Ellen Pao: Obama Should Start a Venture Capital FundAfter he leaves office, he will be one of few people who could truly boost underrepresented entrepreneurs. I would love to see Barack Obamabring his remarkable empathy and courage to the tech world—to drive social change in the largest, fastest growing sector in the world. I hope he starts a $1 billion fund focused on underrepresented entrepreneurs who have not yet seen the economic and social benefits of this phenomenal global transformation.Today, there is a gaping hole in the tech ecosystem, a vacuum with a dearth of black, Latinx, women of color and
transgender entrepreneurs and employees. These groups are at a huge disadvantage; bias prevents people from hiring, funding and supporting them. ProjectDiane recently showed that only 2,200 startups are led by women—and only 88 startups are led by women of color. Obama should focus on funding them. With his influence, he could build an inclusive ecosystem that gives these
teams the same network advantages and opportunities as their white male peers have under today’s almost completely homogenous, monolithic system. WHAT IF IT ALL COMES TRUE?General Catalyst's Hemant Taneja talks with Michal Lev-Ram, Sarah Lacy, and Scott McGrew on Silicon Valley's tech utopia/dystopia future if everything we're dreaming about from autonomy and meal replacement to automation and longevity comes true. [ Video ] WeWork Readies Expansion to South AmericaThe co-working startup plans to open a space in Buenos Aires in May, with more expected in Rio de Janeiro and elsewhere. The New York-based shared-office startup, which was most recently valued at $16 billion, plans to open two locations in Sao Paulo in June, as well as at least one in Rio de Janeiro by the end of the year, according to Pato Fuks, the company’s regional general manager for Latin America. [ Bloomberg ] Exit Interview with America's Chief Technology OfficerMegan Smith and Alex Macgillivray left Google and Twitter, respectively, in 2014 to help President Obama and the U.S. government better harness the power of data and technology. Smith as the nation's second chief technology officer, and Macgillivray as her deputy. The pair were charged with helping to bring a Silicon Valley mentality to D.C., focused on areas like collaboration (on tech topics and beyond), modernizing government and capacity-building in areas like tech hiring and computer science education expansion. The relatively-new positions are expected to outlast both Smith and Macgillivray, although the incoming Trump Administration has yet to name any replacements for top jobs in the White House's Office of Science and Technology (where the CTO office resides). [ Axios ] How to Use Both Your Wits in a StartupIt’s good to be a robot entrepreneur. Being all logic and no emotions, you can make hard decisions with ease. You hire the right people based on the correct metrics. You make difficult calls with the deftness of Occam’s Razor. You fire poor performers without any emotional baggage. You’re a machine. You may wish you could rely solely on logic, but that is only half of what you need to be a good founder. [ YC Blog ] Make Operations Your Secret Weapon - Here’s HowAt Etsy, COO Linda Kozlowski spearheaded international expansion, unified and started growing its marketing plans, began redefining the company’s brand, launched a new communications strategy, and kicked off the integration of user feedback into product development — all in about six months. While others might just credit her capabilities, she’s quick to cite the plan that CEO Chad Dickerson laid out. He outlined not only how her specific acts would make a difference for Etsy’s customers, but also how her role would link to the rest of the leadership team — especially Dickerson. That exactitude bred effectiveness. [ First Round Review ]Report: $12BN invested in European startups last year, but fewer $30M+ dealsInvestment in European startups held up last year despite fears of a slowdown, with some $12 billion invested during the year, according to an annual report compiled by French investment advisors Clipperton, working with Digimind’s WhoGotFunded database. The report notes the year as effectively on a par with 2015’s record level of European* startup investment. However the looming prospect of Brexit is casting a shadow over the region’s future, given the UK’s key role in driving European startup investment — with the report noting 24 per cent growth for UK transactions in the first half of the year. [ Tech Crunch ] Top CEOs Reveal Their Secrets for Finding New CustomersInc. 5000 honorees tell us how they would tackle a common business challenge. Denali Tietjen of General Catalyst VC JOBS Investment Analyst at Village Capital, Washington, US. Research Engineer at Lurkin, Los Angeles, US Account Executive at Lurkin,Los Angeles, US.Corporate Counsel at EQUIDATE, San Francisc, US.Sales Executive at Merrill Corporation, San Francisco, US.Senior Sales Agent at Silent Models, NY, US.Medical Cannabis Careers at Medical Marijuana Career Center, Pennsylvania, US.VP Engineering at EQUIDATE, San Francisco, US.UX/UI Designer at True North Business Exchange, San Francisco, US.Deep Learning Engineer Phd at 26 Venture, San Francisco, US.Investment Analyst at LaunchCapital,New Haven, US.Growth Hacker at Lurkin,Los Angeles, US.Strategy & Operations at EQUIDATE, San Francisco, US.Curated by Venture Pulse Team. Find us on : [ Venturepulse.org, CrunchBase,
AngelList ] |