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. Of course, this is just my prediction / $0.02 The market had definitely shifted.

Early Stage 48

Early Stage Convertible Security Seed Stage SEC 48

Austin Startup

SEPTEMBER 10, 2017

Under the standard approach, even if the outlook for the company dramatically changes (positively) within 1 month post-closing (which at seed stage can happen), the valuation cap is what it is. But what if things go very well very quickly?

Valuation 48

Valuation Dilution Silicon Valley Seed Stage 48

Rob Go

MARCH 10, 2012

I think that over time, this is the best way to handle market swings as a seed stage investor who is a) playing in a highly unpredictable part of the market and b) has a very long time horizon. We have a pretty strong sense of what realistic valuation ranges are and aren’t for seed stage companies.

Seed Stage 49

Seed Stage Syndicate Syndication Marketing 49

Rob Go

NOVEMBER 15, 2016

I’ve had a couple conversations with other investors recently around what a seed stage company needs to achieve to raise a series A. Instead, what I often see is that the minute seed money is in the bank, founders try to staff up very quickly.

Product 28

Product Seed Stage Seed Money Metrics 28

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2009

.&# And I think this line of thinking has started to become conventional wisdom as outlined in Chris Dixon’s excellent blog post saying that you need to be careful raising seed money from a large VC fund. I do think you need to be careful with funds that have done 20-30 seeds deals in fairly rapid succession.

Software Review 283

Software Review Term Sheet Due Diligence Southern California 283

www.paulgraham.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Because so little money is involved, raising seedcapital is comparatively easy-- at least in the sense of getting aquick yes or no. Usually you get seed money from individual rich people called"angels." the seed stage, investors dont expect you to have an elaboratebusiness plan.

Startup 105

Startup Cofounder Software Stock 105

www.paulgraham.com

APRIL 28, 2010

It wasnt because they werent accredited investors that I didntask my parents for seed money, though. When we were starting Viaweb,I didnt know about the concept of an accredited investor, anddidnt stop to think about the value of investors connections.The reason I didnt take money from my parents was that I didntwant them to lose it.

Technical Review 76

Technical Review Startup Software Review Angel Investor 76

Rob Go

JANUARY 20, 2015

The market for raising seed money today is pretty solid, so there isn’t really a reason to be worried or concerned by the shape of these graphs. Sentiment among seed investors isn’t excessively optimistic, but they aren’t overly bearish either. There is plenty of appetite for good seed-stage investment opportunities.

Early Stage 28

Early Stage Seed Stage Finance Seed Money 28

pandodaily.com

NOVEMBER 29, 2012

If you are raising a seed round now, there are a few things you can do to protect yourself. There are still the same debates on whether or not you should take seed money from VCs. Lastly, seed-stage entrepreneurs who have pushed for the maximum valuation possible haven’t done themselves any favors.

Technical Review 93

Technical Review Silicon Valley Incubator Syria 93

www.paulgraham.com

AUGUST 1, 2008

Instead of going to venture capitalists with a business plan and trying to convince them to fund it, you can get a product launched on a few tens of thousands of dollars of seed money from us or your uncle, and approach them with a working company instead of a plan for one. Ask anyone whos done it.

Web 54

Web Startup Silicon Valley Technical Review 54