Archive: software
The Early Investing Podcast: Adobe’s Pricey Figma Acquisition
By Early Investing on September 28, 2022
It’s a tale as old as time. A startup creates a great product, generating lots of sales and happy customers. A corporate behemoth tries to compete with the startup by launching its own version of the product. The corporate behemoth fails miserably and decides to buy the startup with the superior product. Then everyone lives happily ever after — or not, if the behemoth ruins the product. The latest version of this story stars Figma —…
Bloomstack Pivots, Seems on Track to Survive and Thrive
By Andy Gordon on April 14, 2022
We recommended Bloomstack last June. We liked founder and CEO Eric Delisle’s idea of combining all the systems and platforms cannabis operators use into a single platform. Not only was it a great idea, but it also seemed to be working. Bloomstack was…
Startup Insider: Data Takes Over
By Early Investing on March 28, 2022
In 2011, Marc Andreessen — co-founder of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz — proclaimed that “software is eating the world.” It’s been a mantra of tech investors ever since. But today an even more powerful force is overtaking software: data. Data is a gold mine for…
Data Is Eating the World
By Vin Narayanan on March 23, 2022
For more than 10 years, “software is eating the world” has been an article of faith among startup investors. Marc Andreessen — co-founder of both Netscape and venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) — wrote these famous words in a blog post in…
Hardware Startups Have a Secret Strength
By Andy Gordon on March 3, 2021
Hardware is risky. Making something you can touch and feel usually takes more money and time than developing software products. Yet five out of the last seven startups I recommended to my First Stage Investor members are hardware (or hybrid hardware and…
The Real Lesson of the Snowflake IPO
By Adam Sharp on September 18, 2020
On Wednesday, Snowflake (SNOW) went public in one of the most highly anticipated IPOs ever. Snowflake is a cloud data platform that helps companies efficiently organize and analyze huge databases. The company’s revenue is growing at a rapid 133%…
Only Days Left to Invest in Better Conflict Resolution
By Early Investing on August 27, 2020
It’s not often that companies and workers alike line up to use new HR dispute resolution software. Yet that’s exactly what’s happening with People First RH. It’s why Andy Gordon first recommended investing in the startup to First Stage Investor members in June.
Why Startups Should Be in Every Portfolio
By Adam Sharp on December 3, 2019
We’re headed for a long-overdue recession. So it’s a great time to invest in startups.
Mailbag: Defining Reasonable Revenue Growth
By Early Investing on October 27, 2019
In this week’s Mailbag, the Early Investing team explains reasonable revenue growth numbers and underperforming IPOs.
T. Boone Pickens’ Real Legacy Has Nothing to Do With Oil
By Vin Narayanan on September 14, 2019
This week, the News Fix is dedicated to legendary disruptor T. Boone Pickens. His true legacy went far beyond oil.
What to Look for in a Software as a Service Company
By Adam Sharp on August 13, 2019
Software as a service companies are some of the hottest investments around. Here’s how to find standout companies in the sector.
News Fix: Software Startups Take Over, Florida Moves Closer to Legalizing Smokable Medical Marijuana
By Vin Narayanan on February 16, 2019
In this week’s News Fix, software is taking over the startup world, J.P. Morgan unveils its own cryptocurrency and Comcast tries to connect with startups.
Equity Crowdfunding Is Hitting Its Stride
By Adam Sharp on February 1, 2019
Software is changing the way every business operates. It spells trouble for large, debt-laden companies that are slow to modernize their tech, but it’s a huge opportunity for startups.