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☆ Has the LA scene fizzled? SoCal has fallen further behind the Bay Area, NYC and Boston for startup funding: 'People deep in AI are just not in LA'
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

But last year, the LA tech scene stalled, according to Carta data. Startup funding plummeted everywhere, but nowhere experienced a steeper decline than LA, where funding declined 65% from 2022. CartaLA's startup funding dropped 65% last year, a steeper decline than the Bay Area, New York or Boston. "They're very deep AI companies, but they're being applied to a vertical, which is one of the strengths of LA," Ingersoll said. Bird goes bust and Snap snaps backThere was more bad news for LA's startup scene in 2023 than just the dismal funding numbers.

Persons: Ethan Aldrich, Aldrich, there's, Andreessen Horowitz, a16z, Katia Ameri, Ameri, VCs, Nikita Bier, Bier, Mark Suster, Suster, LA's, we're, Palmer Luckey, Minnie Ingersoll, Ingersoll, Bird, Zillow, Spencer Rascoff, Evan Spiegel ERIC PIERMONT, Ishan Singh, Singh Organizations: Stanford, Business, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Coatue Management, LA Tech, LA, Carta, Honest Company, New, Boston, Microsoft, Clark, SpaceX Locations: Santa Monica, Southern California, LA, Santa, Hayes, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York, New York, Boston, Carta, San Diego, Seattle, Hawthorne , CA, Costa, Bay

☆ Silicon Valley Founders and VCs Are Making Sobriety Popular
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Samantha Stokes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Sellers is among a growing contingent in the tech community that's going alcohol-free. From founders to investors, members of the startup community are eschewing booze in the name of staying sharp — and healthy. "About six months ago, I stopped drinking alcohol. That's really hard because in this industry, you have to be high energy. That's really hard because in this industry, you have to be high energy.

☆ Tesla's price cuts highlight Elon Musk's last advantage in the EV business
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Matt Turner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Teslas are cheaper than everA Tesla Model Y. Patrick Pleul/Getty ImagesIn the market for a new car? Elon Musk's hoping that recent price cuts might turn you on to a Tesla. The billionaire might just be turning to his one remaining advantage in the EV business. But Tesla can cut prices and still deliver profits, something rival automakers struggle to do in their EV businesses. While Tesla investors are worrying about profits, Musk's rivals have their own reasons to be concerned, Stephen Beck, founder and managing partner of consultancy cg42, told Insider.

☆ Upfront's Mark Suster created one of the most exclusive and glitziest gatherings in tech. But there's a dark side.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Mark Suster is managing partner of Upfront Ventures, a Los Angeles venture firmSuster's fastidiousness has created what many now consider one of the best tech conferences of the year. But Suster's abrasive, take-no-prisoners approach has also alienated some startup founders and investors. These luminaries were among the 1,000-plus attendees of last month's Upfront Summit, a glitzy, invite-only tech conference organized by Upfront Ventures and its managing partner, Mark Suster, in Los Angeles each year. "Mark and the Upfront Summit helped put LA tech and investing on the map," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, the cofounder of DreamWorks and WndrCo. Several years ago, a founder whose startup Suster invested in was in a conference room rehearsing their presentation for the Upfront Summit.

☆ Goldman Sachs' David Solomon had the right idea. But that's only half the problem.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

David Solomon at Goldman's 2023 investor day Screenshots by Emmalyse Brownstein and Dakin Campbell1. Goldman Sachs' $12.2 billion in revenue from Q1 fell short of analysts' estimates, which is never a good sign — but it's not a complete disaster. As Insider's Carter Johnson reported, there is a case to be made for a turnaround at Goldman led by its embattled CEO David Solomon. We've written a lot about the struggles at Goldman Sachs recently, and rightfully so. More on what David Solomon needs to do to get Goldman Sachs back on track.

☆ Upfront's Mark Suster has become the star of LA's booming startup scene. Not everyone is a fan.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +29 min

"I have worked with more than 50 VCs and nobody comes close to what it is like to work with Mark Suster," said a founder backed by Suster. "Mark and the Upfront Summit helped put LA tech and investing on the map," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, the cofounder of DreamWorks and WndrCo. Several years ago, a founder whose startup Suster invested in was in a conference room rehearsing their presentation for the Upfront Summit. If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse. "If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse."

☆ How Larry Page's flying-car company of the future turned into a stunning failure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Although I'm currently pretty homesick and jet lagged, I'm blessed with "the life-changing magic of working from home." One worker told my colleague Rebecca Knight how remote work transformed her life and how returning to the office has killed company morale. The stunning failure of Google founder Larry Page's flying-car company. In April 2022, company morale plummeted when it axed one of its most promising projects, those former insiders say. The company put together a thorough document to help managers navigate pay-related conversations with employees, and Insider got a look.

Greg Becker, who was the longtime CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, pictured last year. "Looks like Silicon Valley Bank is in some deep shit," Uncommon Capital general partner Jamie Quint tweeted. Startup founders scrambled to get their funds out of Silicon Valley Bank after its collapse. Andreessen Horowitz announced this week that it will continue banking with Silicon Valley Bank "for the foreseeable future" but is crafting a longer-term plan to diversify. Even so, he added, "I think we'd be supportive, as they stabilize, for them to be one of many partners that our founders bank with."

☆ Venture capitalists have never been more divided, with accusations flying over who killed their beloved bank SVB. How long will the bad blood last?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

But in the past week, VCs aired their dirty laundry for all the world to see. Still, VCs say they have no choice but to set aside their differences and work together in the future. "Silicon Valley Bank was such a great friend of VCs for so many years that it was just really disappointing to see so many VCs work so quickly to kill it." But in the past week, VCs aired their dirty laundry for all the world to see, criticizing those who they say triggered a $42 billion bank run that doomed SVB. There's been particular animus for Founder's Fund, the venture firm founded by billionaire Peter Thiel that backed Facebook and Airbnb.

☆ SVB collapse was driven by ‘the first Twitter fueled bank run’
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —The massive amount of customer withdrawals that led to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank had all the hallmarks of an old-fashioned bank run, but with a new twist befitting the primary industry the bank served: much of it unfolded online. Customers withdrew $42 billion in a single day last week from Silicon Valley Bank, leaving the bank with $1 billion in negative cash balance, the company said in a regulatory filing. “It was the speed, fueled by zero distribution costs for both rumors and withdrawals, that was so destabilizing.”Silicon Valley Bank was arguably uniquely susceptible to those factors given its tech-focused customer base. The next day, the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation stepped in and took control of the bank, which only added to the viral panic on Twitter. “THAT IS THE PROPER REACTION.”Hours later, the Biden administration stepped in and guaranteed the bank’s customers would have access to all their money starting Monday.

☆ SVB is the first social media bank run in history. The crisis will change the banking industry forever.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

It's an all out bank run," founder Howard Lerman tweeted on Thursday when SVB was trying to raise new capital. "The thing about a bank run is that there's no upside to keeping your money in the at-risk bank," wrote Xavier Helgesen of Enduring Ventures the same day. Another deleted tweet says, "As one of probably the few founders to go through a modern bank run, get your money out now. Some tech types who banked with SVB have even deleted tweets they put out in support of the bank. 'MONDAY, BLOODY MONDAY'Meanwhile, Jason Calcanis and David Sacks, tech founders turned investors, have been tweeting about little but SVB since Thursday.

After a bank run of $42 billion in withdrawals, Silicon Valley Bank was shut down by regulators on Friday. The founders were banking at Silicon Valley Bank and wanted to switch banks immediately after being told by their venture investors that the bank was suffering from "liquidity issues." The go-to bank of Silicon ValleySilicon Valley Bank has been a pillar of the startup of ecosystem for four decades, acting as the go-to financial institution for VC fundraising and building strong ties with founders and investors alike. This helped bolster SVB's reputation as the go-to bank of Silicon Valley in the good times, but exacerbated the crisis when it hit Thursday and Friday. "If you're given responsibility to run this iconic Silicon Valley company, you need some humility."

☆ Venture capitalists are blaming each other for triggering the disastrous collapse of Silicon Valley Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Jordan Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has sent shockwaves through the tech industry. The failure of Silicon Valley Bank sent startup founders reeling on Friday as many lost access to their funds. In the wake of the abrupt collapse, venture capitalists are blaming each other for playing a role in the largest bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis. Ultimately, that's exactly what happened, Mark Suster, a manager partner at Upfront Ventures, told Insider on Friday. "This emergency was not helped by investors going into a frenzy and orchestrating a bank run," she told Insider.

☆ More than 110 VC firms, led by General Catalyst, are banding together in support of Silicon Valley Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( April Joyner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

More than 110 venture capital firms have signed a statement in support of Silicon Valley Bank. "Silicon Valley Bank has been a trusted and long-time partner to the venture capital industry and our founders," a joint statement from more than 110 firms reads. Hemant Taneja, the CEO of the VC firm General Catalyst, which led the effort to organize support for SVB, tweeted the statement on Friday evening. Alongside General Catalyst, 12 other firms signed the initial statement, including Accel, Greylock, Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Upfront Ventures. Some VC firms, including Founders Fund, Y Combinator, and Union Square Ventures, advised their portfolio companies to pull the bulk of their funds out of the bank.

☆ Investors implore the government to step in after Silicon Valley Bank failure
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Matt Rosoff | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Big names in Silicon Valley and the finance sector are calling publicly for the federal government to push another bank to assume Silicon Valley Bank's assets and obligations after the financial institution failed on Friday. But the vast majority of SVB's customers were businesses that had more than that on deposit at the bank. As of December, more than 95% of the bank's deposits were uninsured, according to regulatory filings. Investors are concerned that these failures could reduce confidence in the banking sector, particularly mid-sized banks with under $250 billion in deposits. "This was a hysteria-induced bank run caused by VCs," Ryan Falvey, a fintech investor at Restive Ventures, told CNBC on Friday.

☆ I believe you'll see this bank purchased by Sunday night or soon after, says Upfront Ventures' Mark Suster
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailI believe you'll see this bank purchased by Sunday night or soon after, says Upfront Ventures' Mark SusterCNBC's Deirdre Bosa and Upfront Ventures' Mark Suster joins 'Power Lunch' to discuss the Silicon Valley Bank panic, diversifying to reduce risk and making depositors whole.

Silicon Valley Bank's stock price plummeted Tuesday after it announced it would sell fresh shares. Founders who bank with SVB say they're not yet worried and are calling for calm. As a meltdown unfolds at Silicon Valley Bank, startup founders who bank with the storied institution are calling for calm. "They are the go-to bank for Silicon Valley. In essence, a bank run -- Silicon Valley style.

☆ SVB rivals pounce, pitching startups on moving their money away from the struggling bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Ben Bergman | Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

With Silicon Valley Bank in crisis, rivals pounced, publicly encouraging tech clients to move their money. SVB lends money to startups and keeps their cash deposits, so they can pay staff and other expenses. If startups are worried the bank can't give them all their money back from their bank accounts, then they might pull their accounts. The banker described their phone ringing off the hook Thursday with panicked startup founders and CEOs desperate to move their money away from SVB. "We also left our own money in SVB," Mark Suster, managing partner at Upfront Ventures tweeted Thursday.

☆ Silicon Valley Bank collapse sends tech industry into a panic
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Following the bank’s collapse on Friday, uncertainty in the startup community only grew. Founders Fund, an influential venture capital firm founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, reportedly advised its portfolio companies to pull money from the bank. “SVB is the most important capital provider to tech startups and the biggest supporter of the community,” he said in a tweet. “Now is the time to support them.”The rapidly unfolding fallout at Silicon Valley Bank comes at a challenging moment for the tech industry. Now, the bank’s collapse risks compounding the industry’s cash crunch and broader turbulence.

Silicon Valley Bank has long been considered the lifeblood for tech startups, providing traditional banking services while funding projects and companies deemed too risky for traditional lenders. For the Silicon Valley region, the troubles land at a particularly difficult time. As a large regulated bank, SVB has been viewed as a stabilizing force. Orn called SVB a "crown jewel of Silicon Valley" and a "strong franchise" that he expects to survive this difficult period and even potentially get acquired by a bigger bank. S&P lowered its rating on SVB to BBB- from BBB, leaving it just one notch above its junk rating.

☆ 'Gnarly term sheets' and a 'terrible deal for founders:' VC heavyweights are raising alarms about the buildup of startup venture debt, warning it could imperil future deals
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

But now some industry heavyweights are raising the alarm about the massive build up of venture debt, warning it could imperil future deals. Why startups raise debtStartups tend to raise venture debt alongside traditional equity. "Venture debt makes sense in an environment in which founders are generally able to raise the next round and then pay back the venture debt." A venture debt reckoningSamir Kaji, a former venture debt lender and host of the Venture Unlocked podcast, recently took to twitter to weigh in on the venture debt reckoning. Venture debt has traditionally seen credit loss rates much lower than other private lenders, but that could soon be changing.

☆ 11 podcasts that busy venture capitalists and founders say they trust right now
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Robin Madell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Investors at JetBlue Ventures, Mighty Capital, and other VC firms shared their favorite podcasts. Another recommendation is "Origins" by partners at the biotech VC firm Notation Capital. Here are 11 great options, recommended by VCs, founders, CEOs, and other industry insiders. "The main thing about the VC world is building relationships, and Harry is an example of a great networker," Gershfeld said. "BTC is the single-most important asset in the world, and that podcast gets to the heart of why that is."

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