Duncan Davidson talks COVID response: what we we did right and wrong, and what needs to happen next
Davidson will be a part of Vator's Healthcare in Politics salon on October 7
Read more...If there is one area along the investment spectrum that's getting a lot of attention, it's the seed- to early-stage. Look no further than the recent entrants into this space, including traditional VCs, newly-minted millionaires and Super Angels. Greylock recently launched its Discovery Fund to invest as little as $25,000 into startups, and ex-Googlers, including Thomas Korte, are gearing up to put some $25,000 of their own money into each startup enrolled in AngelPad's 10-week incubator program. And, Super Angels, like Aydin Senkut, are raising funds.
Everyone's getting into the game and is making investing challenging for investors, like Dave McClure, prolific-angel-investor-turned-venture-capitalist. Dave, an investor in Mint (sold to Intuit), SendGrid, Crowdflower and Slideshare, to name a few, is the founder of 500 Startups, which is earmarked to be a $30-million fund.
"Prices are higher," said Dave, in our interview. The pre-money valuation range for seed deals are going for $3 million to $6 million, compared to $2 million to $3 million just 18 months ago. The reason that prices are getting bid up is because there are more people involved in the ealier stages, he said. Making matters worse, angel investors are not as price sensitive as VCs, and less concerned with the relative perspective on valuation and returns, said Dave.
He'd know. Prior to managing his fund, he'd consider himself one of those less-disciplined angel investors.
But fund managers, like himself, who invest between $25,000 and $250,000 of other people's money need to "maintain some financial discipline in terms of valuation in order to achieve target returns for their investors."
They also need a hook.
Unlike a lot of investors who seek to hit homeruns, or invest in hyper-growth stories targeting big macro markets, Dave's approach to investing is atypical and perhaps heretical in the Valley, but quite frankly commonsensical, given the shift in corporate R&D strategies.
"Our fund is more open to potentially smaller market-sized opportunities," he said, explaining that more non-tech companies will be looking to acquire new technologies. And Dave's bet is that his startups will be ripe for sale.
Finally, while prices are high in the earlier stages of investing, Dave points out that over the past three months, he's also starting to see inflation in the prices for Series A and B rounds. This may be even more disconcerting he said as his portfolio companies may actually get those prices in their next rounds/
Why is this bad? These high valuations put startups on this "rocket ship of high expectations," he said.
And, when you're on that rocket ship, you're expected to reach the moon.
(Watch our next interview as Dave shares more details about his investment philosophy. Also, stay tuned for our upcoming Vator Box segment, in which Dave and Thomas Korte analyze Tripping and Everloop.)
Founder and CEO of Vator, a media and research firm for entrepreneurs and investors; Managing Director of Vator Health Fund; Co-Founder of Invent Health; Author and award-winning journalist.
All author postsDavidson will be a part of Vator's Healthcare in Politics salon on October 7
Read more...Artificial or not, intelligence is already woven into every part of life
Read more...Entrepreneurship is about finding solutions to challenges in real time
Read more...Startup/Business
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Everloop provides kids under 13 a free, safe space where they can connect with friends, play games, share pictures and music, send messages, discover new talents and learn. Everloop’s unique patent-pending “looping” technology introduces state-of-the-art privacy protection and monitoring that guards young users against bullying, bad language and sharing private information. Everloop partners with leading innovators to provide both tween-focused entertainment and educational activities. Kids get to be in the loop and parents get peace of mind. For more information visit http://www.everloop.com.
Awards:
-CEO Hilary DeCesare: AlwaysOn’s “2010 Top 25 Women in Tech to Watch”
-2010 DEMOgod Award for Social Media
-AlwaysOnGlobal2010
-AlwaysOnHollywood 100
-Board of Directors of The Max Cure Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Causes
- Board of Advisory for The Max Cure Fund at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
-Speaker at 2011 Youth Mega Mash Up Event
-Invited to Innovator Spotlight at Pii 2010
-CEO Hilary DeCesare invited to speak at President Obama's Cyber Safety Summit
-2010 Winner of Global Entrepreneurship 50
-2010 Winner Best in Class Social Media
Startup/Business
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Tripping gives travelers a safe and easy way to connect with local people for tips, shared cups of coffee and even home stays.
We launched in January and already have thousands of members from 100+ countries. Our partners include Ivy League universities, study abroad programs, major rock bands and international volunteer organizations.
To learn more, visit https://www.tripping.com.
Angel group/VC
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AngelPad is a mentorship program founded by a team of ex-Googlers to help web-technology startups build better products, attract additional funding and ultimately grow more successful businesses.
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