Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2016

In 2016 I finally cracked SnapChat with the launch of Discovery. It’s hard to be discovered on SnapChat right now so I occasionally tweet my SnapChat add handle: https://www.snapchat.com/add/msuster. So this dude on Twitter says that I’m “trying to hard” because I’m using SnapChat in a new way.

Snapchat 150

Snapchat Product Startup AMA 150

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 11, 2014

LA has a serious technology scene. Last week displayed the best of LA last week for a gala event of all of Upfront’s portfolio companies + the CEOs of many of LA’s top technology companies + 75 VC firms from LA, SF, NY & Boston + 25 LP Funds + the Chairman of Yahoo! And I’m proud of that, too. Maker Studios.

Startup 318

Startup Santa Monica Snapchat Yahoo 318

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

Most recent investments: GOAT, cloudvirga, Vemba, LootCrate, Invoca. Most recent investments: EventBoard, Sensay, Shipt, Scopely, ALL DEF DIGITAL. Most recent investments: Ring, Flipagram, Snapchat. Most recent investments: Ring, Flipagram, Snapchat. Most recent investments: Zingle, Keen.io, mPulse, Invoca.

Southern California 100

Southern California Dollar Shave Club Lootcrate Orange County 100

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2014

15 years ago we were at the peak of Internet hype with the launch of many over-capitalized businesses with a market size & opportunity was limited. The VC market has right-sized (returned back to mid 90′s levels & less competition). But markets value high growth over short-term profitability. Where are we today?

Venture Capital 398

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Seed Funding 398

Xconomy

JULY 14, 2016

Showing little concern for stock-market volatility or worries over the Brexit, venture capital firms pumped $15.3 Still, the amount invested marked a 12 percent drop from the $17.4 venture capital market leader at PricewaterhouseCoopers. billion invested in Venice, CA-based Snapchat. Included is the $3.5

Marina Del Rey 40

Marina Del Rey Invest Venture Capital San Diego 40

TechCrunch LA

SEPTEMBER 14, 2018

The world’s top tech companies have heavily invested in AR/VR and are persistent in broadcasting the technologies’ potential to blur the lines of how consumers interact with the digital world. Beyond the tech titans, it’s the small startups that are dialing into what’s missing in the ecosystem right now.

UCLA 185

UCLA Startup Snapchat Los Angeles 185

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 5, 2019

We did our first close in the summer of 2014, and over the first nine months we raised our fund and started investing. Fund I was fully deployed by June 30th of 2017, and we went out to raised Fund II, which was a wet close, where you invest as you close. Those investments have really broken out. They're all big winners.

Funding 160

Funding Capital Artificial Inteligence Startup 160

Tech Zulu Event

JULY 16, 2013

Previously known as GRP Partners, Upfront Ventures has focused on early stage investments since 1996. Founded in London in 2006, the Hub is a global network of social enterprises with each individual chapter acting as a gathering place for innovation, technology, creativity, and positive change. Marketing: SteelHouse.

Startup 111

Startup Snapchat Venice Social Media 111

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 30, 2016

You will build out features or expend to platforms — often before you have enough market feedback to warrant it. My analogy was that there are markets where it’s relatively easier to raise capital and therefore you should take a little bit more but you should create a budget where you only spend 70% of what you raise on a pace of 18 months.

Startup 292

Startup Software Review Pricing Entrepreneur 292

socalTECH

DECEMBER 27, 2016

This holiday season, we are again sharing the reflections on 2016 from Southern California's technology ecosystem. What's your favorite technology gadget, device, or innovation you ran across this year? Finally, what do you think will have the biggest impact on the technology industry in 2017? READ MORE>>.

Southern California 113

Southern California Social Media News Entertainment 113

TechCrunch LA

JANUARY 14, 2019

“The way I look at it… a lot of it is going to be like any kind of content studio,” says Peter Rojas, a partner at the New York investment firm Betaworks Ventures. Flinn got exposure to the virtual media world while at Rothenberg Ventures, the now defunct fund that invested in virtual reality and augmented reality.

Social Media 261

Social Media Content Media Artificial Inteligence 261

socalTECH

MARCH 16, 2017

Earlier this week, Derek Norton , a long time advisor to the media, Internet, and technology industry in Los Angeles, announced a brand new venture capital fund called Watertower Ventures (www.watertowerventures.com). Where are you planning making investments? Derek Norton: We're investing in Los Angeles, the Bay Area, and New York.

Invest 145

Invest Funding Capital Startup 145

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 19, 2015

We've attempted to do that for the last three years, trying to ferret out exactly who the people--not companies--are to watch in the region's technology industry. Phillipe Browning , SnapChat. Gunnar Lovelace and Nick Green , Thrive Market. Who are the top 50 people to watch in Southern California? Julien Bellanger , Prevoty.

SoCalTech 100

SoCalTech Lootcrate Southern California Snapchat 100

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 19, 2013

We''re proud to announce the Socaltech 50 , our list of the 50, up-and-coming people in Southern California''s technology ecosystem. Josef Gorowitz , Swagbucks (Torrance, online marketing/rewards). Amanda MacNaughton , PromoJam (Glendale, marketing software). Evan Spiegel , SnapChat (Los Angeles, mobile app).

Southern California 279

Southern California SoCalTech Dollar Shave Club Santa Monica 279

SoCal Tech Calendar

JUNE 9, 2016

If you wanted to find someone who truly understands the convergence of the media and technology, you need to go no further than Peter Csathy , the CEO of newly launched CREATV Media (www.creatv.media). Because of that, he has some unique insights into this market, having touched many, many pieces of the industry.

Media 100

Media Blogging Hulu Invest 100

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 6, 2014

With small amounts of money invested (sub $3 million) the risks are reasonably low for most VCs and the consequences of bad decisions or decisions a VC has limited say in is tolerable. Unless you’re SnapChat, Instagram or similar this is probably 3-5 years into your existence. how to market our products and company.

Startup 325

Startup Sales Technical Review Software Review 325

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2017

Most of the guidance you see for entrepreneurs is aimed at those who are selling a product (Apple, Tesla, Xiaomi), or selling a service (Uber, Airbnb, Snapchat). Many are reluctant to really “market” themselves, and have trouble differentiating their offerings to clients, except by price. Be targeted in marketing and lead generation.

Social Media 56

Social Media Pricing Technical Review Demand 56

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 6, 2017

In the entrepreneur world, most of the energy I see is focused on the current opportunity bubbles, now including anything mobile, the new sharing economy (Uber, Airbnb), or yet another social media app (Snapchat, WhatsApp). There is no substitute for market research and independent verification that a large opportunity exists.

Ideas 55

Ideas Snapchat Social Media Entrepreneur 55

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 15, 2014

A few years later they announced $150 million in a funding round at $1 billion+ valuation and are ramping up jobs to secure their market-leading position. And consider Snapchat – one of our hometown favorites as they’re based in LA (Venice Beach). Locally we call it “the Snapchat effect.”

Company 369

Company Companies Startup Snapchat 369

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2017

He was running to be the 42nd mayor of Los Angeles and he outlined his vision to “open up the city government to technology and innovation” if he were elected. He wanted to bring the same level of technology focus and energy that Mayor Bloomberg had brought to New York City. Are you kidding me?

Riot Games 191

Riot Games Los Angeles Technical Review Venture Capital 191

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 16, 2016

Computer Vison Startup Nanit If you follow me on Snapchat ( msuster ) you might already know that I’ve been looking at and investing in a number of companies in the computer vision space. Today I am so excited to announce our latest investment in the category —  Nanit  — which is a smart baby monitor.

Invest 150

Invest Course Startup CTO Hire 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

There is much discussion online and also in small, private groups, about why the price of technology companies – public and private – are falling. Nearly EVERY smart VC I know has been talking privately for the past two years about how ridiculous valuations in private markets have gotten and how a reckoning was coming.

Startup 150

Startup Company Companies Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 12, 2016

Why Invest? For six years before that he was at Siebel who was the market leader in CRM before Salesforce, and he has both a masters in product design from Stanford and an MBA. And while my relationship with Chuck was critical to my investment, so too was the leadership of Trevor Templar , the Chief Revenue Officer. Why Invest?

Software 105

Software Mobile Artificial Inteligence Oracle 105

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 6, 2015

Many people are too cautious in sales processes and as a result when they present their solutions they end up sounding milquetoast and undifferentiated from anybody else in the market. We have strong theses in key technology areas. You must know when to sell to leads and when to market to them. Why Buy Anything ?

Sales 150

Sales SaaS Startup Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 23, 2015

Today is a huge validation for Crosscut and continued faith that LPs that any national VC would covet are placing on the LA market and two great institutions – The James Irvine Foundation and Top Tier Capital – have underscored this by backing Crosscut. LA has grown up a lot over the past 5 years. This is not your dad’s LA.

News 150

News Funding Venture Capital Dollar Shave Club 150