Startup Lessons Learned

DECEMBER 1, 2014

When you look through the list , you’ll see big names that we’re very pleased we landed, epic companies we really want to hear from, and people we’re particularly excited to present because they have incredible stories to share--and you won’t hear them anyplace else. Todd Park convened the team that saved Obamacare.

Lean 165

Lean Fractional CTO Part-Time VPE Fractional VPE 165

Steve Blank

JULY 15, 2013

Given my talks on the Secret History of Silicon Valley I was interviewed on NPR about the disclosure that the NSA said they had a new capability that tripled the amount of Skype video calls being collected through Prism. Yet the one company’s name that hasn’t come up as part of the surveillance network is Intel.

Silicon Valley 335

Silicon Valley Russia Security Customer Development 335

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 19, 2015

The first step we took was to choose a brand name that we felt represented our shared values and that we felt helped force us to live our values. But as LA as a tech community grew massively the percentage of our LA deals went from 15% to 50% from 1996 to 2010 and it has remained solid since then. Branding & Shared Values.

San Francisco 150

San Francisco Jordan Los Angeles Technical Review 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 21, 2010

The word conjures images of twenty-something graduate students hacking code in a Silicon Valley dorm room, fueled by a steady supply of Red Bull and Ramen. To be sure, a number of well-known tech titans started more-or-less this way: Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, and Hewlett-Packard, to name a few.

Silicon Valley 233

Silicon Valley Investment Bankers Affiliate Vertical 233

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 10, 2009

Palm in a New Market What makes this example really interesting is this: rewind the story 4 years earlier to 1996. In 1996 no potential customer had even heard of a Personal Digital Assistant. In 1996 Palm was selling a product that allowed users to do something they couldn’t do before. It was a new product. Order Here.

Customer Development 196

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 196

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 8, 2010

In 1996 RIM was still in the hardware business selling packet-switched wireless radio modems to OEMs. The new device could hold names, email addresses, phone and fax numbers and incoming and outgoing messages. Doctors and drug dealers equally found these devices handy. Sell Directly to Businesses. RIM Interactive Pager 900.

Hockey Stick 271

Hockey Stick Customer Development Silicon Valley Networking 271

Kodorra

DECEMBER 2, 2018

Hotmail was developed by Jack Smith and Sabeer Bhatia in 1996. Before Apple became a household name and a multi-billion dollar tech company, they went through quite a few struggles. Drew Houston is one of the youngest billionaires in Silicon Valley. He is now a respected businessman all over the world.

Houston 40

Houston Cofounder Silicon Valley Founder 40