Historically, startups raise capital in “rounds” – financing events that take place every 1-2 years. They raise enough money to hit their next milestone(s) and raise another round or achieve profitability; they typically aim for enough cash to provide ~18 months of runway. The first round is a Seed round, then a Series A, then […]
Defining a “Fair Deal”
I was recently asked by a new entrepreneur for thoughts on “fair terms” for a preferred equity financing. I have been through the negotiating process for a new round, as the new investor and as a company representative, many times, but admit I had never written down how I think about what is “fair” concerning […]
Startup Valuations
Valuation – the monetary value of a company – is the source of much worry on the part of the typical entrepreneur. But it need not be such a tremendous stressor. Certainly, valuation matters, but, for early-stage startups, it is much less a reflection of intrinsic value or accomplishment and much more a product of […]
CoVenture Annual Letter to Investors
For the second year, we at CoVenture sent a year-end letter to our limited partners. We’re sharing it here, with only confidential information edited out. To our investors and friends, As we kickoff 2017, we want to take this opportunity to look back on another eventful year for CoVenture. We also want to share […]
Randy Pausch on Time Management
Randy Pausch was a professor of Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction and Design at Carnegie Mellon University. He co-founded CMU’s Entertainment Technology Center and founded the Alice software project, a precursor to Scratch, Vidcode, and other software programs intended to teach coding skills. In September 2006, Professor Pausch was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. In August, 2007, […]