

accelerator finance financing networking 103

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 18, 2020

Sometimes that’s venture capital generally (like last year’s conversation with Reid Hoffman ) and sometimes it’s in a space where I’ve invested (like mobility and city innovation with Bird’s Travis VanderZanden , one of our portfolio founders.) definitely a big and expensive promotional bet for a “startup”. “We

innovation 244

innovation technology creativity venture capital 244

HPA

JANUARY 8, 2025

Chicago, IL – January 8, 2025 – Hyde Park Angels ( HPA ), a premier early-stage venture capital group specializing in investing through its unique People First model, is pleased to announce that its portfolio company, Simple Mills , has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Flowers Foods , Inc.

innovation 70

innovation leadership sustainability support 70

David Teten VC

NOVEMBER 18, 2021

One of the first decisions we had to make in setting up our new VC fund, Versatile Venture Capital , was our CRM and marketing technology infrastructure. . Investors [and founders] will follow a power-curve, like any other data set. Linkedin : Versatile Venture Capital / David Teten personal. Some firms (e.g.,

venture capital 123

venture capital capital ventures VC 123

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 12, 2020

We started talking about cycling and electronic shifters (which I definitely couldn’t afford) when he mentioned this new company. I have now been investing on my own at Brooklyn Bridge Ventures for almost eight years exactly—which is pretty much about the time people say it takes to build up a company to a big exit.

VC 364

VC hospitality investing investment 364

abovethecrowd.com

NOVEMBER 28, 2022

With such guardrails in place, the company may have evolved in an entirely different direction, which would have been better for both founder and investor alike (especially vs. absolute failure). Some founders unfortunately have an explicit aversion to audits. Corporate malfeasance is an ugly game that is best avoided. .

venture capital 113

venture capital capital ventures board 113

NZ Entrepreneur

JANUARY 20, 2022

Having spent close on a decade working in and reporting on our small but burgeoning startup ecosystem, and a decade before that “building my chops” in other various entrepreneurial endeavours, I am familiar with the toll that entrepreneurship can exact on founder mental health. If your business is a success you are a success.

health 119

health collaboration founder entrepreneurship 119