I’ve seen a few cases recently where a startup decided to remove a particular investor from their regular “update” emails. The startups were doing this because they found out that the investor had invested in (or otherwise supported) another company that they viewed as competitive. Fast forward a year or so, and the startup needs …
Imagine you’re about to go out for your next round of funding. Who do you pitch first? It should be your insiders! Pitch first to those who have already invested. They are the most likely to give you direct and honest feedback to help you make your pitch better. They’re also more likely than anyone …
I spent the last month completely offline, not working. I hadn’t done that in the 8 years since i founded Techstars. Last year, we raised a new venture fund and I was on the road twice as much as normal. When we closed it in January, I promised myself and my family some time for …
There is four times as much seed capital in the venture market this year as there was 1 year ago. Because of this, it’s easier to attract seed funding than it has been in the past. I’ve noticed a disturbing new trend and I think it’s related. Startups are “quitting” when the first year doesn’t go …
Today we announced that Techstars has acquired UP Global, which includes Startup Weekend and many other fantastic events and programs. Startup Weekend is my absolute favorite global event for entrepreneurship. If you’ve never been to one, you’re really missing out. At these events (there about 1,000 per year from Boulder to Mongolia to Chile to …
Yesterday, I didn’t leave my house. I was supposed to be in San Francisco for a board meeting but I was forced to cancel the trip suddenly. It left me with a rare day with only that one meeting (which I had to attend remotely) on my calendar. Otherwise, my calendar was wide open. I can’t …