This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 1, 2016

Yesterday, I met with a founder with an interesting model who was raising $400k to bring the finishing touches to her product to make it customer-ready. In fact, the only founder I've ever seen completely run the table for a multi-million dollar seed round based off of a Powerpoint is Chantel Waterbury of chloe + isabel.

advice 419

advice founder pitching VC 419

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 22, 2018

The responses I got came at a time when I've been having a lot of conversations with female founders as well about their fundraising experiences. At this moment, I'm in the process of backing three companies that have at least one female founder and I just finished a round for a black female founder in December. Ducks head.]

VC 267

VC pitching peer-to-peer founder 267

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 5, 2023

For me, I have at least two years of active board and observer commitments to roll off of and far more time before all the founders I’ve backed hit (or miss, I suppose) their ultimate goal of returning lots of money to their investors. No more founder pitch meetings. It has been a career that fits my personality well.

ventures 545

ventures investment investing VC 545

Revolution

NOVEMBER 28, 2023

At Rise of the Rest, we’ve spent years traversing the country, spotlighting emerging startup hubs, and building a network of entrepreneurial champions and ecosystem builders beyond Silicon Valley, New York City, and Boston. Internally, we’ve begun using the term “founder-market-geography fit” to describe this idea. Let’s get into it.

founder 246

founder transportation innovation education 246

Entrepreneurs' Organization

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

Shivani Gupta, EO Queensland, multi-business founder, author, speaker and coach Profit from profit My big learning from EO Malaysia member Fong Leng Wong is: Profit from profit. My first female mentor was the incredible Janine Allis , founder of Boost Juice. Express your view in a calm and professional way.

founder 262

founder advice entrepreneurship entrepreneurs 262

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 16, 2020

One of the core beliefs that I had when I started Brooklyn Bridge Ventures was that most of the next 50-100 important companies to be built in New York City were going to be started by people not on most VC’s radars today. The Circulate series acknowledges that access to ideas, resources and networks is structurally unequal.

communities 166

communities networking founder disruption 166

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 21, 2019

While most of the money that goes into VC funds comes from institutions that are highly experienced in the asset class, some family offices and high net worth individuals also invest in VC. No current non-accredited founders, please. Could you have led any of these deals? If you’re not sure if you qualify, e-mail me.

VC 267

VC investment investing strategy 267

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

Should I trust my instincts for founders and products or should I be more focused on the market size or business plan? As a VC you want to feel like you have “proprietary sources” of deal flow. ” As far as “terms” go I’m 100% aligned to have the most vanilla, founder-friendly terms I can.

VC 347

VC advice pitching entrepreneurs 347

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 13, 2014

Investment experience (5 years a VC at Battery Ventures). Wonderful human being who is civically engaged, mother of 3, mentorer of younger founders, hard worker and arguer extraordinaire (so says her current Twitter bio). As a result we need somebody well networked into these communities already. Upfront Ventures VC Industry'

VC 408

VC networking board ventures 408

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 3, 2020

The partner at the fund, the VC, gets to do the fun part—the meeting with founders, vetting deals, negotiating, helping, etc. In fact, that number is probably even more than the average VC fund has the bandwidth to make. You get, if you’re lucky, a Powerpoint and some financials once a quarter. So what’s the point?

VC 258

VC angel investing mix-use opportunity 258

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. Over the past 2.5

VC 223

VC venture capital capital investing 223

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 24, 2014

Not every potentially good VC previously worked for Fred Wilson and Josh Kopelman. Not every VC used to get pitched by VC funds for a living and has seen hundreds and hundreds of VC pitch decks. Their guidance and network can also make these companies better. So what about a Techstars-like program for new VCs?

accelerator 368

accelerator mentorship VC incubation 368

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.

VC 374

VC collaboration disruption founder 374

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 28, 2013

Every time he opens his mouth about founder diversity, he seems completely out of his league to address the topic. The biggest question I think VC''s face right now is whether or not, in the future, the best founders will look and act like the best founders of the past.

venture capital 406

venture capital VC ventures capital 406

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 9, 2020

While I got some very kind words on my recent writings , I heard from some founders that didn't feel like they got treated fairly—specifically around feeling patronized or dismissed—and that I wasn't showing enough action to improve on that. I try to get back to everyone—which is something not all VCs do.

founder 270

founder pitching VC opportunity 270

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.

advice 446

advice pitching venture capital VC 446

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 16, 2024

Then, they need to figure out a way to project that brand up above the venture community, like a Bat signal calling for the best founders to come and pitch them. This is something I talk about a lot with my VC coaching clients. It could mean focusing on combating lonliness, which could be a proptech focus and a social networking play.

VC 243

VC angel investing networking pitching 243

This is going to be BIG.

JULY 8, 2019

Just the immediate priorities seem to take up more than one person’s potential working hours—so it’s no surprise that when it comes to something like social media, many founders have trouble making it a priority. The consequences of failing to position a founder’s profile aren’t always obvious—and it’s usually all about missed opportunities.

media 272

media leadership founder opportunity 272

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. Right here.

founder 144

founder mentorship peer-to-peer pitching 144

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

What is a principal at a VC firm and how does it work at Upfront Ventures? ” Associates have different functions at different VCs. VC firm admin. VC firm policy or fund analysis. Helping be the VC “presence” at key events. Smart founders use this extra resource to their advantage.

investment 365

investment investing VC board 365

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.

VC 356

VC peer-to-peer board entrepreneurs 356

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 10, 2016

I joined Upfront Ventures in 2007 and took over as co-Managing Partner in 2011 along with the founder, Yves Sisteron. I created an accelerator & mentor network (Launchpad LA). And Greg has had the most influence on Upfront Ventures’ strategy since he joined. From 2007-2012 I scoured LA constantly. I sat on panels.

disruption 226

disruption VC communities ventures 226

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 22, 2012

. “Why do founders want to take the VCs’ money? Growing too slowly is particularly dangerous in a business with network effects, which the best startups usually have to some degree.” ” This is a frequent theme of mine when asked to speak to audience about the VC industry. Growth, again.

startup 390

startup VC venture capital entrepreneurs 390

TechCrunch

MARCH 2, 2021

Aytekin Tank is the founder of JotForm , an online form builder. Founders from around the world arrive in Silicon Valley with visions of record-setting A rounds and billion-dollar valuations. But what if you don’t have unicorn dreams – or you don’t want to pursue VC money? startups are backed by VCs. Share on Twitter.

SaaS 139

SaaS VC founder data collection 139

Haystack

DECEMBER 29, 2018

It’s that time of year, time to look back and reflect on the most significant storylines in the tech, startup, and VC world. Telegram announced their ICO and raised over $1B from some of the best VC firms. VC funds invested directly in MakerDao’s Dai stable coin. 5/ Early Effects Of The Softbank Effect.

VC 165

VC startup venture capital mix-use 165

TechCrunch

SEPTEMBER 12, 2021

Sesie Bonsi is the founder and CEO of Bleu , a financial technology platform focused on enabling touchless payment experiences. But most venture-backed startups are “still overwhelmingly white, male, Ivy-League-educated and based in Silicon Valley,” according to a study conducted by RateMyInvestor and Diversity VC. Sesie Bonsi.

startup ecosystem 129

startup ecosystem ventures founder startup 129

David Teten VC

MARCH 1, 2022

The easiest way to work with and for VC funds is to become a part-time scout, getting paid for sourcing investments. How to find a job as a VC scout. VC recruiters list and compensation data. How to negotiate a partner role at a VC or private equity firm. Syllabus for how to launch, manage, and invest a VC fund.

VC 128

VC venture capital accelerator ventures 128

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 12, 2019

Over the past month a colleague ( Chang Xu ) and I sifted through data on the venture capital industry (as we do every year) and made a bunch of calls to VCs and LPs to confirm our hypotheses. So What Impact Did the Drop in Tech Founding Costs Have on VC? This data seems pretty consistent with what we’ve seen across the industry.

investment 328

investment investing VC venture capital 328

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.

investment 119

investment investing founder VC 119

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 18, 2019

Brooklyn Bridge Ventures , the pre-seed and seed stage VC fund I run in NYC, has invested in 64 companies in the last six and a half years. Twenty-five of them have at least one female co-founder. Fifteen had co-founders over 40. Five have LGBTQ+ founders. Three teams have African-American founders.

venture capital 413

venture capital capital ventures peer-to-peer 413

TechCrunch

MARCH 24, 2023

Currently, it’s estimated that less than 1% of venture capital goes to openly LGBTQ+ founders. There are no numbers on how much of that capital goes specifically to trans founders or how many investors identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. The best investors right now are investing in LGBTQ-founded companies,” Tukes added.

VC 95

VC founder funders communities 95

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014

It got me thinking about the advice that I often give to new VCs. For years I saw myself as the new guy in VC but then you wake up one day and realize that 50% of your peers have been doing it for less time than you and time has moved on. You want to build your network with other VCs so you go to demo days, SxSW and so forth.

peer-to-peer 317

peer-to-peer pitching VC accelerator 317

Founders Coop

MAY 18, 2020

As operators, we were lucky to raise from some pretty amazing VC role models, people like Brad Feld at Foundry Group, Ethan Kurzweil at Bessemer Venture Partners, and Karan Mehandru at Trinity Ventures. But along the way we experienced many of the behaviors Fred’s post talks about, so we know how awful the experience of raising VC can be.

founder 140

founder VC ventures investing 140

TechCrunch

JUNE 7, 2021

David Teten is founder of Versatile VC and writes periodically at teten.com and @dteten. How to win consulting, board and deal roles with PE and VC funds. 5 innovative fundraising methods for emerging VCs and PEs. Hey, founders between gigs: What now? If you want outside capital, VCs will chase after you to invest.

founder 126

founder consulting angel investing venture capital 126

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. Startup founders always need help.

communities 434

communities startup real estate mentorship 434

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 7, 2015

Who is actually building a portfolio whose founders reflect the diversity of the greater population? I went back and calculated the number of companies in the first Brooklyn Bridge Ventures portfolio who have at least one founder who is female, from an underrepresented minority group, or LGBT. Not directly, anyway. And does it work?

venture capital 367

venture capital capital ventures VC 367

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

One of my VC coaching clients is looking for a position with a new firm. Who she could convince to sit down with her would say something about her network and access. If you can’t, you need to train that muscle better and do some network-building. Are they not interested in learning, growing and building their network?

networking 418

networking leadership creativity pitching 418