How to pitch a venture capitalistCold calling is OK. Background research is essential. Don't just say what you think a VC wants to hear. These are among the words of wisdom that Tim Porter, managing director of Madrona Venture Group, and Trilogy Equity Partners venture partner Stephan Noll offered during last week's Techstars Seattle Startup Week. The duo shelled out tips on a range of topics, including introductions, pitching, funding and common mistakes when dealing with VCs. China now rivals U.S. in VC investmentsTwenty years ago, China’s manufacturing-based economy was one-ninth the size of the U.S. economy. The gap has closed tremendously, driven in large part by the explosive growth in the nation’s mobile-connected middle class. How explosive? Even living and working in China, sometimes it is difficult to appreciate the speed at which the innovation ecosystem is growing here. China is the second-largest venture capital market in the world and has seen VC fundraising more than double in the last two years, fueled by the global aspirations of the government, entrepreneurs, and investors. [ Venture Beat ] Why the Tech Industry Is No Better Than HollywoodWhen Amazon suspended its movie and film chief on Thursday after a producer accused him of sexual harassment, two things flashed through my head. The first was how meaningless internal corporate “investigations” have become. The producer, Isa Hackett, first told The Information of the 2015 alleged incident and internal investigation involving Roy Price, in August. Only after Hackett, emboldened by the revelations about Harvey Weinstein, shared the salacious details that spread on the web like wildfire, did Amazon suspend him. [ The Information ] There is no pink on display in the offices of Ellevest, an investment service designed for women. Instead, there is a turquoise rug at the entrance, a set of tufted window cushions in sea foam green, and a gold-painted message wall reminding visitors that here, “Details matter.” Other startups have beer on tap; Ellevest provides employees with a wine fridge. The atmosphere is unabashedly feminine, yes. But no pink. [ Fast Company ] Collection of the Best Readings For Founders (& Anyone Interested in Scaling Companies)Let’s be honest. Most business books aren’t that great. Even the famous ones. Think Collins’ Good to Great (see why). Even the most impacting ones are very flawed. Think Christensen’s Innovator Dilemma (see why). Yet, books can provide you incredible value. It’s like having a one-to-one meeting with a brillant mind. And for a dozen of euros you can have hours of unlimited access. On top of it, what takes you a couple of hours for reading, took them days, if not weeks to write. [ Medium ] Crypto Asset AllocationWhat I did say is that “true believers” in crypto might want to have 10-20% of their net worth in crypto assets. For many of these true believers that would be down from 80-100%. So, what do I think is a reasonable asset allocation to crypto for the average investor? Well to start, as I mentioned in that blog post, The Gotham Gal and I have about 5% of our net worth in crypto assets, across a number of vehicles; direct holdings, USV funds, token funds, etc. We have a fairly diversified crypto portfolio, likely much more diversified than most folks could do on their own. [ AVC ] How 2 former college roommates are helping people to get cheap lunches with their MealPal appThe Unsolicited Advice I Gave an Aspiring VC These 7 startups have raised $500M+ rounds this year |