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☆ Andreessen Horowitz is in the midst of a reshuffle to sharpen its focus on AI, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Ben Bergman | Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Andreessen Horowitz is reshuffling parts of its investment organization to sharpen its focus on artificial intelligence, according to people with knowledge of the situation. The changes will center the venture capital firm on two main themes: AI applications and AI infrastructure, the people said. The AI applications group is being headed by general partner Alex Rampell, according to the sources. General partner Martin Casado, who focuses on enterprise deals, will oversee another group investing in AI infrastructure, the people said. Do you have information about A16z or another venture firm?

Persons: Andreessen Horowitz, Alex Rampell, Rampell, Martin Casado, Margit Wennmachers, Casado, Jeff Jordan, Databricks, A16z, Pretzels, Vinod Khosla, Khosla, Ben Bergman, Melia Russell, mrussell@insider.com Organizations: US, A16z, VMware Locations: Silicon Valley, Airbnb, bbergman@insider.com

☆ 'Be a disciplined company.' How Klaviyo broke the IPO dry spell, according to its CEO.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

CEO Andrew Bialecki told Insider that being a "disciplined company" was key to its success. Jeff Bussgang, a general partner at Flybridge Capital Partners in Boston, told The Boston Globe in an interview, "I'm seeing green shoots — it's definitely back on the agenda for boards." KlaviyoBialecki told Insider he tried to run a "disciplined company," one of two ingredients to its success. "There's a false choice here between being high growth and doing things efficiently," Bialecki told Insider. Are you a Klaviyo insider with insight to share?

Persons: Klaviyo, Andrew Bialecki, Bialecki, Tomasz Tunguz, Jason Lemkin, Jeff Bussgang, — it's, Ed Hallen, it's, Hallen, Klaviyo Bialecki, That's, Klaviyo Bootstrapping, Jon Karlen, Karlen, Melia Russell Organizations: Service, Klaviyo, New York Stock Exchange, Flybridge Capital Partners, Boston Globe, Securities and Exchange Commission, Boston Locations: Wall, Silicon, Instacart, Boston, BostInno, Massachusetts, mrussell@insider.com

☆ Lending startup Captain raised $107 million in the boom times. Now it's up for sale amid layoffs and a capital drought.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Melia Russell | Rob Price | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Captain, a startup that aimed to quicken home repairs after natural disasters, is winding down. The Louisville-based company had previously raised $107 million across venture and debt equity. CartaMany early-stage startups such as Captain, which had raised $107 million across equity and debt capital, have struggled to raise new funding as a drought in venture capital spreads through Silicon Valley. Liabilities pile upThe company relies on debt financing to pay contractors upfront for materials, supplies, and labor costs. In his email, Gray said prospective buyers were aware of the outstanding liabilities and the sale price would be used to satisfy those liabilities, "with wages being the most paramount," he said.

Persons: Demetrius Gray, Gray, Captain, Red Swan, Pete Flint, Flint, PATRICK T, FALLON, Talent, Melia Russell, Rob Price Organizations: quicken, Carta, TechCrunch, GGV, fintech, Munich Re, San Francisco Superior Court Locations: The Louisville, Silicon Valley, Carta, Louisville , Kentucky, NFX, CoVenture, Munich, Maui

☆ The 23 most important VCs in the Rocky Mountain region, according to other VCs
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The Rocky Mountains are luring venture capitalists from tech hubs like Silicon Valley and New York. In 2022, according to data gathered by Carta, Denver was the 11th-busiest metropolitan area for venture investment in the country, with more than $2 billion in capital raised on Carta. Startups in Salt Lake City collected another $900 million in funding last year. In 2022, Denver and Boulder, Colorado, and Salt Lake City, Utah, ranked among the top 20 metropolitan statistical areas by venture investment. CartaOur list includes both seasoned venture capitalists who have been elevating Rocky Mountain tech for years and ambitious newcomers looking to strike gold in an overlooked territory.

Persons: Chris Sacca Organizations: Carta, Rockies, Rocky, Foundry Group Locations: Silicon, New York, Denver, Boulder , Colorado, Salt Lake City , Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Carta, Salt Lake City, Boulder

☆ Startup studio Fractal created 130 companies in 3 years. Founders say the deal structure has led VCs to 'blacklist' them.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Melia Russell | Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

www.fractalsoftware.comOf the dozens of Fractal startups that have raised a seed round of funding, about half had Bienville Capital lead the deal, according to people familiar with the matter. Others say they knew what they were getting into with a venture studio, where a large ownership position is standard. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty ImagesThe biggest draw for some Fractal founders was its plug-and-play approach. The founder of one Fractal startup remembered a time when his company was struggling to grow its customer base. That firm is raising a new $325 million fund to provide additional funding to Fractal companies exclusively, according to a person familiar with the effort.

Persons: Fractal's, he'd, they'd, Andreessen Horowitz, Mike Furlong, Nate Baker, Bienville, —, Brendan Smialowski, Founders, Angela Lee, Furlong, Baker, Ezra Shaw, who'd, who's, It's, Lee, She's, 8VC, Bain, Jeff Greenberg, Omri Bloch, who've, didn't, Stephanie Palazzolo, Melia Russell Organizations: Flatiron Health, Bienville, Insight Partners, Bienville Capital, Getty, Columbia Business School, Alpha, Midwest, Science, Olympic Club, Tiger Global, Craft Ventures, Founders, Vertical Venture Partners, Zag, Crew Capital, Bain Capital, Universal, Foundation, Fifth Locations: Bienville Capital, New York, Bienville, Indio, AFP, Santa Monica , California, Miami, San Francisco, GreenSpark, Columbia, Barti, Aktos, Bessemer, 8VC

☆ A startup 'mass extinction event' has begun. You can't see it clearly yet, but it's going to be bad.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Alistair Barr | Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Startups raised a ridiculous amount of money in recent years through 2021. Startup failure rate is beginning to increase, from artificially low levels in 2021, and there could be a wave of capitulation in the next year where an unusually large number of startups shut down. There was a frenzy of investment, where startups raised massive amounts of money and some businesses got funding that maybe shouldn't have. The money spigot has run dryNow, the money spigot has run dry (except if you're an AI startup). There was so much money raised in recent years that startups have a lot of runway to survive.

Persons: Tom Loverro, Klarna, Loverro, VCs, spigot, pare, We'll, Melia Russell Organizations: Venture, Street Journal, Tiger Global

☆ Exclusive: Fractal, a New York venture studio, is laying off staff and will stop creating new startups
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Melia Russell | Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

The venture studio Fractal Software will no longer start new companies, Insider has learned. Fractal Software, a venture studio that creates startups by hatching its own ideas and hiring founders to execute, has laid off staff and will stop starting new companies, Insider has learned. At least 28 employees, about 25% of staff, have left Fractal in the past six months, according to LinkedIn. Fractal confirmed layoffs occurred starting in December, but would not specify the number of employees affected. Fractal has a few more startups in the pipeline, with a goal of launching 145 companies, two people familiar with the company's strategy said.

Persons: Omri Bloch, That's, Joe Lonsdale's 8VC, Bienville, Melia Russell, Stephanie Palazzolo Organizations: New, Software, Investors, Tiger Global, Bienville Capital, Securities and Exchange Commission, Twitter Locations: New York, 8VC, Bienville

Andreessen Horowitz is preparing to launch a fund of funds to invest in other startup backers. A16z has already been courting up-and-coming fund managers at events in San Francisco and LA. The venture-capital powerhouse Andreessen Horowitz has in recent months been in discussions to form a fund of funds focused on early-stage investing, according to multiple people familiar with the project. In recent months, the firm has started to court up-and-coming fund managers with events in San Francisco and Los Angeles, according to three sources familiar with the firm's plans. Partners at crossover fund Tiger Global tried a similar strategy in recent years, committing $1 billion to back an array of early-stage venture funds.

☆ He's played chess with Peter Thiel, sparred with Elon Musk and once, supposedly, stopped a plane crash: Inside Sam Altman's world, where truth is stranger than fiction
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Melia Russell | Julia Black | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +41 min

But, "you do at some point need to start having contact with reality," he told Insider. The plan was still only a rough sketch, Blania told Insider, but that didn't seem to matter to his host. "He always wanted to understand everything at a very deep level," Thrun told Insider in an email. (When asked about guns, Altman told Insider he'd been "happy to have one both times my home was broken into while I was there.") When asked about this, Altman told Insider in an email: "i can guess what that's about; these stories grow crazily inflated over the years of getting re-told!

☆ Sam Altman is building his utopia, whether you want it or not
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Melia Russell | Julia Black | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +41 min

Altman told Insider, "We debate our approach frequently and carefully." "I don't think anyone can lose your dad young and wish he didn't have more time with him," Altman told Insider. Altman told Insider that his thinking had evolved since those posts. (When asked about guns, Altman told Insider he'd been "happy to have one both times my home was broken into while I was there.") When asked about this, Altman told Insider in an email: "i can guess what that's about; these stories grow crazily inflated over the years of getting re-told!

☆ In leaked document, Ohio venture capitalist and Sequoia alum Mark Kvamme shows off plans for a $500 million state-focused fund
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

VC Mark Kvamme is raising $500 million for something akin to a sovereign wealth fund for Ohio. Dubbed The Ohio Fund, the investment company will be funded by Ohio institutions and individuals. The Ohio Fund will need to hire investors who founders want to work with. Mark Kwamme, partner emeritus at Drive Capital, is raising a statewide fund in his home state, Ohio. If The Ohio Fund reaches its fundraising goals, Kvamme, according to the presentation, plans to serve as president and chief investment officer.

☆ 27 women in venture capital who made partner or higher at firms like Andreessen Horowitz and Lightspeed in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Melia Russell | Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

But more firms made moves to close the gender gap in 2022, hiring and promoting female partners and general partners. PitchBook data indicates that the share of women in decision-making roles at venture firms held steady year over year, with women representing 16% of general partners at firms with over $50 million in assets. To toast their success, Insider is recognizing the women in venture capital who made partner or general partner for the first time in 2022. You can read more on Europe's new female partners here. Let us know who we missed — investing partners or general partners only, please — by contacting Melia Russell at mrussell@insider.com

☆ Andreessen Horowitz's buzzy tech publication Future is shutting down
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Rob Price | Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

A source familiar with Andreessen Horowitz's content strategy confirmed to Insider that Future is shutting down. An Andreessen Horowitz spokesperson declined to comment on the record. Joe LonsdaleIn this new climate, many tech and venture firms' media strategy has shifted from glorified marketing to a more full-fledged editorial operation. In 2021, an army of more than two dozen marketers at Andreessen Horowitz doubled down on this approach. Disclosure: Melia Russell's husband is a former employee of Andreessen Horowitz.

☆ Women in venture capital are writing the rules of maternity leave and bending the male-dominated culture to their will
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Melia Russell | Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

And with more women entering the male-dominated venture industry, firms are being forced to craft maternity leave policies on the fly to accommodate new mothers. Forty years ago, the clubby male world of venture capital admitted so few women that maternity leave as a benefit was effectively nonexistent. "There is no playbook about how to take maternity leave or raise a family while also accelerating your career as an investor." Lux CapitalLike in many male-dominated industries, maternity leave as a benefit for investors doesn't come up in conversation until someone needs it. Though, the best policies, investors said, give women choices about how they operate on leave, rather than prescribing a one-size-fits-all leave.

☆ Here are 39 startup founders using their business chops to help other founders prosper
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Many startup founders are also active startup investors. Behind a great startup founder, more often than not, is another founder advising and investing in their potential. Founders often seek out other founders to join their cap tables because they know what it takes to build a successful and enduring company. Even in a funding crunch, these startup founders and operators are still writing lots of checks, three dozen investors tell Insider. For this list, we reached into our network of founders and investors to identify those who both run companies and invest.

☆ Women in venture capital who made partner or higher at firms like Andreessen Horowitz and Lightspeed in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-04-06 | by ( Melia Russell | Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Each year, more women barrel through the doors of venture capital's boy's club. However, progress slowed in a tough macro environment. PitchBook data indicates that the share of women in decision-making roles at venture firms held steady year over year, with women representing 16% of general partners at firms with more than $50 million in assets in the US. To toast their success, Insider is recognizing the women in venture capital who made partner or general partner for the first time in 2022. Let us know who we missed — investing partners or general partners only, please — by contacting Melia Russell at mrussell@insider.com

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