Originally written on 1.3.12 I wrote earlier about how we observed virtually unprecedented exponential growth from companies in the past few years and how some start-ups in the consumer world leveraged the concept of the ‘atomic unit’ or ‘trivial gesture’ to achieve this growth. We also observed another common characteristic or trend in apps/services that …
Steve Jobs on Making the iPod
“We made the iPod for ourselves, and when you’re doing something for yourself, or your best friend or family, you’re not going to cheese out.”
Follow Your Interest
I talk to a lot of young people about career advice. I used to tell them to “follow their passion.” I now think that’s not the best advice. Or at least, not the most practical. I think it’s too stressful. There are very few people who are lucky enough to “follow their passion.” If I …
Getting Older
Originally written on 3/29/12. Source: gevisacri.blogspot.com.br via David on Pinterest I came across this great quote on Pinterest and it really struck a nerve with me. When I was 25, I had Hodgkin’s Disease, a form of lymphoma (or the “Good Hodgkin’s”, as Larry David once said). It has an unusually high cure rate but …
Acquihires – A Clarification
I was misquoted by Silicon Alley Insider yesterday. They corrected it. The original headline was disgusting, and antithetical to what I said and what we believe. I was embarrassed to have my name near it. I thought their correction was the end of it. But there are still old versions being syndicated through other channels …
What We Look For
I wrote this on 12/8/11. Just moving over to svbtle.com. Like many investors, we often get asked “what we look for” when evaluating startups. I recently did an interview (humblebrag) with Tarang Shah for his new book, “Venture Capitalists at Work” where he asked me that question. (Incidentally the book is a great read to …
My .02 on VC seed money
Seth Levine wrote about one wrinkle to the “VC Seed Signaling Problem.” The crux is that some founders actually ignore or cut out the VCs who invest in seed financings. We’ve seen this happen at SV Angel too. This is probably the worst possible outcome. Not only is the VC not “value add”, they are …
All companies should follow @twitter
SV Angel is an investor in Twitter. Many friends work there. My best friend (@gracelee) works there. I have never been more proud to be involved with Twitter than today. Today they announced the Innovator’s Patent Agreement. It is a radical statement against the patent trolls and the damage they’ve inflicted on the tech industries. …
Angepreneurs
Recently we’ve seen more entrepreneurs invest in startups. They run their company and invest in others at the same time. An old colleague from Google, Brian Axe, calls them ‘angepreneurs.’ This isn’t a new trend but definitely one that has ramped up. I have mixed feelings about this. I learned from Ron Conway that “dabbling” …