David Teten

DECEMBER 12, 2017

As a globally focused LP in early stage VC funds, we at Blue Future Partners have observed a growing trend of firms investing substantially in software tools, whether developing proprietary solutions or adopting off the shelf tools. But what tools are they using themselves to automate their own processes?

Early Stage 60

Early Stage Technical Review Software Review Venture Capital 60

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

It occurred to me that although we mentioned our new thematic approach when we raised our last fund in 2017, we haven’t really shared a broader manifesto about how we are approaching the early stage market. It’s been an interesting several years in the early stage venture eco-system, and the sands have shifted considerably.

North America 120

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2015

I challenge any entrepreneur, for example, to define the difference between "seed-stage" and "early-stage" financing. Asking for early-stage money before you have customers and revenue will likely kill your credibility with real investors. A seed-stage “super angel.”

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Finance Early Stage Startup 120

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 11, 2022

After many years of working with angel investors seriously trying to find new ventures worthy of their hard-earned money, I find their frustration often exceeds that of entrepreneurs sincerely looking for financial help. They are not interested in research and development, or funding at the idea stage. Lack of intellectual property.

Due Diligence 271

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Preferred Stock 271

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2011

If you are new to the entrepreneurial world of startups, you are likely confused by the terminology of seed-stage, lean startups, micro-VCs, and Super Angels. The good news is that he is all about helping early-stage startups, the hard part for entrepreneurs is figuring out what it takes to play. Super Angels.

Early Stage 231

Early Stage Seed Stage Angel Investor Silicon Valley 231

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 30, 2014

With plenty of resources available for entrepreneurs about how to craft an effective pitch deck for raising seed-stage capital from VCs, often what’s left out are some of the tactical components of an initial meeting. This requires arriving at the office a few minutes early which, surprisingly, doesn’t consistently happen.

Technical Review 308

Technical Review Entrepreneur Due Diligence Seed Stage 308

Gust

JULY 8, 2012

If you are new to the entrepreneurial world of startups, you are likely confused by the terminology of seed-stage, lean startups, micro-VCs, and Super Angels. The good news is that he is all about helping early-stage startups. The hard part for entrepreneurs is figuring out what it takes to play. Super Angels.

Early Stage 177

Early Stage Finance Seed Stage Entrepreneur 177

Reid Hoffman

AUGUST 6, 2020

The term “early-stage” covers a lot of territory in venture investing, from incubating a brand-new idea, to investing in a Series A. Obsidian is another one of these where we knew the entrepreneurs deeply, and we had a high level of conviction in what they were going to do. HOW DOES GREYLOCK EVALUATE COMPANIES AT THE SEED-STAGE?

Technical Review 69

Technical Review Seed Stage Software Review Early Stage 69

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 2, 2022

This may vary from fund to fund, but in general here is the top level criteria VCs would use to check initial fit: Stage – is the startup raising a round which is within the range of the fund (pre seed, seed, series A, early stage, growth, etc.).

Technical Review 166

Technical Review Early Stage Cofounder Portfolio 166

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 10, 2015

Let’s face it, the rules for getting a startup funded at the seed stage aren’t very clear. Note: When I say “seed stage startup,” I’m specifically referring to software/app startups that are eitherpre-product or early product. TVR: The traditional way of raising seed funding. The New Way , called Traction.

Seed Stage 100

Seed Stage Silicon Valley Startup Venture Capital 100

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2023

On the other hand, if you are a new entrepreneur, still in the idea stage, professional investors will only tell you to come back later when you have traction (customers and revenue). Thus your startup maturity and growth stage is the primary key to success with potential funding sources. Congratulations!

Angel Investor 313

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 313

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

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2015

*. If you are a 20-something tech entrepreneur you could be forgiven for thinking that seed-stage investors, Angellist Syndicates and widely available angel money always existed. I was out to raise my first seed money in my second startup of $500,000. Some quick highlights include: The Role of a Seed Stage VC.

Seed Stage 150

Seed Stage Silicon Valley Syndicate Syndication 150

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 20, 2019

Over the years, the Truss team has worked with several early-stage startups, and noticed a consistency in inter-series problems (regardless of the industry). Specifically, there are five challenges that emerging business typically put on the backburner between funding rounds: Seed to Series A: Customer Testing.

Technical Cofounder 113

Technical Cofounder Burn Rate Seed Stage Cofounder 113

View from Seed

APRIL 16, 2015

An easy way to think about it is that value over time doesn’t go up and to the right in a straight line like this: Instead, it’s more of a stair step like this: So, what are the value inflection points that create the stair steps, and how does one think about it at the earliest stages? These might include: Bring on a technical co-founder.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Cofounder Early Stage Startup 120

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2014

These tensions seep out in some angels or seed funds publicly or semi-privately deriding later-stage VCs for their “bad” behavior. I have seen bad behavior from later-stage VCs, believe me. But I have seen equally bad behavior from super early stage investors. What a second, what about entrepreneurs?

Technical Review 336

Technical Review Later Stage Early Stage LP 336

View from Seed

JANUARY 27, 2021

. $100M is a meaningful increase from our $50M third fund, though it’s still quite small in the grand scheme of venture, especially amid the recent wave of late stage financings and SPACs. We believe that this fund is the perfect size for us to be the best possible partners to early-stage entrepreneurs today.

LP 411

LP Early Stage Seed Stage Venture Capital 411

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

My initial reaction to Adeo when we spoke was that while it may have solved some issues (debt versus equity) it didn’t solve the ones that I’ve been warning entrepreneurs about most loudly. A standard entrepreneur retort I heard back then (2008-09) was “I don’t know what my company is worth now.

Ratchet 354

Ratchet Liquidation Preference Equity Stock 354

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2010

So super angel and seed funds are proliferating – As a result there has been an explosion in the number of amazing early-stage investors such as Softtech VC , Floodgate , Felicis Ventures , K9 Ventures , OATV , Lowercase Capital , Founder Collective , and many, many more. Some seed angles and seed funds clearly get it.

LP 311

LP Technical Review Early Stage Silicon Valley 311

View from Seed

JANUARY 13, 2015

“As a seed-stage investor, should you pay up for team or traction?” When you are thinking about joining an early stage company, how should you be evaluating the risk of the overall company? How should you be weighing the presence of a great founding team versus early signs of traction?

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage B2B Distribution Early Stage 120

View from Seed

APRIL 2, 2015

And since I’m an operator, not investor, I recognize just how valuable all the casual, daily discussions inside a VC’s office can be to fellow operators and entrepreneurs. Few projects in an entrepreneur’s life can lead to more scope creep and more agony over little details than the company pitch deck.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Design Startup Early Stage 120

View from Seed

FEBRUARY 9, 2016

At seed-stage startups, especially companies with well-networked founders and investors, finding applicants who can do a job on paper is not overly difficult. This is especially important early on when the business direction might pivot and you’re doing all you can to get your name out to investors and early customers.

Founder 120

Founder Seed Stage Cofounder Boston 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 22, 2020

On the other hand, if you are a new entrepreneur, still in the idea stage, professional investors will only tell you to come back later when you have traction (customers and revenue). Thus your startup maturity and growth stage is the primary key to success with potential funding sources. Congratulations!

Angel Investor 370

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 370

YoungUpstarts

FEBRUARY 6, 2017

The fundraising stage is vital for any entrepreneur, but you can’t wing it through your meetings and expect to be taken seriously. As an entrepreneur, your goal when raising financing is to get several term sheets — the documents describing the terms and conditions of financing. Do or do not — there is no “try.”

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Term Sheet Technical Review Due Diligence 100

ReadWriteStart

MAY 22, 2023

The Challenge of Talent and Funding FOV Ventures, the first venture capital firm in Europe to invest exclusively in early-stage Metaverse companies, has announced €25 million in funding for early-stage or seed-stage startups.

Finland 187

Finland Europe Estonia Silicon Valley 187

Feld Thoughts

MAY 6, 2021

The program has been running in Colorado supporting pre-seed to post-seed stage startups at the intersection of conservation and technology since 2018. And Techstars brings a massive network of mentors, investors, and entrepreneurs on a similar journey. .

Seed Stage 240

Seed Stage Colorado Early Stage Programming 240

View from Seed

MARCH 31, 2015

Editor’s note: Unlike the Ubers and Airbnbs of the tech startup world, seed-stage companies don’t typically have the valuations, awareness, or traction typically associated with press coverage. That said, coverage is important, and early-stage companies would be wise to work with local press in addition to national.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage PR North Dakota Startup 120

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. This post was prompted by an email exchange I had with a young entrepreneur. That’s fine.

Early Stage 360

Early Stage Startup Venture Capital Seed Stage 360

VC Cafe

JULY 5, 2010

-based Angel capital with early stage technology companies in Israel, and do so in a way that substantially mitigates the risk of seed stage investing. Essentially, investors are receiving equal shares of 10 Israeli seed stage start-ups for relatively small capital.

Technical Review 106

Technical Review Software Review Seed Stage 106

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2020

After many years of working with angel investors seriously trying to find new ventures worthy of their hard-earned money, I find their frustration often exceeds that of entrepreneurs sincerely looking for financial help. They are not interested in research and development, or funding at the idea stage. Lack of intellectual property.

Due Diligence 308

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Preferred Stock Seed Stage 308

Austin Startup

MAY 11, 2017

Our unique approach to investing, coupled with a pioneering spirit, provides the vision to guide early stage growth companies beyond today and toward future success. Aspect Ventures | Aligned VC We believe that the interests of investors and entrepreneurs can and should be aligned.

Private Equity 48

Private Equity Venture Capital Technical Review Seed Stage 48

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. See Why Are Revenue-Based Investors Investing in Women & Diverse Entrepreneurs? Less established regulatory framework. .

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

View from Seed

APRIL 30, 2015

From a company milestones perspective, entrepreneurs who take on venture debt are almost always thinking about raising that next round of capital from other institutions. GM: The model is more about the relationship with the entrepreneurs, the investors, and us as the bank, as opposed to cash flow or fixed assets to lend on.

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Equity Startup Seed Stage 120

View from Seed

DECEMBER 6, 2018

Almost seven years ago, I wrote a post about the difference between a “no” answer and a “no yet” when pitching early-stage VCs. This was back in January 2012, a simpler time… when there was only one kind of seed round, when Series A firms invested pre-revenue, etc. Parsing Seed & Early-Stage VCs.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Early Stage Differentiation Lead Investor 120

Hippoland

JANUARY 23, 2018

I thought it might be useful to do a high level overview of what fundraising in 2018 looks like at the pre-seed / seed stage. This means that traction bar has gone up for both pre-seed and seed stage companies. In the late summer / early fall of 2017, we were investing in companies that were quite early.

Early Stage 48

Early Stage Convertible Security Seed Stage SEC 48

Hippoland

JANUARY 23, 2018

I thought it might be useful to do a high level overview of what fundraising in 2018 looks like at the pre-seed / seed stage. This means that traction bar has gone up for both pre-seed and seed stage companies. In the late summer / early fall of 2017, we were investing in companies that were quite early.

Early Stage 48

Early Stage Convertible Security Seed Stage SEC 48

David Teten

MARCH 18, 2021

A typical VC thesis: “we invest in tech startups in Europe at an early stage” However, our experience shows that in many cases: . Thirty-four VC firms in OpenVC call themselves “early-stage” Yet, 30% of those don’t actually invest in pre-revenue startups. 4) Entrepreneur-defined funds.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Cofounder Venture Capital Deal Flow 78