Alex Bangash

First-time founders focus on product Second-time founders focus on distribution Lifetime founders focus on the mission

Gratitude is the single biggest indicator of integrity.

@crunchbase A unicorn is surely a company that returns $B to its investors. A unicorn may also be a company that gets to a $B in high-quality, high-margin revenue But it's definitely not a capital-consumptive company that someone overpaid for with a $B pricetag.

🔍🦄 Spotting the next unicorn just got easier. Meet The Crunchbase Emerging Unicorn Board, a curated list of 300+ startups that are on the path to being the next billion-dollar companies: bit.ly/3rwVAo2

All founders should read this book.

@chamath Number of startups invested in:

Number of days “sheltering in place”: 9 Number of hours at home per day: 23 Number of books read: still zero!

@matthewclifford We live in a transparent world. Their LPs will be the first to know.

Hearing about some horribly exploitative behaviour from VCs in the current environment. By the time this is through we’re going to have a much longer list of people we can’t recommend our founders work with...

@fdestin @Samirkaji @efounders @tiboel STUDIO = VERY HARD lots of fakes studios. efounders are great in SaaS. @Merantix with @rasmusrothe @AdrianLocher are great in ML.

@Samirkaji Studio model = HARD. We have a successful one here in Europe called @efounders from @tiboel — they managed to crack the code on finding real entrepreneurs to run them 👍

3 things I'm most excited about in micro/emerging-VC right now - Non-coastal funds - Significant infusion of diversity (gender and POC). - High ownership studio/co-creation models

Early Stage VC is 100% power-law so Diversification of returns matters less. Individual investments have capped downside /exponential upside Late-stage VC is increasingly a normal distribution w significant downside & capped upside So diversification of returns matters

@zachperret Same in Norway :-)

Spent a few days in Finland last week. They have a wonderful saying: “There is no bad weather, only bad clothes.”

@satyap @zachperret @homebrew Limited Partners end up paying the fees when the fund pays and, in most cases when the company pays because it comes from the financing.

VC’s still charge portfolio companies for their legal fees and board meeting travel.

There is no credential for independent thinking buff.ly/2tejARw

@arampell Click bait

This is the top “story” in the NYT app right now. Such a ridiculously sensationalist headline — confusing correlation and causation isn’t enough, might as well figure out how to present a broad policy (Opportunity Zones) through the cartoon-like representation of a “villain”

Sometimes it is the very VCs no LP can imagine anything of who produce the returns that no LP can imagine.

@vladciurca I have interest only in the craziest most ambitious ideas, irrespective of geography, which the herd isn't willing to back.

@AlexBangash And do you have any interest in Eastern Europe?

In my first 12 years as an LP, I backed founders that backed founders. Now I simply back founders building Studios Platforms API-based funds

@vladciurca EF, YC, SaaStr

@AlexBangash What do you count as platforms?

@KenHowery @usembassysweden Congratulations Ken

Honored to have been confirmed by the Senate today as the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Sweden. An ambassadorship is a position of honor and trust, and I will strive to do credit to the office. I look forward to being sworn in soon and beginning my work at @USEmbassySweden.

@jasonlk So true. That's why great founders should continue to be founders of studios and platforms.

one thing that makes me sad is when great founder becomes a VC & then in like 6-12 months has that VC look in his eyes & all meetings become transactional & judges everyone by how hot the deal is and it's all about "my partner this" and founders become lines on a chart

Smart VC managers stick to past models like AOL, Blockbuster, Kodak. Squeezing every last dollar until they fall by the wayside Four Reasons why good VCs fail - Generational Issues - Their networks atrophy - They raise too much money - The game changes; they get DISRUPTED