Let me explain why you should never ask anyone to be your lead investor. First, if you’re talking to a venture capital firm that writes large checks (>50% of the round size you’re seeking), just ask them to commit to investing. Let them know they’re wanted. If they want to invest, they’re going to want …
Last week, I was in New York and decided to stop by the Air Force Pitch Day. What a great experience. It’s so nice to see when government organizations figure out how to effective engage with startups, and then scale it! At Air Force Pitch Day, the US Air Force awarded 51 contracts, each in …
A few years ago while sitting on a barstool in Boulder, I was chatting with my friend Eliot Peper. Eliot is a terrific author, and has written many great books circling around entrepreneurship with some of it set in Boulder. That day, I was sharing a thought about a story I had in my head. I …
Recently, Techstars held an AMA (ask me anything) with Brad Feld (Foundry Group), Chris Heivly (VP of Innovation at Techstars), and Eric Reich (43 North in Buffalo) called How to Build a Successful Startup Ecosystem in your City. Over 800 people watch live and asked and voted for questions. Some of the highlights for me were when …
Today, Sphero announced RVR which is a “go anywhere, do anything programmable robot”. I just reserved mine on Kickstarter as part of the launch today. This is a super easy to program and super capable robot. You can add your own attachments and make them mobile. It works out of the box and requires no assembly. So, …
My second appearance on The 20 Minute VC is out today, with host Herry Stebbings. Harry does such an amazing job and it’s a real honor to be on his show. I hope you enjoy listening! CLICK TO PLAY CLICK TO LISTEN ON ITUNES Here are the show notes from Harry as a preview: 1.) …