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I personally blame my MIT classmate Aileen Lee, formerly with Kleiner Perkins, who coined the term Unicorn , a private company valued at over a billion dollars. Like Jerry Yang who started Yahoo, as investors we are looking for entrepreneurs who are obsessed with a new technology. We’ve heard it all before.
I didn’t take their interest seriously until I saw the news in December that John Maeda, the former President of the Rhode Island School of Design, joined venerable VC firm Kleiner Perkins. I’m sure I speak for design-oriented entrepreneurs everywhere when I say that it’s about time. He’s the Valley’s first-ever Design Partner.
The big news in the venture capital world is that John Doerr, legendary partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, is moving into a new role as the firm’s first chair, where he’ll be what he describes as a “player coach” to support the firm’s next generation of leaders.
Most great businesspeople I've met would correctly advise an entrepreneur to avoid raising money if possible. When you are ready to raise money, scratch Sequoia, Kleiner, and maybe one or two other top dogs off your preview list. Many entrepreneurs are excited or flattered when they hear from associates or analysts at venture funds.
Kleiner Perkins analyst Mary Meeker showed in her influential 2013 D11 address that “wearable computing is coming on strong, faster than the typical 10 year cycle” of tech trends. Entrepreneurs who don’t want to buy a 3D printer can always try out one of the new DIY fabrication studios popping up. HISTORIC GROWTH IN WEARABLES.
In addition, venture firms are constantly scouring for opportunities to get their invested company acquired, which is an increasingly attractive exit route for digital entrepreneurs, given the IPO’s long-drawn process and mandated holding-period requirements for initial investors.
Contrary to conventional wisdom, the most dangerous period for entrepreneurs is not when they start up from scratch but when they scale up for growth. Many entrepreneurs who are propelled into a sudden growth trajectory think mostly about raising risk-sharing equity investment from venture capitals or private “angels.”
Venture capitalists help entrepreneurs to scale their companies for an IPO or acquisition by another company. So Page and Brin are different from such legendary venture capitalists as John Doerr at Kleiner Perkins and Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowtitz, the two founders of Andreessen Horowitz.
Comstock was telling me about the company's growing innovation platform, the GE Ecomagination Challenge which inspires collaboration between GE and entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs need GE: Crossing the "Valley of death". GE needs entrepreneurs: Challenging assumptions. Entrepreneurs are put on this Earth to challenge assumptions.
Ted Schlein, general partner at Kleiner Perkins, was recently invited to discuss race and investment in technology. And so all ears were tuned in when well-known VC Ted Schlein of Kleiner Perkins started talking… but Ted denied there was a problem. By venture capitalists’ individual actions, they are limiting growth and innovation.
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