A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

JUNE 1, 2021

When I look at all of the opportunities we are currently considering plus all of the investments we have made this year to date, what stands out most to me is the location of the founders and teams. We won’t know how this move to invest globally will impact returns and founder success. And we are doing exactly that.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 11, 2016

Most VCs did well academically and had enough career success that a venture firm was willing to give them an investment role or they were able to raise their own fund. We then help surround founders with other talent who want to join important causes but don’t have the startup idea themselves. The role of VC is sparring partner.

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This is going to be BIG.

MAY 27, 2014

Last week, for just the second time ever, I passed on an investment opportunity because of the terms of the deal--both the price and the legal structure of the agreement. I remember back in the Union Square Ventures days when we had an internal debate over the price of the first round of Indeed. Perhaps we all should.

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Revolution

NOVEMBER 28, 2023

It was an opportunity to generate significant returns, momentum for rising startup markets, and innovation that would strengthen America’s dynamism and competitiveness. 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.

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Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 22, 2015

It always started the same way – a founder would ask for an intro because they figured he could help with promotion. In a perfect world they would just hang out in our offices, work on tech ideas, help us evaluate opportunities, attend our investment meetings and be thoughtful advising tech companies that come to meet us.

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This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 16, 2015

It just seemed like a fitting title for a company built around narrative by a founder who used to write stories for a living. It's a story that just hit a milestone--a $4mm round of venture funding that I'm ecstatic to say Brooklyn Bridge Ventures just led.

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American Entrepreneurship

JANUARY 21, 2025

Two prominent entrepreneurs share their views on starting a business plus 10 tips every first-time founder should have. A founders journey when taking on the challenge of launching a startup is filled with highs and lows.Their path to success will have challenges, setbacks, and moments of doubt.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

Today we’re announcing that my partner Kara Nortman is becoming Co-Managing Partner at Upfront Ventures and I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to welcome her to her new role. and of course a relentless pursuit of helping founders succeed. So mostly we just had to listen to customer feedback from founders, VCs and LPs.

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Both Sides of the Table

JULY 26, 2022

Photo by Scott Clark for Upfront Ventures (no, Evan is not standing on a box) Last year marked the 25th anniversary for Upfront Ventures and what a year it was. We are proud to announce the close of our 7th early-stage fund with $280 million to invest in seed and early stage founders. What do you do with a $650 million platform?

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American Entrepreneurship

MARCH 12, 2025

Six startups showcased at Investopia 2025 represented a diverse range of industries, demonstrating the breadth of innovation within Crimson Founders 2025. The program featured exclusive networking opportunities, private investor meetings, and demo sessions, solidifying the UAEs role as a global innovation hub.

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This is going to be BIG.

MAY 5, 2015

So I asked a few founders that I've worked with and they mentioned a word that struck me--because I've never heard any of the hordes of people in my inbox asking for internships, VC job recommendations and advice, etc. I think of venture capital as a service business. mention about themselves. That's largely how I think about my job.

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This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 7, 2015

After checking out The Information's "open dataset" on diversity in venture capital , I felt pretty disappointed. Who is actually building a portfolio whose founders reflect the diversity of the greater population? A whopping 17 of the 32 companies (53%) have founders that fit into those groups. Not directly, anyway.

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This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 22, 2018

In almost every single investment I’ve ever made, I can think of a singular moment in my relationship with a founder that, no matter what came before or what might come after, defined our relationship. Not only that, but the venture community is extremely small when it comes to investor reputations.

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Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 29, 2017

I am so proud and humbled to be able to formally announce that Upfront Ventures has raised its 6th venture capital fund in the past 21 years. Increasingly local entrepreneurs are finding they don’t have to “take the trip up North” quite as often because on a weekly basis venture firms are down in LA — it’s only an hour’s flight.

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American Entrepreneurship

NOVEMBER 13, 2024

Co-founders of sportsbook FanDuel, Nigel Eccles and Rob Jones, announced this week the public launch of their cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook B etHog and its closing of a $6 million seed funding round. Consumers now have a trusted brand of a first-class online casino and sports betting experience not found anywhere else.

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Revolution

MARCH 26, 2025

Ive been grateful to see that support firsthand throughout my careerwhether through the passage of the JOBS Act , the creation of Opportunity Zones , or, most recently, the Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (Tech Hubs) initiative. were on the platform. Based in Washington, D.C., In many other cities across the U.S.,

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This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 21, 2025

This is what I know it feels like for a lot of founders and investors alikefloating in the rarified air of extremely successful people defined by their outcomes. When my wisdom teeth came in over the years, there were a few days here and there that the pain got so bad that had I woke up feeling as bad as I did the next day, I was going to do.

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Source Link

OCTOBER 26, 2021

Dave Lavinsky, GrowThink co-founder , puts it like this: “I think the mindset for many has become, ‘If I’m going to ditch the office, why not ditch the boss, too?’ 83% of entrepreneurs have no access to bank loans or venture capital at the time of startup , according to research done by the Kauffman Foundation.

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Dream It

MARCH 6, 2020

Jeff Berman is General Partner at Camber Creek , one of the first venture funds dedicated to real estate technology and the built world. The team owns, operates and manages over 150 million square feet of real estate, making Camber Creek one of the biggest value-add venture partners for real estate tech startups.

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This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 18, 2019

Today's top founders will undoubtedly start something new in the future, but they won't make up the majority of innovators going forward--just as prior generations of venture backed founders don't make up a majority of those who are succeeding today. I didn’t say venture investing was easy—but at least we got a look.)

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This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 9, 2020

If you’re a white professional in venture, you might feel uncomfortable tweeting or blogging about race. Besides, if you’re not comfortable with making mistakes and learning from them—what are you even doing in venture? Founders from communities of color are less likely to have personal wealth to fall back on.

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This is going to be BIG.

JULY 16, 2014

There''s been some writing about how VCs and founders interact with each other and it inspired me to take a step back and reflect on what my role is supposed to be with regards to the investments I make and the founders I deal with. Venture Capital & Technology' Here''s what I came up with.

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This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 24, 2021

In the beginning of my venture career, I knew of a firm that was involved in a highly competitive funding round that they ultimately failed to win. It was a clearly hot space and they felt like they had missed out on an opportunity to place their bet in it—and worst of all, they lost the deal to what they considered a rival firm.

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Revolution

MARCH 7, 2024

In Their Own Words: Female Founders and CEOs Discuss the Discourse That’s Missing (and Hitting) the Mark This year’s International Women’s Day theme is “ Inspire Inclusion ” — a call to recognize the unique perspectives and contributions of women from all walks of life, in all facets of life, including the innovation economy.

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American Entrepreneurship

JULY 10, 2024

Observing emerging trends in the global startup ecosystem, Index Ventures announced the addition of $2.3 The convergence of AI, the abundance of skilled entrepreneurs, and known playbooks to build hypergrowth companies present founders with opportunities to create new, category-defining businesses that investors seek. “AI

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Revolution

DECEMBER 12, 2023

Founders are not machines. The rate is even higher among founders: Studies reveal that entrepreneurs are more prone to depression (30%) and anxiety disorders (27%) compared to non-entrepreneurs (Journal of Business Venturing). One Series A founder noted, “The peer-to-peer sessions were powerful. The feedback?

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Revolution

MARCH 8, 2023

population, but in 2022, companies with solely female founders garnered just 2% of the total capital invested in venture-backed startups. The long and short of it: Female founders face systemic barriers to founding, funding, and scaling their businesses. Women represent 50.5% of the U.S. That ticked up to 15.4%

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AsiaTechDaily

OCTOBER 27, 2023

Register According to iLife * founder Nelson Lee, roughly $200 billion in premiums are signed annually in the U.S. The opportunity lies in decoding customer sentiments Fortunately for Nelson, entrepreneurship was in his blood – both his parents are entrepreneurs who had founded a software company in Taiwan.

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This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 19, 2016

It means a lot to me to find financial opportunities investing in companies that I can be really proud of--education companies like Tinybop and Tinkergarten , or companies at the forefront of fair labor practices like Homer Logistics. I'm thrilled to be an investor in The Wing --a Home Base for Women on Their Way.

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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. However, in this moment, I think one''s career in venture capital depends on changing your perspective. Of the 20 teams, only half count an engineer as a founder or co-founder.

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Both Sides of the Table

MAY 1, 2014

It’s the company that evokes fear into more startups and venture capitalists looking to fund eCommerce businesses than any other potential competitor. I guess he was as excited about the opportunity as I was! And for the next several months the founders literally ran the business. And could we then compete?”

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

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This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 18, 2019

Very little time and effort is spent helping professional, full time investors raise capital for venture funds. I first met Daniela Perdomo , goTenna’s founder, at SXSW. This is exactly the wrong way to think about the economic opportunity presented by innovation.

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Revolution

MAY 23, 2023

To shed additional light on this issue and its ultimate impact on startups, I partnered with the Center for Real Estate Technology & Innovation to ask proptech founders about their capital and strategic partners. So, what does this mean for a proptech founder with a heavy strategic investor base?

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Revolution

MAY 11, 2023

Consequently, the Bay Area experienced a surge, capturing over one-third of all early-stage venture funding in the U.S., Executing on opportunities at the intersection of utility and disruption allows for exponential innovation. marking its highest level since 2017. Seed- and Early-Stage U.S, Cultivate a super team, not a superstar.

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This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 22, 2014

This list needs no explanation: 1) You need a technical co-founder. 18) We need to move fast otherwise we''ll miss this opportunity. This list needs no explanation: 1) You need a technical co-founder. 18) We need to move fast otherwise we''ll miss this opportunity. Venture Capital & Technology'

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Revolution

FEBRUARY 13, 2023

Since the beginning of modern venture capital investing — a relatively nascent asset class — the industry has been biased toward funding what it knows best: founders with familiar demographics (white, male) in familiar geographies (Silicon Valley). One event held by a few investors focused on Black founders is clearly not enough.

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