YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 10, 2017

Roughly 27 percent of startups can’t get the funding they need to take their business to the next level, according to the National Association of Small Businesses. For the last eight quarters, the number of angel and seed stage deals has declined, according to an Eisner Amper VC report.

Software Review 124

Software Review Technical Review Due Diligence Startup 124

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2023

It never hurts to start networking personally with all levels of investors early, but sending out teasers and business plans to every name you can find on the Internet is a waste of your time and theirs. Investors call this the seed stage , where money is required to build a market and a real product. Congratulations!

Angel Investor 313

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 313

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 22, 2020

It never hurts to start networking personally with all levels of investors early, but sending out teasers and business plans to every name you can find on the Internet is a waste of your time and theirs. Investors call this the seed stage , where money is required to build a market and a real product. Congratulations!

Angel Investor 370

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 370

Mucker Lab

AUGUST 27, 2014

My partner Erik Rannala has had a similar experience, having worked as a VC at Harrison Metal before moving down to LA to co-found our seed stage venture firm. The best entrepreneurs have been coached to run a tight process, to shop their term sheets to a myriad of VCs, all of whom have great reputations and large networks.

Los Angeles 138

Los Angeles Southern California Silicon Valley Technical Review 138

Austin Startup

MAY 11, 2017

We make a majority of our investments in those sectors and prioritize proven business models. A New Kind of Venture Firm AutoChrome Autochrome is an inception and seed stage venture capital fund. We invest at the earliest stages in transformative companies that are leveraging technology to move our species forward.

Private Equity 48

Private Equity Venture Capital Technical Review Seed Stage 48

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 6, 2014

Here are a few of my “rules” for young investors and inventors on the new VC paradigm path for starting new businesses: Remove the costs. Traditional VCs used to just write checks for new ideas, but then ran away from seed-stage risk after the last tech bubble burst.

San Francisco 154

San Francisco Business Model Silicon Valley Coder 154

View from Seed

JUNE 11, 2019

I believe it’s more important to optimize on the right lead investor vs. the highest valuations at the seed stage (within reason). The strongest investors usually aren’t cheap, but typically don’t do things outside of the normal bounds for a company at the seed stage. So too few is not great.

Syndicate 202

Syndicate Syndication Seed Stage Lead Investor 202

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 16, 2019

*This post is part of our “pitch deck” series where we dissect the seed stage pitch deck and discuss the ideal flow for a pitch. The best companies become more and more dominant as they grow, driven by things like network effects, data advantages, brand, culture, or other increasing returns to scale.

Seed Stage 192

Seed Stage Metrics PR Leadership 192

Tim Keane

DECEMBER 14, 2009

  He is a partner in a pretty much exclusively software seed stage fund, Y Combinator that you can read more about.    He is a partner in a pretty much exclusively software seed stage fund, Y Combinator that you can read more about.  How To Change The World » December 14, 2009. Google Ads.

Burn Rate 60

Burn Rate Angel Groups Seed Stage Startup 60

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

Seed-stage compatible: Like traditional equity VC investors, Flexible VCs accomodate early-stage investment risk within their portfolios better than a traditional RBI funder. Eligible for favorable treatment under Qualified Small Business Stock exemption, if structured as equity. Typical business stage.

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

YoungUpstarts

MAY 8, 2018

Seriously consider these seven tips before any deal reaches the negotiating stage. Use your network to search out CEOs funded by any investor you are considering. If investors express a strong preference changing your business model, product, or team, think twice. It’s your vision, not theirs.

Seed Stage 133

Seed Stage Due Diligence Cofounder New York 133

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2018

It never hurts to start networking personally with all levels of investors early, but sending out teasers and business plans to every name you can find on the Internet is a waste of your time and theirs. Investors call this the seed stage , where money is required to build a market and a real product. Congratulations!

Angel Investor 184

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 184

Women Entrepreneurs Can

NOVEMBER 19, 2022

These firms can provide various services, including financing and business advice. They may also provide a mentorship network. VC funding is best suited for businesses with high growth potential. Pre-Seed Investments. Investing in a startup at the pre-seed stage is a great way to get in early on to the next big thing.

Venture Capital 52

Venture Capital Early Stage Liquidity Event SEC 52

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 4, 2014

It never hurts to start networking personally with all levels of investors early, but sending out teasers and business plans to every name you can find on the Internet is a waste of your time and theirs. Investors call this the seed stage , where money is required to build a market and a real product. Congratulations!

Angel Investor 232

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 232

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2016

It never hurts to start networking personally with all levels of investors early, but sending out teasers and business plans to every name you can find on the Internet is a waste of your time and theirs. Investors call this the seed stage , where money is required to build a market and a real product. Congratulations!

Matching 120

Matching Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers 120

BeyondVC

FEBRUARY 12, 2014

BOLDstart helps founders at the seed stage accelerate their growth from idea/ alpha phase to product market fit and successful Series A round. helps founders at the seed stage accelerate their growth from idea/ alpha phase to product market fit and successful Series A round”. As they say, the rest is history.

Seed Stage 110

Seed Stage Agile Viral API 110

Professor VC

JANUARY 27, 2011

I strongly believe (at least for very early stage technology ventures) that you will get diminishing returns and arguably negative returns once you get past an initial threshold of team, product, market and financial diligence. Don't Stop Believin' Is There Any Truth in "The Social Network"? work at home.

Technical Review 31

Technical Review Due Diligence Silicon Valley San Jose 31

Hunter Walker

MARCH 8, 2014

At a more mature technology company you’re protecting and extending your business model. Between the two is a hypergrowth stage where your initial product has great traction but there’s still urgency and risk in execution. You have the resources to build and launch, which means your work will see the light of day.

Liquidity Event 134

Liquidity Event Early Stage Seed Stage Startup 134

www.informationarbitrage.com

FEBRUARY 24, 2010

Too often, however, I have found CTO / Founders paired with business people who not only don't add value, but frequently detract from the value of the business. And from my perspective as an engaged seed stage venture investor, this makes them unfundable.

CTO Hire 40

CTO Hire Founder Cap Table Vesting 40

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

I recently got together with Aaron Shechet and an early stage startup to discuss the direction the company might want to take. It was a great conversation and I thought it would be a good idea to do some visible networking with Aaron to get to know him better. We occasionally get involved with very early stage startups.

Los Angeles 150

Los Angeles Southern California Startup SEO 150

Professor VC

SEPTEMBER 26, 2011

Below is a short description of their philosophy: "The part of our philosophy that makes us most different from other startup investors is that we dont believe gut feel is a reliable indicator of potential at the seed stage. Don't Stop Believin' Is There Any Truth in "The Social Network"? ► January. (1).

Technical Review 38

Technical Review Early Stage San Jose Angel Investor 38

Hippoland

AUGUST 16, 2018

1) Your idea is undifferentiated Investors see thousands of businesses a year. And, your idea is 50th social networking site of the week. There were/are so many freakin’ ad networks / ad exchanges / ad platforms out there that LaunchBit was just undifferentiated. Airbnb is probably the poster child example of this.

Sales Cycle 54

Sales Cycle Differentiation Early Stage Bootstrapping 54

Hippoland

AUGUST 16, 2018

1) Your idea is undifferentiated Investors see thousands of businesses a year. And, your idea is 50th social networking site of the week. There were/are so many freakin’ ad networks / ad exchanges / ad platforms out there that LaunchBit was just undifferentiated. Airbnb is probably the poster child example of this.

Sales Cycle 48

Sales Cycle Differentiation Early Stage Bootstrapping 48

Hippoland

FEBRUARY 12, 2018

Etc… At the pre-seed stage, a big way to stand out is if you have a V3 statement (as opposed to a V1 statement). The way you get to a V3 statement is to start running the business and charging customers. Although this post is about what I look for, every investor (incl pre-seed investors) looks for this.

Seed Stage 48

Seed Stage Business Model B2B Email 48

Hippoland

FEBRUARY 12, 2018

Etc… At the pre-seed stage, a big way to stand out is if you have a V3 statement (as opposed to a V1 statement). The way you get to a V3 statement is to start running the business and charging customers. Although this post is about what I look for, every investor (incl pre-seed investors) looks for this.

Seed Stage 48

Seed Stage Business Model B2B Email 48

Tim Keane

OCTOBER 3, 2012

And, I suppose, it's critical to make sure angels understand the lack of control they have when they take market risk and trying to find ways to invest only at stages at which there is evidence of market acceptance. John Mullins: Getting to Plan B: Breaking Through to a Better Business Model.       Search.

Technology 74

Technology Marketing Intellectual Property Montana 74

View from Seed

MARCH 15, 2017

VC evaluation of seed-stage startups can seem arbitrary or imitative at times. Internally, the scarcity of tangible business metrics – product usage or revenue multiples for example – can make an investment decision feel daunting. Any seed stage company’s strategy is a constant work-in-progress.

Due Diligence 265

Due Diligence Seed Stage Portfolio Metrics 265

The Next Web

OCTOBER 23, 2013

There aren’t a tonne of funds focused on seed-stage funding worldwide, but we can add a new one to the list today. SparkLabs , the company behind the accelerator program in Korea , is expanding its scope with its first seed-stage fund that will “help great startups go global.”. Asia Entrepreneur Insider News sparklabs'

Seed Stage 139

Seed Stage Asia Silicon Valley 139

View from Seed

JANUARY 11, 2023

Think intimate practice pitch sessions featuring real-time feedback from the NextView team and the broader early-stage investment community. Think partners coming together to tap their own networks for your follow-on rounds of financing. For this particular track, applicants need not apply with a fully baked business model.

Programming 156

Programming Sacramento San Francisco Founder 156

Mucker Lab

APRIL 6, 2023

Are there types of companies, market segments, industries, or business models where PLG does not make sense? Freemium has a lot of advantage longer term, especially if your product has a network effect. Currently she's Executive in Residence with Reforge and advising other companies. Hila is a mentor with Mucker Capital.

Product 78

Product CTO Hire Startup Fractional CTO 78

Professor VC

FEBRUARY 26, 2010

They have raised a fund to provide seed funding of $50-$250K to 100-200 start-ups. Rather than going through their networks or targeting specific sectors for deal flow, they are going to rely on an algorithm to select companies. Seed stage investing is all about the team, so there may be something to this idea.

San Jose 28

San Jose Silicon Valley Venture Capital Angel Investor 28

aweissman.com

MAY 4, 2008

At betaworks were trying to create a different seed stage business model (John wrote about this a little more here ), at least a bit, and though we might be "obscure even among Web insiders," by nature of being located here in New York we tend (and are right now designed) to have more activities here. at 6:11 PM.

Las Vegas 20

Las Vegas San Francisco Minnesota America 20

David Teten

DECEMBER 12, 2017

645 Ventures , a New York City based VC firm, is one of the pioneers of a data-driven investment model to the seed stage. While the historic capital-raising process is driven by face-to-face networking and salesmanship, some GPs actively participate in LP/GP communities to find and build relationships with potential LPs.

Early Stage 60

Early Stage Technical Review Software Review Venture Capital 60

View from Seed

AUGUST 2, 2017

Others take bets on certain verticals or business models, such as marketplaces, SaaS, or enterprise technology. Managed marketplaces , robotics , and on -demand delivery networks are changing how we experience the simple pleasure of eating a meal. Early-stage investing is still the only thing we do.

Seed Stage 273

Seed Stage Portfolio Cofounder B2B 273

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 15, 2020

I was developing a mesh network that I envisioned being useful in the developing world and for the internet of things. You're selling a consumable product, which is a great business model. Any venture capitalist will tell you, "That's why we take a wide spectrum of that at the seed stage."

Technical Review 68

Technical Review Software Review Finance Technology 68

Agile VC

JUNE 12, 2012

They are fully fungible for hard currency through Safaricom’s network of retail partners for either the sender or recipient of an M-Pesa mobile payment. And at the end of the day it appears Isis will just be working with the existing credit card networks Visa, MC, Amex, & Discover. . Good luck to Ben.

Mobile 250

Mobile Disintermediation SMS Government 250

Agile VC

APRIL 13, 2012

I describe this in part as the “Social Network” effect… not just the movie itself but the example of Mark Zuckerberg and many other high profile young founders as role models ( who can forget this image? ) I co-founded NextView Ventures , a seed-stage VC firm based in Boston, in 2010. Read More ».

Silicon Valley 185

Silicon Valley San Francisco San Jose Startup 185