VC Cafe

OCTOBER 31, 2022

It’s a tough time for a lot of startup founders right now. This is not meant to be a negative post, but rather a temperature check of today’s market environment and the levers founders can pull on to survive this period. The later the stage, the bigger the impact. What is a founder to do? In Q3/2022, $2.6

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TechEmpower

AUGUST 7, 2023

But be careful, and mind the gap – the Founder-Developer Gap, that is! Hiring a hands-on lead developer might seem like the right move for an early stage startup. But hiring a lead developer, or even a VP of Engineering, can create a gap between the founders and the developers. Is it a tiny crack, or a widening chasm?

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CTO Hire Fractional CTO Fractional VPE Developer 260

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

What stage? Should I trust my instincts for founders and products or should I be more focused on the market size or business plan? ” As far as “terms” go I’m 100% aligned to have the most vanilla, founder-friendly terms I can. .” What kind of deals should I be doing? What price? I love complexity.

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Deal Flow Early Stage Investment Bankers Technical Review 347

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 30, 2020

Welcome to the first installment of the NextView Ventures Early Stage Startup Guides. Over the years, we’ve worked with, and talked to thousands of founders just starting out. That’s why we decided to create a series of guides that help tackle some of these early stage problems. Download guide today.

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Early Stage Product Startup Hiring 308

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 27, 2018

by Emmanuel de Watteville, co-founder of Blue Ocean Ventures. Investing has always (and will always) come with a long laundry list of liabilities that can deter even the most experienced investors from making a generous contribution to a startup or early-stage company they believe in. Size up the company’s founding team members.

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Steve Blank

JANUARY 17, 2023

Three types of organizations – Incubators, Accelerators and Venture Studios – have emerged to reduce the risk of early-stage startup failure by helping teams find product/market fit and raise initial capital. They do the most to de-risk the early stages of a startup. I pointed out that there were.

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VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

A founder asked me what makes a $2M round “pre-seed”? Not only the bar for seed rounds has gotten higher (as less seed rounds get done) but also the founders prefer to build their company based on milestones. especially if the startup already has a product and revenue? who’s talking to customers?)

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Valuation Software Review Generative AI Technical Review 186

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 26, 2022

The past year was a wild ride for startups and founders, giving a whole new meaning to the ”rollercoaster” aspect of being an entrepreneur. Patrick Collison , self-made billionaire founder of Stripe. Bill Gates , founder of Microsoft. Choosing a co-founder, and hiring the early employees is key to building a successful company.

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Founder Startup Valuation Pre-Money Valuation 187

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2014

Two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. Giving a co-founder a salary won’t get you the “fire in the belly” you want. Each co-founder should get equity for value, based on these key variables: Lived a key role in a previous startup. Amount of venture funding provided.

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The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 11, 2023

I will tell you brief details about seed stage funding, and deal sourcing on this page, so read the conclusion until the end. The following is a condensed explanation of seed funding: Seed money is a form of early-stage financing that new businesses receive from investors in exchange for a share of ownership in the company.

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VC Cafe

MAY 17, 2023

But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains” Steve Jobs (from Chapter 8) I got to meet Uri Levine, the founder of Waze and Moovit, through his involvement in the Zell Entrepreneurship program at Reichman University. It starts from how founders pitch their startups.

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Founder Cofounder Technical Review Angel Investor 103

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2020

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. Giving a co-founder a salary won’t get you the “fire in the belly” you want. Each co-founder should get equity for value, based on these key variables: Lived a key role in a previous startup.

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Cofounder Technical Cofounder Equity Intellectual Property 435

The Equity Kicker

SEPTEMBER 24, 2014

We see this all the time at Forward Partners where we invest right from the idea stage and most of the companies get a first version of their product live for less than £30k (that generally includes founder salaries and time spent doing customer research).

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

Median valuations for early-stage valuations tripled from around $20m pre-money valuations to $60m with plenty of deals being prices above $100m. But it will be patiently deployed, waiting for a cohort of founders who aren’t artificially clinging to 2021 valuation metrics. What is a VC To Do? super size or super focus.

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Technical Review Pre-Money Valuation San Francisco Valuation 416

Hunter Walker

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

Or those special little bombs of a phrase like “enjoys playing founder more than being one” and “tells a good story but no follow-through.” If you combine this with self-awareness, you get a powerful combination for an early stage CEO. Sketchy would be one. Unmotivated another.

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VC Cafe

NOVEMBER 14, 2019

Should Israeli startups even look at the UK at an early stage given the US market is much bigger/strategic? Takeaway – while Israel is the highest in the world for VC per capita, there’s still a gap in funding at the early stage. The two events were packed with great questions and takeaways. Who to raise from?

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Founder Technical Review Early Stage 137

Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 29, 2017

It follows up on my posts discussing why early stage startups should — or should not — move to Silicon Valley. Should Early Stage Startups Move to Austin? Any attempt to get your head around why Austin is awesome for early stage companies needs to not only look at culture, but start at culture.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2022

In addition to being the startup entrepreneur, there are other key roles where Boomers can be a force in driving successful startups, in concert with leaders from Gen-X and Gen-Y: Early-stage angel investors. Supportive co-founder and executive positions. Member of the Advisory Board. Manage customer service.

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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?

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Early Stage Technical Review Software Review Venture Capital 60

Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 29, 2017

It follows up on my posts discussing why early stage startups should — or should not — move to Silicon Valley. Should Early Stage Startups Move to Austin because of Capital? Tim O’Reilly, Founder at O’Reilly Media and promoter of open source and Web 2.0 Should Early Stage Startups Move to Austin because of Capital?

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Hunter Walker

AUGUST 11, 2022

In addition to our dollars, we are eager to help founders with the construction of their cap table, not just generically with the highest profile folks available, but more specifically where they might get some help along the way. What expertise do the founders personally have? Founders Often Don’t Come From These Backgrounds….

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OnlyOnce

DECEMBER 8, 2021

I just did a podcast recording the other day for someone who asked me the biggest mistakes founders make and what to do about them. I divided my response into “early stage” and “later stage” founders. Here’s a summary of what I said about early stage founders.

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View from Seed

MAY 11, 2016

Investors love the idea of backing second-time founders, especially if they have had success in their last company. etc… In addition, first-time founders I speak to often talk about how much they have learned and how they resolve to do things differently and better the next time. Is there a sophomore slump to avoid?

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Founder Cofounder CTO Hire Early Stage 159

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 13, 2017

Starting out with a clear strategy, vision and mission, will not only make your product more focused; it will also demonstrate competence to an early stage investor by showing that you are willing to do your homework. . He is the Founder and former CEO of Wind Energy Holdings in Thailand.

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Early Stage Silicon Valley Thailand Incubator 62

Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 29, 2017

It follows up on my posts discussing why early stage startups should — or should not — move to Silicon Valley. Should Early Stage Startups Move to Austin because of Customers? Early adopters, especially those who are willing to pay for novel services, are the lifeblood of lean startups.

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YoungUpstarts

MAY 1, 2020

by Ash Rust , founder and managing partner of Sterling Road. Given that mindset, it’s only natural that most entrepreneurs jump at the first chance they get to secure early-stage startup funding. Most startups will need a viable product and proof of credibility before they can expect early-stage investors to really bite.

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The Startup Magazine

JUNE 1, 2023

By Daniel Sokolovksy, Co-Founder and CEO, WARP and Troy Lester, Co-Founder and CRO, WARP The dissolution of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was more than just a bank collapse, it was a reality check for both startups and the VCs that fund them. As an early-stage company that just closed our seed round at $8.1 That includes us.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 22, 2020

Every startup founder loves to prompt for questions from investors and potential key team members about their vision, and the huge opportunity that can be had with their disruptive technology. Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup.

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Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 436

Eric Friedman

FEBRUARY 3, 2021

It has also become a great question as an early stage investor and an executive coach. To help teams answer this question I have collaborated with Steve Schlafman to create a product – an exercise, to be completed by those founders building a company. is an exercise for co-founders to weave together a stronger partnership.

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Cofounder Founder Software Review Early Stage 78

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 7, 2020

As part of our ongoing Female Founders series , The Startup Magazine asked Terry Foudray, CEO and co-founder of IoT solutions provider, RUMBLE, for her views on the continued digitization of our physical world. Fortunately, even in this early stage, the IoT is maturing. Founder and CEO, RUMBLE. TERRI FOUDRAY.

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The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 22, 2021

In the seconds, moments, weeks, and months after a felt loss, founders have the precious chance to monitor the movement of their thoughts. How is the company culture, in its early stages, set up to process a setback ? Zain is an active investor and mentor, engaging with startups at an early stage in the span of their journey.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 18, 2023

Every startup founder loves to prompt for questions from investors and potential key team members about their vision, and the huge opportunity that can be had with their disruptive technology. Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup.

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Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 207

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2022

For early-stage startups, the goodwill component can easily exceed the size of all the financial elements together, or can just as easily mark a company with good financials as not investable. For startups, the entrepreneur and founder is almost always the face of the company.

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Technical Review Due Diligence Valuation Leadership 323

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 11, 2021

founders, marketers, investors?—?and As a VC, one of the key things I’m looking for in any new investor is “product-founder fit” e.g. does this founder have an insight or advantage that makes them uniquely suited to successfully build this product and business? Founders, marketers and growth leaders?—?join

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The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 21, 2023

With so many other challenges to address, many founders regard using a lawyer to draft bespoke commercial contracts as a luxury rather than a necessity. There are a few situations where cutting corners, even in the early stages, can cause big headaches (and significant real money costs) in the future.

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Technical Review Intellectual Property Due Diligence Early Stage 110

NZ Entrepreneur

AUGUST 4, 2021

That’s why it’s important for founders to understand that the clearer you can articulate the opportunity and its potential risks – and proposed mitigations – the better equipped investors will be to assess your business as a viable investment. The post A founders’ guide to capital raising appeared first on NZ Entrepreneur Magazine.

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Technical Review Software Review Founder Due Diligence 61

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 10, 2020

by Zain Jaffer, serial entrepreneur and the Founder and CEO of Zain Ventures. In the early stages, it isn’t uncommon for businesses to bank their earnings on a handful of customers (or sometimes, just one). Running a small business can come with a slew of challenges. Among the list: the loss of a major client.

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