Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2016

Dan asked Fred about “generational change” at USV and in the VC industry more broadly. The founding partner of Upfront, Yves Sisteron, has been a mentor for me since 1999 and was on the board of my first company. And he led what is currently our best performing company out of that 2012 fund – AdoreMe.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Artificial Inteligence Invest Funding 150

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

When I was new at Venture Capital I was trying to figure out the business. As a VC you want to feel like you have “proprietary sources” of deal flow. Because entrepreneurs often went to lawyers at their earliest stages to get their company registration done. What kind of deals should I be doing? What stage?

Venture Capital 347

Venture Capital Startup Pricing Invest 347

socalTECH

JULY 14, 2009

Contrary to the common belief that Southern California "should be an easy place to raise money" with all of its' entertainment and real estate wealth, it is a very difficult place to raise Venture Capital for technology start-ups. So how does an entrepreneur based in SoCal get the attention of VC funds today?

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Southern California Invest Tech Coast Angels 100

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 29, 2017

I am so proud and humbled to be able to formally announce that Upfront Ventures has raised its 6th venture capital fund in the past 21 years. A huge thank you to all of the Limited Partners who have entrusted us with your capital, time and reputations.

Funding 287

Funding Venture Capital Santa Monica Invest 287

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. 8% of VC partnerships, for example). Now 33% of Supreme Court Justices are women (vs. You don’t get it.

Venture Capital 256

Venture Capital Examples Screening Help 256

socalTECH

MAY 23, 2016

The Green Screen Institute , a startup accelerator which is looking to create innovation in the virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) areas, says that it is getting close to closing applications for its first, startup accelerator program. Applications are open for the accelerator's first class until June 1st. READ MORE>>.

Fandango 174

Fandango Startup Screening Venture Capital 174

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2010

Our guest this week on #TWiVC was Dana Settle , partner at Greycroft Partners , a venture capital firm with offices in New York and Los Angeles. It’s always fun debating companies with Dana because she’s always so knowledgeable on deals – particularly those in the digital media, ad-tech and eCommerce spaces. OTHER DEALS: 1.

Venture Capital 240

Venture Capital Startup Platform Technical Review 240

socalTECH

OCTOBER 5, 2021

The funding was led by Mucker Capital. According to the company, the funding will go towards global expansion of its product, Jurny Virtual.

Software Review 196

Software Review Screening Los Angeles Software 196

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 6, 2012

I had been hanging around Klout for a year and many of my friends had angel funded the company and were champions. He was an early investor in Klout and was the most compelling voice I had heard on why the company would become hugely relevant. Nobody had any sound logic on why Klout would be successful. His latest passion?

Cornerstone OnDemand 303

Cornerstone OnDemand Venture Capital GRP Partners Startup 303

SoCal Tech Calendar

JUNE 17, 2019

The program is open to entrepreneurs that are starting companies in areas that are likely to draw venture capital investment. Saturday, June 22, 2019 -- LAVA First Time Entrepreneur Workshop. LAVA is extremely pleased to announce its next First Time Entrepreneur training program. The program is not open to service providers.

LAVA 100

LAVA Entrepreneur Screening Patents 100

Technology Council

JULY 25, 2008

The VentureNet 2008 Selection/Screening Committee has been announced. Wow, what a prestigous list of Southern California venture capitalists, angel investors, and conference sponsors! We’re fortunate to have such a talented group that will ensure a very exciting software and IT capital conference this year.

VentureNet 100

VentureNet Screening Rustic Canyon Southern California 100

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 17, 2010

Thursday night was the unveiling of the newest batch of Launchpad LA companies. We held a 90-minute demo session where 150 of LA’s VC’s and senior technology executives watched the LPLA V2 group present in small groups of 12-15 each. Have a look at the companies below. We’re excited to work with them.

Company 276

Company Companies Startup Southern California 276

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

What is a principal at a VC firm and how does it work at Upfront Ventures? ” Associates have different functions at different VCs. Deal screening. Portfolio company support & analysis. VC firm admin. VC firm policy or fund analysis. Helping be the VC “presence” at key events.

Help 365

Help Invest Venture Capital Technical Review 365

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 9, 2012

The median VC exit price for deals is $70 million (FLAG Capital via Bryce.VC). Bimodal returns are a fallacy, many great VC funds are built on the power law curve. We also are going to talk a lot about startups getting exits and ultimately: Companies are bought, not sold. They say the same about VC. Often it does.

Startup 323

Startup Technology Venture Capital Santa Barbara 323

socalTECH

JANUARY 31, 2014

Irvine-based BlueCava , a developer of a cross-screen advertising platform, said Thursday that it has raised $13M in a new funding round. According to the company, the second round of funding came from S3 Ventures, Performance Edge Partners and Zeitgeist Capital. READ MORE>>.

S3 153

S3 Technology Advertising Screening 153

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 27, 2012

My friend and fellow SoCal venture capitalist Peter Lee wrote a post about the different roles within a VC and spent much time on the role of an associate. These are the permanent members of a VC. The process for raising money from a VC is a sales process and as such much of what is taught in enterprise sales can be applied.

Venture Capital 308

Venture Capital Sales Entrepreneur Startup 308

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 12, 2013

It’s why I talk about building VC relationships early – Lines, Not Dots. Fill your VC good will, build relationships, be helpful to them not just asking for things. Of course he wanted to talk a lot about his product and company – he was looking for money after all. “I’ve never been a VC before.

Venture Capital 407

Venture Capital Press GRP Partners Blogging 407

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

If you track the venture capital industry it would be hard to miss the conversation going on this week over AngelList “Syndicates.” My favorite new VC blogger, Hunter Walk, weighed in with some thoughtful comments about how Syndicates might actually pit, “ angel vs. angel.” Bowery Capital).

Venture Capital 356

Venture Capital Invest Course Technical Review 356

socalTECH

APRIL 5, 2013

The firm--which is based in Kirkland, Washington but also has a San Diego office--did not disclose investors in the company. The firm''s systems revolve around digital display screens where consumers can click on digital coupons, and which surfaces those coupons at the checkout line automatically. READ MORE>>.

San Diego 153

San Diego Screening Venture Capital Networking 153

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 15, 2011

A tale of two pitches (I eventually invested in the first company that pitched). This might be a VC meeting but also might just be a sales or biz dev meeting. If you look at Diagram A above you’ll see that the presenters are sitting at the opposite end of the table from where the screen is. We didn’t realize.&#

Tips 392

Tips Screening Slides Venture Capital 392

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 20, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series, “ Pitching a VC.&# Getting a meeting with a prominent angel or VC is difficult enough. Some advice on how to do that was covered in this link – Getting Access to a VC. If you haven’t read how to build VC relationships and demonstrate traction make sure to read it.

Venture Capital 277

Venture Capital Startup Email News 277

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2012

I’ve raised money as a “hot company” and I’ve raised capital when no one would return my phone calls. I raised money as an entrepreneur, like you, in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2005 for two different companies. And of course I’ve sat on the other side of the table: As a VC. Executive Summary.

Develop 366

Develop Development Funding Venture Capital 366

socalTECH

JULY 18, 2018

Los Angeles-based media brand Pocket.watch , which creates content for kids, has raised $15M in a Series B funding round, led by Viacom, the company said today. As part of the funding, Viacom Media Networks COO Sarah Levy joins the company's board of directors. Pocket.watch is led by CEO Chris Williams.

Entertainment 100

Entertainment Screening Content Los Angeles 100

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 28, 2013

The angel group--which in the past, has been criticized for taking a long time to make an investment decision in a company--said this week that it has launched a program called Screening2Deal to shortcut investment decisions in startups in Los Angeles, to 30 days or less.

Tech Coast Angels 168

Tech Coast Angels Technical Review Angel Funding 168

SoCal CTO

JUNE 9, 2010

Draw Your Ideas - A VC : Venture Capital and Technology , May 16, 2010 I saw Jack Dorsey give this talk at The 99% Conference last month. He started targeting the ad by location and interest, and the number of potential people he was reaching began decreasing on screen (Facebook tells you dynamically). Tesla is not.

Startup 248

Startup Venture Capital Conference Social Media 248

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 18, 2010

Chartbeat is a relatively young company and product. I was recently over at the Mahalo offices in Santa Monica and I noticed that they had a great big screen TV with Chartbeat displaying their traffic data. It’s fun when a story is blowing up to see the right hand side of your screen light up like a pinball machine.

Blogging 287

Blogging Google Screening Mahalo 287

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2014

We are often asked how companies get funded, why VCs make the decisions we make and what we’re looking for in entrepreneurs. I think this is a Seriously great example of how this process works for at least one VC – Upfront Ventures. But I’m guessing the narrative is similar elsewhere.

Funding 373

Funding Technical Review Startup Screening 373

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 12, 2013

Eva Helene Yazhari: The cohort goes through a process and the education of selecting, screening, and analyzing those companies, and selecting a company in which they want to place their collective capital. What''s Beyond Capital, and how did you connect with the Pipeline Fellowship? It''s just not their background.

Angel 276

Angel Invest Mentor Technical Review 276

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 21, 2023

Even if you have booked an hour with a VC, you should plan to talk only for the first fifteen minutes. The first words out of your mouth should be “Can everyone hear me, and read the screen?” Skip the acronyms, history of the company, and the colorful autobiography. Research your audience before presenting.

Slides 147

Slides Funding Technical Review Startup 147

socalTECH

APRIL 1, 2020

San Diego-based Aspen Neuroscience , a biotechnology company developing treatments for Parkinson disease, said it has raised $70M in a Series A funding round. The funding was led by OrbiMed, and also included ARCH Venture Partners, Frazier Healthcare Partners, Domain Associates, Section 32, and Sam Altman.

San Diego 113

San Diego Screening Study Course 113

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 10, 2014

I finally got the pleasure of meeting Jess IRL because I paid a visit to his company Visual.ly , which is a website of awesomeness. He also had the clever idea of making my home screen banner on the blog be a visually stunning image from Los Angeles, my home. This Week in Venture Capital' So now I suck much less.

Blogging 294

Blogging Design Venture Capital Screening 294

socalTECH

APRIL 19, 2013

Venture capital investments saw a sharp drop in Q1 in Southern California, according to the latest venture numbers from the MoneyTree report. The report, released by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association over the weekend, tallied up $534.3M billion in 863 deals. San Diego had $178.3M

Southern California 140

Southern California Invest Orange County Venture Capital 140

Xconomy

JULY 26, 2016

Ostendo Technologies, a Carlsbad, CA-based company founded in 2005 to advance curved screens and other innovative display technologies, has raised $41.8 in debt and debt conversion the company previously disclosed in two April filings. million of a new financing round intended to bring in $62.8 It’s unclear, though, if the $41.8

Technology 40

Technology Venture Capital Beverly Hills Funding 40

Tech Zulu Event

NOVEMBER 11, 2013

Those who are more involved in traditional entertainment are seeing a major shift online which is why an additional one-day seminar was created to coincide with Silicon Beach Fest Hollywood as a partnership called, Idea to Screen. tech community and to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing us in the coming years. See you there!

Hollywood 100

Hollywood Screening Ideas Entertainment 100

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

When I was new at Venture Capital I was trying to figure out the business. As a VC you want to feel like you have “proprietary sources” of deal flow. Because entrepreneurs often went to lawyers at their earliest stages to get their company registration done. They are venture bankers not investment bankers.

Startup 361

Startup Venture Capital Pricing Technical Review 361

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 15, 2011

Last year I was on Sand Hill Road in Silicon Valley meeting with one of the most prominent venture capital firms in the country. The VC partner, somebody I greatly respect said, “Yeah, we like Gil and what they’re doing. In my LA I often see computer screens open with entrepreneurs talking about digital media.

Venture Capital 313

Venture Capital Southern California Google Startup 313

socalTECH

OCTOBER 27, 2016

Santa Monica-based Super League gaming , which lets video game fans compete against others on the big screen at movie theaters across the country, has raised $5M in a Series C funding, the company said this week. The funding came from Toba Capital and esports company aXiomatic.

Santa Monica 100

Santa Monica Screening Capital Funding 100