Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

If you’re a startup and you don’t have a close relationship with a few law firms you’re really missing one of the most important relationships that any entrepreneur can have. Many people start companies arse backwards. I write about some of the lessons in my post on Startup Mistakes.

Startup 318

Startup IP Southern California Entrepreneur 318

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2019

I had just left Salesforce.com where I was VP, Products, after they had acquired my second startup. The first check I wrote was just over 10 years ago into a company called Invoca who just announced a new $56 million in funding led by Scott Hilleboe at HIG Growth Partners. We not only have our Series A funds that can write $500k?—?$15

Venture Capital 223

Venture Capital IP Startup Google 223

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 20, 2011

One of the readers asked my opinion around sharing your startup concept: My first question has always been - how do you protect your idea while shopping around for feedback, partners, developers, etc.? Especially if the idea could be whipped-up by a few 24-year olds in a few weeks? Lots of thoughts here.

Startup 211

Startup IP Ideas Patents 211

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 20, 2011

One of the readers asked my opinion around sharing your startup concept: My first question has always been - how do you protect your idea while shopping around for feedback, partners, developers, etc.? Especially if the idea could be whipped-up by a few 24-year olds in a few weeks? Lots of thoughts here.

Startup 198

Startup IP Ideas Patents 198

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 14, 2018

I Know Everybody Told You to Send Your Fund-Raising Decks as a Link. Here’s Why You Should Just Send the Deck I know you have your document sending tool to send your fund-raising deck to VCs and track who read your deck, which pages they read and how much time they spend on each page. What should be in your deck? A deck is a deck.

Funding 239

Funding Venture Capital IP Email 239

socalTECH

OCTOBER 11, 2018

Los Angeles-based Catalog , a startup developing artificial intelligence software to help independent visual artists scale their content production efforts, has raised $1.5M in a seed funding round. The funding was led by Moonshots Capital, and also included Techstars and Luma Launch.

Artificial Inteligence 127

Artificial Inteligence Software IP Seed Funding 127

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

I was reading Danielle Morrill’s blog post today on whether one’s “ Startup Burn Rate is Normal. I love how transparently Danielle lives her startup (& encourages other to join in) because it provides much needed transparency to other startups. Let’s set up a framework. Gross Burn vs. Net Burn.

Startup 383

Startup Company Companies .Net 383

socalTECH

MAY 20, 2020

Los ANgeles-based Brainbase , a new startup developing software to help manage licensing, partnership and sponsorship agreements, has raised $8M in a Series A funding round, the company said this morning. According to the company, it will use the funding to to build its software. READ MORE>>.

IP 113

IP Software Los Angeles Capital 113

SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 25, 2009

Fantastic post by Christian Gammill - Startup Delta Force… From a competitive perspective (e.g. Now, given our current economic crisis and VC ‘challenges’, the barriers to funding have gone up significantly as well. How’s that for duality.

Startup 150

Startup SEM IP SEO 150

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 10, 2015

I angel funded a company 5 years ago. Because no VCs would fund them with a pending lawsuit of this nature. I funded a company where the CEO stepped down. I funded a US company that bought a URL and a brand name and filed for a trademark. So why exactly have lawsuits (anecdotally) picked up so much in the past 5 years?

Startup 150

Startup IP Writing Ideas 150

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 9, 2018

You race back to the office to tell everybody how well it went and you wait for the follow-up call to have a partners’ meeting or talk about term sheets or at least dip into due diligence. At night I had a group dinner where I met 6 new entrepreneurs and hung out with some old friends from law firms, banks and other VC funds.

Software Review 381

Software Review Startup Email Conference 381

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

I find it amusing when a journalist writes an article about a prominent startup (either privately held or preparing for an IPO) and decries that, “They’re not even profitable!” To grow faster businesses need resources in today’s financial period to fund growth that may not come for 6 months to a year.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

At our mid-year offsite our partnership at Upfront Ventures was discussing what the future of venture capital and the startup ecosystem looked like. When you look at how much median valuations were driven up in the past 5 years alone it’s bananas. Please follow him & welcome him to Upfront!! <== And reset they must.

Venture Capital 416

Venture Capital Marketing Technical Review Seed Funding 416

socalTECH

AUGUST 29, 2013

Can tapping the power of the crowd not only help you find customers and help fund your project, but also help you shape your startup idea and find funding? Dirk Ahlborn: We are coming out of the nonprofit incubator, the Girvan Institute of Technology, which has been around since 2002, and is funded by NASA Ames.

Ideas 178

Ideas Patents Funding Startup 178

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 4, 2017

When someone says Intellectual Property (IP), most entrepreneurs think only of patents. In reality, patents are only one of at least eight items that should be in your IP portfolio. You need all these before you start looking for funding. Here are the key elements: Company name. Trademarks.

Startup 69

Startup Patents IP Social Media 69

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2013

When someone says Intellectual Property (IP), most entrepreneurs think only of patents. In reality, patents are only one of at least eight items that should be in your IP portfolio. You need all these before you start looking for funding. Patent attorney fees start at around $5K. Trademarks. Marty Zwilling.

Startup 103

Startup Patents IP Social Media 103

TechCrunch LA

JANUARY 27, 2022

Now, a gaming startup that’s building a new kind of platform that it thinks will be a — wait for it — game changer in the category is announcing some funding as to ride that wave of attention. It included games icon Atari, which is working with PortalOne to include some of its brands and IP in that Arcade launch.

Platform 167

Platform Entertainment Netflix Content 167

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 7, 2015

I love how open Danielle has been throughout the development of her startup Mattermark including honest reflections of when she has changed her opinion. I save room in literally every deal to invite angels (or seed funds) to co-invest with me. I agree up to a point. That’s what it feels like.”. All of my partners at Upfront do.

Angel 150

Angel Startup Seed Funding Invest 150

socalTECH

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Earlier this month, Los Angeles-based Catalog (www.catalog.cc), a startup developing artificial intelligence software to help independent visual artists scale their content production efforts, announced it raised $1.5M in a seed funding round. The funding was led by Moonshots Capital, and also included Techstars and Luma Launch.

Help 133

Help IP Content Google 133

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 11, 2011

What could you learn from looking at your competitors or other tech startups in a different way? Or you think their startup is a passing fad and yours is the real deal? I was at a dinner about a year ago with a few VCs and startup founders. The topic of FourSquare came up. I hear views like this all the time.

Startup 313

Startup Press Writing News 313

socalTECH

JUNE 21, 2019

What's the hardest part of being a startup entrepreneur? Minnie Ingersoll: I grew up here in Southern California, in Pasadena, and have been in the Bay Area for a number of years, and just became a new partner at TenOneTen Ventures. Minnie Ingersoll: A few things, but most recently I started by own company, in 2013.

Southern California 133

Southern California Startup Layoffs Venture Capital 133

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 6, 2010

It’s a conversation that creeps up from time-to-time. For a combination of reasons I didn’t end up talking with the CEO in time and the company quickly became over subscribed. Not everybody agrees that entrepreneurs should take investor meetings outside of “funding season&# when they’re raising capital.

Startup 360

Startup Venture Capital Invest Slides 360

Tech Zulu Event

AUGUST 6, 2014

You don’t need many “bells and whistles” at this stage in the game, but you do want to set up a system that is easy-to-use and that is built to grow with you. Set up an accounts payable system. Ideally you’ll want to establish your credit guidelines, policies, and collection timeline before you start collecting your first payments.

Tips 101

Tips Startup Outsource Development Sales 101

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 30, 2014

As I’ve written about recently, at Upfront Ventures we started talking a couple of years ago about wanting to fund stuff with more meaning. I think this is a combination of being realists as venture capitalists that outsized returns in our funds must come from taking on bigger, more impactful projects that can move markets.

Technical Review 418

Technical Review Software Review CTO Hire IP 418

Tech Zulu Event

SEPTEMBER 12, 2014

You don’t need many “bells and whistles” at this stage in the game, but you do want to set up a system that is easy-to-use and that is built to grow with you. Set up an accounts payable system. Ideally you’ll want to establish your credit guidelines, policies, and collection timeline before you start collecting your first payments.

Tips 90

Tips Startup Venture Capital Outsource Development 90

Tech Zulu Event

DECEMBER 18, 2013

TechZulu is excited to invite you to the 2014 Startup and Entrepreneurial Forecast taking place on Tuesday Jan. We will have a line up of amazing panelist who will share their insights and forecast for startup trends in 2014. The panel is comprised of Southern California’s Top VC’s, Angels, and Startup Accelerator founders.

Startup 111

Startup Entertainment Media Santa Barbara 111

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 9, 2010

Startups Made Simple. www.pitchtheangels.com) Join Tech Coast Angels members and other start up investors at the 5th Annual Los Angeles Fast Pitch Competition. Fast Pitch Los Angeles is one of the best start up networking events of the year. SoCal IP Law Group LLP - IP Counselors For Technology Companies.

Southern California 113

Southern California Tech Coast Angels IP Orange County 113

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 3, 2015

I often write about the best strategies for startup fundraising or how to manage startup financing and optimize for growth. Equally important, is an area many startup founders don’t always prioritize: choosing the right service providers and understanding the value they can bring, especially to early-stage startups.

Startup 40

Startup Outsource Development IP Outsource 40

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 8, 2016

But the idea that you could start a new studio today — with the hundreds of millions required just to launch one blockbuster hit — is absurd. It started with a series of books and is now a multi-billion dollar franchise with products, theme parks and games. How Would You Build a Movie Studio if You Started Today?

Startup 150

Startup IP Class Media 150

socalTECH

JULY 16, 2013

We caught up with Andy Wilson , who is behind the effort, to hear about why he thinks Pasadena needs its own technology identity. It started around a year ago, as I was driving back from Santa Monica from an event. The thesis is, we need collaboration, ideas, and IP, and to translate that into innovation. I got a resounding yes.

Pasadena 242

Pasadena Santa Monica CalTech Technical Review 242

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 5, 2010

I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity. A caller dialed in to ask us questions about his startup. He was from South America but living in Switzerland and had launched a startup while holding down a day job at a consulting firm (McKinsey if memory serves).

Entrepreneur 293

Entrepreneur Startup Venture Capital CTO Hire 293

socalTECH

JANUARY 28, 2013

If you're FreedomPop , the Encino-based startup, you start by offering up free 4G wireless data access, and then expand to offer free, voice-over-IP services, along with home-based wireless Internet services. Currently, users pay up front for data packages, and there are inefficiencies in that market.

Startup 245

Startup IP Networking Encino 245

TechCrunch LA

JANUARY 14, 2019

Betaworks is betting on the content studio aspect through companies like SuperPlastic , a new startup launched by Paul Budnitz, the founder of the alternative social network ello and Budnitz Bicycles. “We started doing cartoon live streams and the founders of Musical.ly There is something to be said about building a character.

Social Media 261

Social Media Content Media Artificial Inteligence 261

SoCal Tech Calendar

NOVEMBER 3, 2010

Intellectual property (IP) is essential to the growth and survival of start-up companies. Tuesday, November 9, 2010 -- PTO's Proposed Three-Track Examination Process.

Patents 113

Patents IP Startup Funding 113

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 13, 2018

One of the hardest things to know when you’re new to fund raising is what you’re supposed to send to an investor, when and will they keep your information confidential. This is part of a series on how to improve your fund raising game. As a VC and former entrepreneur let me offer you some advice. I recommend sub 10MB.

Venture Capital 261

Venture Capital Slides Email Startup 261

SoCal Tech Calendar

JANUARY 26, 2010

Effective intellectual property (IP) protection is essential to the survival of start-up companies. Without strong IP protection, companies will fail to raise early stage funding and will be vulnerable to opportunistic and incumbent competitors.

Patents 100

Patents IP Startup Funding 100

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2011

So pervasive has this thinking become that on several occasions startup companies with profitable & fast growing services businesses have come to me wanting to show me the product businesses they created internally to see whether they would be financeable or whether they might be able to create “spin outs&# that could be financed.

Services 332

Services Venture Capital IP Startup 332