Tag: Silicon Valley
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They were the best and brightest young engineers American could produce. But they had one problem: their boss was a tyrant. Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory founder William Shockley shouted at his talented engineers, recorded all phone calls, and even demanded they take lie detector tests. All refused. Instead, they did something…
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+ Electronics, Entrepreneur, Finance, History, Investing, Money, Semiconductors, Silicon Valley, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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In the world of venture capital, there are two species: great white shark VC’s and goldfish angel investors. They dwarf us in size and power as we wiggle about looking for an insect to eat. So I was surprised to learn that in some of the hottest deals, angel investors…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, History, Investing, Money, Reading, Silicon Valley, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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“When in doubt, take the shot.” Doug Leone, Managing Partner, Sequoia Capital The partners from prestigious venture firm Accel stood outside an office in Palo Alto, waiting to take theirs. These were the offices of a young startup called thefacebook. Most startups would’ve killed to meet them. But thefacebook’s young…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Reading, Silicon Valley, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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“Reasonable people…routinely fail in life’s important missions by not even attempting them.” The Power Law Every day for the last 15 months, I’ve sat down in front of my computer and tried to find the next great tech company. Being immersed in the daily details of e-mails and deal memos…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, History, Investing, Money, Reading, Silicon Valley, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Ever had a conversation like this? Investor: This is an incredible concept! You guys are going to change the world! You: Thank you so much! So, how much do you want to invest? Investor: Well, actually, I couldn’t get my partners there. But you guys are going to do great!…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Investing, Money, Silicon Valley, Small Business, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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There’s tons of advice out there on how to pitch investors. But what about what comes next? After any pitch, investors are likely to ask numerous questions. How do you answer them in the most effective way? Here are some tips: Pacing One of the biggest mistakes I see founders…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Silicon Valley, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Let’s say I have a question: “how do angel investors choose startups?” I go to Google and type it in, right? But what if the best answer is in a podcast? That audio is trapped somewhere in the dark world of RSS feeds, along with great answers to millions of…
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+ Audio, Investing, Podcasting, Podcasts, Silicon Valley, Software, Startup, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Never miss a post…subscribe! Every month, I look at over 200 startups. I choose one. Among those hundreds of companies raising funds, I always see tons of cool ideas. So what distinguishes the companies I choose from all the others? The number 1 reason I say no to founders is…
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+ Angel Investing, Finance, Founders, Investing, Silicon Valley, Software, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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You’ve been meeting with investors day after day. You get a lot of “very interestings” but no actual checks. What are these people looking for? Today, I thought I’d explain what I look for in a startup. As an angel investor, I invest in about 1-2% of the companies I…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Silicon Valley, Startup, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Yesterday, I attended the Remote Demo Day for the latest class from the Launch Accelerator, a startup accelerator run by noted investor Jason Calacanis. We hear a lot about accelerators (also known as incubators), from famous programs like Y Combinator or Techstars to small, local outfits. One thing most of…
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+ Accelerator, Angel Investing, Bay Area, Incubator, Investing, Silicon Valley, Software, Startup, Tech, Venture, Venture Capital+
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Tremendous 