View from Seed

JULY 24, 2015

On Tuesday, July 21, we hosted the first-ever Boston Consumer Tech Summit. But a large majority of our investments are in our backyard of Boston — and, aside from our work as investors, this city is near and dear to our hearts. Here’s Mike’s comment: Boston’s B2C problem is one of values.

Boston 120

Boston Cofounder B2C PR 120

View from Seed

MAY 11, 2016

A few years ago, a friend of mine who was coming off an EIR gig at a well-known venture fund in Boston ended up joining one of my portfolio companies part-time as a technical advisor / interim CTO. They assemble what looks like a dream team — but one that ends up moving surprisingly slowly in the early stages.

Founder 159

Founder Cofounder CTO Hire Early Stage 159

Rob Go

APRIL 19, 2017

Recently, I’ve been spending a fair bit of time with a number of the new early-stage investors in Boston. As more early-stage investors emerge in Boston, some folks have asked me whether I feel any discomfort around the many new “competitors” on the scene. First Star Ventures (FKA Procyon).

Early Stage 34

Early Stage Boston Artificial Inteligence Term Sheet 34

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 27, 2012

If you’re working with early-stage companies you need to be spending quality time with them which means you need to be nearby. Eric Paley , managing partner at Founder Collective , told me that they had implemented a city-wide program in Boston to help local university students get internships at local tech startups.

Community 378

Community San Diego Silicon Valley Los Angeles 378

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2011

I think you have to listen to the queue’s.” “…if you look at a lot of the early stage investors, whether it be Union Square Ventures or First Round or Jeff Clavier at Softtech or Dave McClure – we want to try the product, we want to experience the product, we want to get a sense of how the entrepreneur is thinking about it.

Technical Review 288

Technical Review Venture Capital Silicon Valley Software Review 288

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

They want to lock in future clients at an early stage. For a very small fee they can get your Delaware C corp registration, make sure that you have IP protection and ensure you didn’t make an early bumbling mistakes that you’ll pay for dearly in the next 7-10 years of hard work. I also like to work with partners.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

Rob Go

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 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

View from Seed

JULY 19, 2019

All early stage venture firms essentially look at some weighting of team, market, product, and traction. Customers who experience this kind of product can’t help but talk to other people about it, whether it’s friends & family in the consumer segment -or- other business partners & peers in the B2B space.

Boston 149

Boston B2B Early Stage Portfolio 149

View from Seed

APRIL 30, 2015

Below, we talk to Glen Mello , Managing Director of Silicon Valley Bank’s accelerator team in Boston. Use good judgment, talk to your co-founders/investors/lawyers, and partner with a bank that values transparency and relationships such as SVB.]. It can be lower cost and can either buy more time or accelerate growth.

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Equity Startup Seed Stage 120

Up and Running

MARCH 11, 2015

The Andreesen Horowitz blog is the work of the famous VC firm’s partners and covers all things software in Silicon Valley and beyond. David Cohen is the founder and Managing Partner of Techstars, the #1 ranked internet startup accelerator in the world. Andrew Parker is a VC with Spark Capital in Boston. Bothsides of the Table.

Venture Capital 60

Venture Capital Technical Review Silicon Valley Cofounder 60

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 3, 2011

The service would use early-stage smart phones and a push system developed by Rhino. She approached the twins, and, invited up to Boston, met with Cameron at the Fairmont Hotel on a few occasions to discuss how they could leverage the app with this new platform they had named ConnectU.com.

Social Media 187

Social Media Media Management Application Development 187

View from Seed

JULY 28, 2015

While the startup environment in Boston has vastly improved over the last several years , I continue to hear the sentiment that it’s really tough to build a great consumer startup in Boston. This is expressed by people outside of Boston, but it often comes from those within our community too. A belief in the new.

Boston 120

Boston Marketing Early Stage Startup 120

David Teten

JANUARY 17, 2013

It’s hosted by: Harvard Alumni Association, Harvard Alumni Entrepreneurs, Harvard Venture Partners, Social Innovation Collaborative, and Aspiring Minority Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs (AMBLE). The panel includes: * The light bulb moment: Now you have an idea—how to get started, early stages, and testing the idea.

Boston 114

Boston Cofounder Bootstrapping Early Stage 114

David Teten

FEBRUARY 28, 2012

Connect with our partners, e.g., Derek Holt. We’re not just focused on NY/Boston/Silicon Valley. Now that we have 50+ partners, we want to scale. If you’re at a large company, partner with us. Early stage startups are <5 yrs old. 5-10 years is typically the rampup stage. There are 1.4m-1.6m

America 144

America DC Startup Aggregator 144

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 2, 2023

For each dollar men raise in early-stage venture capital, women raise an average of $.38, Yet in a 2018 study of more than 350 startups conducted by Mass Challenge and Boston Consulting Group, businesses founded by women yielded higher revenue—more than two times as much per dollar invested—than those founded by men.

Founder 112

Founder Affiliate Cofounder Boston 112

Agile VC

MAY 26, 2011

In another we decended into a debate about our 5 year forecasts (I built the models so fielded most of these questions), and it became clear they probably weren’t the best fit for our Series A round (this group is no longer in the early-stage VC business). We three partners are working hard. Ps check mypicasso.com.

Term Sheet 178

Term Sheet Silicon Valley Technical Review Social Network 178

www.entrepreneur.com

SEPTEMBER 22, 2011

When you're getting started, sweat equity is often a critical component of your negotiating leverage with co-founders, early stage employees and others who aren't paid market wages to help you grow your business. Market value doesn't equal the sum of sweat equity invested by you and your partners.

Sweat Equity 55

Sweat Equity Equity Fractional CTO CTO 55

View from Seed

JUNE 10, 2020

This initial wave of applicants resulted in the selection of six initial Accelerator participants – female & male founders at startups hailing from the Bay Area to Miami to Alabama to Boston, ranging from b2b SaaS offerings to consumer services… all transforming people’s everyday lives.

Cofounder 177

Cofounder Syndicate Syndication Alabama 177

A Crowded Space

OCTOBER 3, 2018

I remember when I made that first flight out to San Francisco from Boston to meet the team in 2004, the company was down to its last $20K in the bank. Very shortly after I joined, Greg Gretsch (now my partner at Jackson Square Ventures) co-led oDesk’s Series A along with Venky Ganesan (partner at Menlo Ventures and lead investor in Rev.com).

San Francisco 60

San Francisco Bangladesh Ukraine Philippines 60

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 5, 2009

He and his wife Gwen would found the Computer Museum, first in the lobby of DEC headquarters, then in Boston (and now as the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California.) My first inkling that computing had a history (with deep military connections) was looking at the SAGE air defense computer at the Boston Computer Museum.

North Carolina 125

North Carolina Silicon Valley Fractional VPE Part-Time VPE 125

www.greenhornconnect.com

OCTOBER 3, 2011

” Transitioning from partners in an informal collaboration to co-owners of an actual business may seem like a big step, but it is a necessary one that every successful startup eventually must take. 1) You and your partners have developed IP critical to your business. Sign in here or Create your free account! The Feed Blog.

IP 40

IP Intellectual Property Limited Liability Company Boston 40

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2018

The idea is simple enough: several female VC partners at top funds will hold 1-hour meetings with 40 promising female entrepreneurs looking to get advice on their business and pitch in a friendly, non-judgmental, safe environment. My partner Kara wrote a great post on the topic that you should read. we have a long way to go.

Founder 256

Founder San Francisco Deal Flow Los Angeles 256

Steve Blank

DECEMBER 30, 2014

Testing hypotheses with doctors, patients, payers, providers, purchasing departments, strategic partners is hard. Other incubators and accelerators in the health tech space include Health WildCatters in Dallas, RockHealth in Silicon Valley, Iron Yard in North Carolina, HealthBox Accelerator, Athena Health MDP in Boston and others.

San Diego 261

San Diego North Carolina Chicago Lean 261

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 26, 2009

The companies I spoke to all agreed that the community there was extremely supportive, especially in the critical ulta-early-stage. As a result, the companies get a lot of exposure to VCs, investors, and partners in larger, more traditional startup hubs. Then, create an encouraging environment for early-stage companies.

San Francisco 113

San Francisco Silicon Valley Startup Lean 113

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 31, 2012

I got an email recently from my friend & fellow VC, Jeff Bussgang from Flybridge Capital Partners in Boston. Erin’s main points: “As a former tech sales executive, I agree with many of [Mark's] lessons — when applied to later-stage, post-traction point startups. And that leads me to today’s post.

Startup 319

Startup Early Stage Sales Cofounder 319

Rob Go

OCTOBER 14, 2012

One of the earliest things we did at NextView when my partners and I started working together was go away as a team to the New Hampshire mountains. It’s commonly said that the biggest risk facing a new VC firm is disharmony among the partners. Geography: 18 of the 23 are in Boston or New York.

New Hampshire 50

New Hampshire Croatia Omaha Portfolio 50

View from Seed

JUNE 16, 2015

Editor’s note: Local tech media company BostInno (a division of the American City Business Journals) hosts an annual Boston State of Innovation conference. I was recently asked to sit on panel with my fellow VC peers and some top entrepreneurs from the Boston tech community. What’s the real reason you didn’t invest?

Boston 120

Boston Syndicate Syndication eCommerce 120

The Equity Kicker

MAY 7, 2014

Rob Go partner at Boston early stage VC NextView Ventures wrote earlier this week about seed investing in the US: The challenge for those in the market of seed investing is that the barriers to entry in seed are relatively low. The main reason is that it just doesn’t take that much capital to get started.

Differentiation 121

Differentiation Boston Early Stage Portfolio 121

View from Seed

AUGUST 20, 2014

This is what happened awhile back with Gemvara here in Boston. Definition: This is a case where two large VCs partner to take a significant portion of the round together, often leaving only a small piece for value added angels or seed investors. Lots of credibility, even at a very early stage. The Two-VC-Led Seed.

Startup 301

Startup Syndicate Syndication Boston 301

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 30, 2009

A discounted price is available for early stage entrepreneurs and students. Come to TS in Boston! Expo New York New York, NY Nov 19 The Lean Startup at MIT Boston, MA Nov 20 Lunch workshop at Dogpatch Labs Boston, MA Dec 17 Lean Startup Cohort program begins San Francisco, CA KISSmetrics KISSmetrics is loading.

Lean 68

Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment DC 68

David Teten

MARCH 8, 2013

Introductions: Dan Rosen (Partner, Commerce Ventures; Learning Officer- HBS Alumni Angels). Speaker: David Teten (Partner, ff Venture Capital, and Chair, HBS Alumni Angels NY). INTRO BY: Dan Rosen, Partner at Commerce Ventures & Learning Officer at HBS Angels. Time: 12:00 Noon Eastern Time (9:00 am Pacific).

San Francisco 114

San Francisco Venture Capital Angel Groups LLC 114

Austin Startup

NOVEMBER 25, 2017

The Forrest Four-Cast: November 25, 2017 Earlier this fall , MassChallenge announced their expansion into Texas, which is this incubator’s first US location outside of the home base in Boston. This announcement provided another strong endorsement of the fast-growing entrepreneurial ecosystem in Austin and across the Lone Star State.

Texas 63

Texas United States Boston Early Stage 63

Genuine VC

JANUARY 17, 2011

Last summer, I along with my partners announced that we were forming a new micro venture capital firm. And given dynamics in the digital media space, we think that (especially along the Boston to New York corridor) there is a market need for a funding source like ours for early stage entrepreneurs.

Seed Stage 125

Seed Stage Boston Early Stage New York 125

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 23, 2011

But ultimately great people drive the ideas and Highland Capital is proactive in reaching out to entrepreneurs even at early stages. Since 2006 they have added offices outside of Boston including Menlo Park, Europe, and China. Richard De Silva is based in Menlo Park with three other partners, there and 5 partners in Boston.

Vertical 265

Vertical Curation Boston Burn Rate 265

Austin Startup

AUGUST 1, 2018

Michael impressed me, Fetch intrigued me and before the meeting was over I had introduced Michael to a handful of venture capitalists including Roger Chen from Silverton Partners. One of Favor’s key mistakes early was launching Boston instead of Dallas or Houston as their initial expansion markets.

Houston 48

Houston Dallas Texas Boston 48

Austin Startup

JANUARY 2, 2021

After an exhaustive search, they narrowed it down to three finalist cities: Austin, Boston and Raleigh. He was the first institutional investor in Facebook and also an early-stage investor in groundbreaking companies like Etsy, Spotify, C3.AI, Why did Austin win out? Jim Breyer has spent his career on the cutting edge.

Silicon Valley 100

Silicon Valley Austin Texas Raleigh 100

Pascal's View

MARCH 3, 2013

Firas Raouf of OpenView Venture Partners , a Boston-based venture capital firm, recently interviewed me for two podcasts on the topic of optimizing the contributions that a board of directors can make to a startup. OpenView Leadership Lab Podcast II: How to Run an Effective Board Meeting.

Partner 37

Partner Government Boston Early Stage 37