Steve Blank

JULY 11, 2017

By coincidence, the CEO was an intern at one of my startups more than two decades ago.) Before the rapid rise of Unicorns, (startups with a valuation over a billion dollars), when boards were still in control, they “encouraged” the hiring of “adult supervision” of the founders after they found product/market fit. The founders.

Part-Time VPE 308

Part-Time VPE Liquidity Event Stock Engineer 308

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

We discussed whether 1) that was true or just anecdotal 2) if true, was it the same in other research universities, 3) why it happened (software startups are getting funded at obscene valuations)?

Technical Review 366

Technical Review Taiwan Technology Artificial Inteligence 366

Steve Blank

APRIL 26, 2022

At the turn of the century after the dotcom crash, startup valuations plummeted, burn rates were unsustainable, and startups were quickly running out of cash. A down round is when a company raises money at valuation that is lower than the company’s valuation in its prior financing round. They’re Back.

Cram Down 404

Cram Down Founder Venture Capital Recapitalization 404

Steve Blank

MARCH 31, 2014

Just look at the disruptive challenges that businesses face today– globalization, China as a manufacturer, China as a consumer, the Internet, and a steady stream of new startups. Perhaps that’s because where established companies might see risks or threats, startups see opportunity. Building Innovation Internally is Hard.

Private Equity 325

Private Equity Metrics China Intellectual Property 325

Steve Blank

JUNE 15, 2011

A tech bubble is the rapid inflation in the valuation of public and private technology companies that exceeds their fundamental value by a large margin. Today, the signs of the new bubble are the Linked-In initial public offering (IPO), Facebook’s stratospheric valuation and the rapid rise of early-stage startup valuation.

Silicon Valley 327

Silicon Valley Stealth Valuation Mississippi 327

Steve Blank

MAY 19, 2015

Startups focus on speed since they are burning cash every day as they search for product/market fit. While technical debt is an understood problem, it turns out startups also accrue another kind of debt – one that can kill the company even quicker – organizational debt. And Tom wasn’t going to get it from his board.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Salary Early Stage Software Review 120

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 14, 2009

Five Quarters of Profitability During the 1980’s and through the mid 1990’s startups going public had to do something that most companies today never heard of – they had to show a track record of increasing revenue and consistent profitability. The world of building profitable startups as the primary goal of Venture Capital would end in 1995.

Silicon Valley 217

Silicon Valley IPO Technical Review Venture Capital 217

Steve Blank

JANUARY 4, 2010

A lot of entrepreneurs think that their startup is the next big thing when in reality they’re just building a small business. How can you tell if your startup has the potential to be the next Google, Intel or Facebook? A first order filter is whether the founders are aiming for a scalable startup. The Scalable Startup.

Hockey Stick 276

Hockey Stick Venture Capital Startup Cofounder 276

Steve Blank

JULY 19, 2011

When we were trying to raise money for E.piphany, my last startup, I was negotiating with a venture capital firm called Infinity Capital. They really wanted to invest, but it was the beginning of the bubble, and I wanted (what was then) an absurd valuation. All we had were six slides, and I wanted a $10 million post-money valuation.

Post-Money Valuation 250

Post-Money Valuation Venture Capital Valuation IPO 250

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 10, 2016

The show follows the journeys of founders who share what it takes to build a startup – from restaurants to rocket scientists, to online gifts to online groceries and more. He previously founded N&N Investments LLC, a real estate investment holding company; and is a program leader and fellow of the Startup Leadership Program. .

Silicon Valley 120

Silicon Valley Ohio Columbus Entrepreneur 120

Steve Blank

MARCH 18, 2011

The signals are loud and clear : seed and late stage valuations are getting frothy and wacky, and hiring talent in Silicon Valley is the toughest it has been since the dot.com bubble. What are they, how do they differ and what can startup do to take advantage of them? The world of building profitable startups ended in 1995.

Internet 334

Internet IPO Silicon Valley Agile 334

Steve Blank

APRIL 12, 2013

I just spent a few weeks in Japan and China on a book tour for the Japanese and Chinese versions of the Startup Owners Manual. The first wave of startups began when R&D centers and universities began to provide the technology and seed capital for new startups that were spin-outs or spin-offs. All the usual caveats apply.

Venture Capital 271

Venture Capital China Offshore SBIR 271

Steve Blank

DECEMBER 21, 2009

Last week as a favor to a friend, I sat in on a board meeting of a fairly successful 3½ year-old startup. Then the new CFO got up to give her presentation – all kind of expected; Sarbanes Oxley compliance, a new accounting system, beef up IT and security, Section 409A (valuation) compliance, etc. We Hired the CFO. What Happened?

Engineer 335

Engineer Valuation Hiring Stock 335

Steve Blank

JULY 15, 2010

VC’s invested their limited partners’ “risk capital” in a portfolio of startups in exchange for illiquid stock. Most of the startups they invested in either died by running out of money before they found a scalable business model or ended up in the “land of the living dead” by never growing (failing to Pivot.). Startup Lifecycle Today.

Venture Capital 297

Venture Capital IPO Liquidity Event Entrepreneur 297

Steve Blank

APRIL 12, 2013

I just spent a few weeks in Japan and China on a book tour for the Japanese and Chinese versions of the Startup Owners Manual. The first wave of startups began when R&D centers and universities began to provide the technology and seed capital for new startups that were spin-outs or spin-offs. All the usual caveats apply.

Venture Capital 163

Venture Capital China Offshore SBIR 163

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

. — Unremarked and unheralded, the balance of power between startup CEOs and their investors has radically changed: IPOs/M&A without a profit (or at times revenue) have become the norm. The startup process has become demystified – information is everywhere. Not every startup ended up this way. Board Control.

Founder 245

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 245

Steve Blank

MAY 13, 2010

Consultants can help startups leverage their limited resources. But startups can shoot themselves in the foot when founders use consultants at the wrong time or in the wrong way. A friend of mine asked me to chat with a startup he’d invested in. In fact, startups that use consultants almost never pivot fast enough.

Founder 199

Founder Cofounder Business Model Customer Development 199

Steve Blank

APRIL 1, 2020

So here’s a five-day playbook to help CEOs of cash-flow negative startups, or ones about to go negative, assess the new normal and respond with speed and urgency. For companies burning cash, such as startups, how much cash do you have? For startups: source of VC money? Others are cutting their valuations.

South Korea 333

South Korea Salary Business Model China 333

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 26, 2020

Not all startups need outside investment to grow. What most founders don’t realize is: Every stage of a startup requires a different set of metrics and milestones and founder skills. Here’s the first 2½ years of a startup journey. The Startup Investment Landscape. Still, there are some benchmarks to keep in mind.

Cofounder 429

Cofounder Seed Stage Valuation Metrics 429

Steve Blank

APRIL 5, 2017

I was having coffee with the CEO of a new startup, listening to her puzzle through how to communicate to potential customers. Understanding your audience(s) is important for not just startups, but for companies already selling products. Getting publicity for a product that does not yet exist is how startups get noticed.

Marketing 310

Marketing Audience Technical Review PR 310

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

Unfortunately in early stage startups the drive for financing hijacks the corporate DNA and becomes the raison d’etre of the company. Chasing funding versus chasing customers and a repeatable and scalable business model, is one reason startups fail. The goal of their startup in this stage becomes “getting funded.”

Customer Development 262

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 262

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 12, 2009

After these slides, these VC’s recognized that this company had dramatically reduced risk and built a startup that was agile, resilient and customer-centric. The presentation didn’t have a single word about Lean Startups or Customer Development.

Venture Capital 209

Venture Capital Silicon Valley RSS Hockey Stick 209

Steve Blank

JUNE 22, 2011

They understood the ubiquity, pervasiveness and ultimate profitability of these startups and doubled-down on their investments. Prices for both private and public tech valuations exceed any rational valuation to their current worth. My closing arguments are below. Are we in the beginnings of a tech bubble – yes.

Internet 295

Internet Silicon Valley United States .Net 295

Steve Blank

AUGUST 19, 2013

But what if we could increase productivity and stave the capital flight by helping Life Sciences startups build their companies more efficiently? 75% or more of all the funds needed by a Life Science startup will be spent on clinical trials and regulatory approval. Pharma companies are staggering under the costs.

Venture Capital 301

Venture Capital Startup Lean Philadelphia 301

Steve Blank

MAY 9, 2017

I’ve spent my life in innovation, eight startups in 21 years, and the last 15 years in academia teaching it. the wave of semiconductor startups in the 1960’s/70’s, the emergence of Venture Capital as a professional industry, the personal computer revolution in 1980’s, the rise of the Internet in the 1990’s and finally.

Restful 222

Restful Silicon Valley Puerto Rico San Jose 222

Steve Blank

DECEMBER 3, 2020

joined a startup; has been reelected to his third term, representing the 8th district of Wisconsin; and is on the House Armed Services Committee. I think there’s only been two defense related startups that have had a valuation north of a billion dollars in the last couple decades: SpaceX and Palantir.

Technical Review 235

Technical Review Technology China Taiwan 235