Steve Blank

JUNE 27, 2017

As more and more companies face disruption from globalization, new technology, and startups that have more capital than the incumbents, the continuing cry from Wall Street investors is, “Why can’t companies be as innovative as startups?”. Here’s one reason why: Startups can do anything. Startups can do anything.

Startup 306

Startup New York City Valuation Distribution 306

Steve Blank

MARCH 12, 2014

Therefore we needed them to think and learn about two parts of a startup; 1) ideation - how to create new ideas and 2) customer development – how do they test the validity of their idea (is it the right product, customer, channel, pricing, etc.). Working for local startups creates real world intensity and urgency in the course.

Lean 335

Lean Customer Development Startup Silicon Valley 335

VC Cafe

APRIL 26, 2021

Readers of VC Cafe know that I collect and curate Israeli startup landscape maps. There are over 88 Israeli insurtech startups vying to be the next in line. There are more than 100 Israeli startups in the energy tech space. Source: Startup Nation Central and Ignite the Spark ( download ). July 2020 , May 2019.

Israel 215

Israel Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Startup 215

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 14, 2017

Nearly every successful tech startup I’ve observed over the past 20 years has gone through a similar growth pattern: Innovate, systematize then scale operations. Innovate In the early years of a startup there is a lot of kinetic energy of enthusiastic innovators looking to launch a product that changes how an industry works.

Operations 286

Operations New York City Technical Review Startup 286

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 20, 2019

With the current strong economy I’m seeing a continued resurgence of entrepreneurial spirit, and more startup activity than ever before. There is additional encouraging news for aspiring entrepreneurs on many fronts, just in case you are thinking about joining the existing ranks: Valuations of successful startups have hit an all-time high.

North America 320

North America Incubator Initial Public Offering Valuation 320

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

I have often been asked about Startup Funding by entrepreneurs. Many myths surround the subject of startup funding. Here is Startup Funding, a Comprehensive Guide for Entrepreneurs. You must have seen a lot of startups giving out promotions, discounts, and incentives at the early phase of their business. Debt investors.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 26, 2022

The past year was a wild ride for startups and founders, giving a whole new meaning to the ”rollercoaster” aspect of being an entrepreneur. A combination of competition for top talent and an effort to bring employees back to the office drove startups in Israel to throw extravagant parties and all-inclusive retreats abroad.

Founder 187

Founder Startup Valuation Pre-Money Valuation 187

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 6, 2016

I even prefer to fund entrepreneurs who have experience some level of set-backs in their careers or startups because I think it brings a humility to decision-making that I find healthy. I talk about failure a lot because I think it can be tremendously instructive and I think that success without failure often masks underlying lessons.

South Korea 261

South Korea Silicon Valley Los Angeles Japan 261

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 28, 2018

How could Bird really be worth the reported $2 billion valuation that I read about in this press? While I promised not to comment on the exact valuation you can assume that it is very large and perhaps the fastest rise from zero to what some have called a “unicorn” valuation. Forget the valuation?—?I Not at all.

San Francisco 256

San Francisco Valuation Los Angeles Technical Review 256

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

Israeli startups raised $2.43 Israel continues to be a relatively liquid market Another strong indicator for the strength of the Israeli startup ecosystem has been exits/ liquidity, especially given the shortage of exits in the venture capital industry. The current environment presents opportunities for resilient Israeli startups.

Israel 183

Israel Technical Review Startup Generative AI 183

Steve Blank

JULY 11, 2017

By coincidence, the CEO was an intern at one of my startups more than two decades ago.) Before the rapid rise of Unicorns, (startups with a valuation over a billion dollars), when boards were still in control, they “encouraged” the hiring of “adult supervision” of the founders after they found product/market fit. The founders.

Part-Time VPE 329

Part-Time VPE Liquidity Event Stock Engineer 329

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

especially if the startup already has a product and revenue? While the answers are somewhat semantic, the pre-seed funding round is making a comeback in 2024 startup financing. Pre-seed round tends to be the first ‘institutional’ round of funding in a startup. A founder asked me what makes a $2M round “pre-seed”?

Valuation 186

Valuation Software Review Generative AI Technical Review 186

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2023

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a cofounder or two. The default answer, to keep peace in the family, is to split everything equally, but that’s a terrible answer, since now no one is in control, and startups need a clear leader. Now comes the reality check.

Technical Cofounder 247

Technical Cofounder Equity Distribution Cofounder 247

VC Cafe

MARCH 7, 2025

Israeli tech funding remained stable in February, with 25 startups raising a total of $588 million and two new unicorns minted: Dream and Augury. Anthropic has just raised $3.5bn in a round at a post-money valuation of $61.5bn. in funding and a combined valuation of $4.6T. Startup funding -20% YoY to $19.3B in Feb, U.S.

Israel 103

Israel Stealth Taiwan ChatGPT 103

VC Cafe

JANUARY 14, 2022

2021 was a banner year for Israeli startups, breaking new records in fundraising, new unicorns, and exits. Israeli startups are on fire. According to the 2021 Tech Review report by IVC , Israeli tech startups attracted a record of $25.6 Exits of Israeli startups in 2021 reached $82.4 What comes next? Where are we now?

Israel 158

Israel Technical Review Lock-up Period South Korea 158

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

Some nonprofit entrepreneurs think they can skip the whole plan, rather than just the sections on valuation, equity offered, and exit strategy. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor.

Equity 235

Equity Angel Investor Technical Review Exit Strategy 235

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

. — Unremarked and unheralded, the balance of power between startup CEOs and their investors has radically changed: IPOs/M&A without a profit (or at times revenue) have become the norm. The startup process has become demystified – information is everywhere. Not every startup ended up this way. Board Control.

Founder 281

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 281

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 14, 2022

And with the technology available these days, it is convenient to invest in emerging startups. Are you wondering how to invest in startups in India? The digital startup craze. The world is about to see a new generation propagating the Indian startup investing industry. Sectors witnessing a startup boom. Media tech.

Technical Review 167

Technical Review Due Diligence India Startup 167

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 21, 2017

Startups shouldn’t act smug about this. Even for startups, it takes years for a new product to become good enough to demand many millions of dollars in revenue.). This acquirer doesn’t care about the financials of the startup. Remember this is revenue , not valuation. Zoom out to see the strategic decision.

Balance Sheet 242

Balance Sheet Vertical Acquisition Revenue 242

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2018

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. The default answer, to keep peace in the family, is to split everything equally, but that’s a terrible answer, since now no one is in control, and startups need a clear leader. Now comes the reality check.

Equity 238

Equity Cofounder Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property 238

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

We discussed whether 1) that was true or just anecdotal 2) if true, was it the same in other research universities, 3) why it happened (software startups are getting funded at obscene valuations)?

Technical Review 407

Technical Review Taiwan Technology Silicon Valley 407

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 9, 2014

My partner Steven Dietz is an auto enthusiast and more than just an admirer of amazing cars he has worked around the auto industry for 20 years and backed a couple of billion-dollar startups in the category. Whenever somebody has a car startup I send it straight his way. True Ventures with hardware startups. Startup Advice'

Video 373

Video Valuation Differentiation Distribution 373

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 6, 2025

New details about the real costs of training the model (much higher) and the source of the data (distilled from OpenAI against the T&Cs) are slowly surfacing, but it’s clear that Chinese AI startups are here to stay. AIface increasing challenges. Baichuan AI is pivoting toward specialized AI models for finance and healthcare.

China 97

China Artificial Inteligence ChatGPT Generative AI 97

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2023

Who would not want to join the unicorns (recent startups with a current valuation of over $1 billion)? Excellent detailed resources are everywhere, including a classic book, “ The Startup Checklist ,” by serial entrepreneur and founder of the New York Angels, David S. Fundraising through online platforms and crowdfunding.

Intellectual Property 261

Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Angel Groups Social Media 261

View from Seed

OCTOBER 21, 2014

As the seed-stage startup fundraise process has received more transparency in recent years, ranging from published advice on how to raise seed capital to increased availability through AngelList, Funders Club, and various accelerator programs, I’ve noticed another trend emerging. Lower-Than-Market Value.

Valuation 336

Valuation Founder Seed Stage Angel Investor 336

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 24, 2021

The company name becomes your intellectual property at the moment you incorporate your startup as an LLC or a Corporation. Later, good intellectual property can be worth millions when your company valuation is set for investment purposes, or when the company is acquired or sold. Here are the key elements: Company name.

Intellectual Property 363

Intellectual Property Portfolio Valuation Non-disclosure Agreement 363

Hunter Walker

DECEMBER 13, 2020

If things are going great, you still may get a lower valuation or smaller round. So let’s talk about what to do if you’re a startup CEO who doesn’t know how to sell: Watch videos of great salespeople and storytellers : This doesn’t necessarily mean literally sales technique videos, although I’m sure there are some solid ones out there.

Technical Cofounder 162

Technical Cofounder Cofounder Startup Matching 162

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 17, 2018

Be sure you can grow into your valuation by next fund-raising or your last raise could become existential or extremely dilutive  —  @msuster 7/ If you know an employee is a negative energy in the office don't delay parting ways. But if you raise at too high a price you make it harder to raise next round.

Founder 242

Founder Dilution Software Review Later Stage 242

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 12, 2019

The reality is that as a result of two major trends the costs of starting a technology startup went down massively. I launched my first startup in 1999 so I know the economics of launching from first-hand experience. The “A Round” of my startup in 1999 was $16.5 thus the rise of “pre seed” investing).

Venture Capital 328

Venture Capital Technical Review Seed Stage IPO 328

View from Seed

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

One of the most highly anticipated startup IPOs of recent years, we now get a peek inside Airbnb’s business. Uber is an $85B+ market cap company today but is essentially flat to its IPO price and late private round valuations. Airbnb’s public S-1 dropped Monday afternoon.

North America 401

North America IPO Prospectus Europe 401

ReadWriteStart

MAY 30, 2022

The Proud Owners of a Startup. Today, as the proud owner of a startup, you’re probably much better at managing your money. It might take the experience of growing and exiting two or even three startups before you know how to do that. . Let’s take a deeper look at why your startup probably doesn’t need funding.

Bootstrapping 147

Bootstrapping Startup Equity Silicon Valley 147

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 14, 2020

Higher asset valuation – growing awareness about the environment; the social impact of buildings and the need to meet sustainability credentials is increasingly making real estate investors and occupiers turn to green buildings. The cumulative cost impact often adds to lower building operation and corresponding maintenance cost.

Green 175

Green California Government Valuation 175

VC Cafe

AUGUST 4, 2022

The VC markets have contracted almost overnight and last round’s valuations may no longer hold. In May 2022, I published a post on ‘ advice for startups in a downturn ‘ which is more business oriented advice aggregated from the top pundits. This is an incredibly tough time to a lot of founders.

Founder 158

Founder Aggregator Startup Valuation 158

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

Politics are a part of human nature and thus a part of all startups. As I like to say “ Startups are all naked in the mirror ” (we see our own flaws but see everybody else in their Sunday best.). Startups are hard. Startup Advice VC Industry' FourSquare. Everywhere. Commitment. And so is venture capital.

Portfolio 364

Portfolio Chicago Incubator Sales 364

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 10, 2021

Often, the number one question that entrepreneurs fail to address is: “How much money do you need, and what valuation do you place on your company?” Additionally, you need to be able to communicate the essence that story and value to investors in a couple of sentences – your elevator pitch. Lack of clear objectives/goals.

Software Review 307

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Early Stage 307

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 11, 2022

Some nonprofit entrepreneurs think they can skip the whole plan, rather than just the sections on valuation, equity offered, and exit strategy. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor.

Angel Investor 327

Angel Investor Equity Technical Review Exit Strategy 327

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 18, 2024

Comparing the mCap/TVL ratio across protocols provides insights into their relative valuations. Lower ratios generally imply healthier valuations and may suggest a more stable investment opportunity. The P/S ratio gives insight into whether a protocol’s valuation aligns with its revenue generation.

Metrics 157

Metrics Valuation API Distribution 157