From the Investors
Tom Tunguz of Redpoint Ventures explains how Internet of Things businesses could prosper from the subscription business model in “One of The Best Opportunities in The Next Decade“
Autodesk announces their $100 million Spark Investment Fund, the first fund focused on 3D software, infrastructure and hardware in “100+ Million Ways to Jumpstart 3D Printing“
Jason Lemkin of Storm Ventures urges SaaS founders to bite the bullet and hire VPs ‘of everything’ once they hit Initial Traction in “If You Don’t Think You Need a VP of Product, VP of Market, etc – Then You Haven’t Worked With a Great One“
Mark Suster of Upfront Ventures details the reasons why he invested in uBeam’s $10 million Series A in “The Audacious Plan to Make Electricity as Easy as WiFi“
Brad Feld of Foundry Group reflects on long term value and valuations, recommending ‘both parties should feel great about the situation’ in “The Trap of Relative Value“
Connie Loizos of StrictlyVC and Cameron Lester of Azure Capital discuss Yik Yak’s global user adoption, monetization plans and anti-bullying measures in “Yik Yak: The Startup in Twitter’s Rearview Mirror“
Satya Patel of Homebrew expands on four categories of skills ‘great PMs’ need to have in “What Makes a Great Product Manager?“
David Cummings of Atlanta Ventures briefs founders on five points to consider when a startup’s growth declines in “When Growth Stalls“
Li Jiang of GSV Capital highlights the ‘most prominent groups driving forward the Planetary Startup Movement’ in “The Players of Global Silicon Valley“
From the Operators
Daniel Harrison of CoinSpeaker contemplates public and private influences on employment, innovation and our own perceptions in “Walking A Fine Line: A Picture of Innovative Disruption (& Your Place In It)“
Shri Bhashyam of EquityZen responds to Buffer’s funding post with his thoughts on the impact of ‘thinking progressively about liquidity’ and ‘retaining control’ in “Is Buffer’s Series A a Paradigm Shift in Fundraising?“
The First Round Review covers Molly Graham of Quip’s strategy of how to find a ‘balance between a startup’s needs and keeping employees happy’ in “A Counterintuitive System for Startup Compensation“
Patrick J. Stewart of Applico believes user reputation data should be shared to improve marketplaces and customer experience in “The Sharing Economy’s Sharing Problem“
Ian Talley of Wall Street Journal points out major gaps in the ‘ease of starting a business’ around the world with the United States ranking 7th in “The Best and Worst Places in the World to Run a Business, Ranked by the World Bank“
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