Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
thestartupcafe.com
Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
1–10 of 14 posts
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#2As someone who lives in LA and is currently bootstrapping a startup, I would love to see more $$ poured in to the LA startup scene.
It seems like LA has largely been ignored by VC and angel investors.
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#3Letting politicians decide which startups get funded and which don't seems like an inevitable way to let politics get in the way of merit:
- Politically-connected startups get funded first
- Political goals other than merit (diversity, "social justice," etc) are used as criteria
- Arbitrary political limitations get placed on the company ("you can't do business with anyone who [performs abortion | does business in Libya | employes illegal immigrants | uses e-Verify...]")
- Startups are steered toward political ends rather than growth ("while you're here, why don't you make a version of your app that teaches kids about [why immigration is good | why immigration is bad | why CO2 is evil | why CO2 is necessary to plant life]")
- etc.
Beyond even that, it's a really tough gig to identify succesful startups from bad startups. Venture funds do it full time and are right only 1-in-5 times. Imagine your favorite city bureaocrat (who gets paid a city bureaucrat wage) trying to figure out if Spotify will be succesful or not. The best VC teams are not suddently going to work for the city government.
In short, you get what you deserve when you put politicians in charge of doling out money, especially in a context that has so much discretion.
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#4As someone who lives in LA and is currently bootstrapping a startup, I would love to see more $$ poured in to the LA startup scene. It seems like LA has largely been ignored by VC and angel investors.
LA is no Silicon Valley, but there is more money floating around SoCal than you think.
I assume you've checked in with the Tech Coast Angels (http://www.techcoastangels.com/) and some of Frank Peters' contacts?
There's also an event next week for LA startups: http://community.intellicontact.com/p/fundingpost/newsletter...
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#5As someone who lives in LA and is currently bootstrapping a startup, I would love to see more $$ poured in to the LA startup scene. It seems like LA has largely been ignored by VC and angel investors.
If you're on the east-side, don't forget about http://pasadenaangels.com
Feel free to drop me a line -- there is a scene, and there are investors, although of course it doesn't compare to SV.
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#6Letting politicians decide which startups get funded and which don't seems like an inevitable way to let politics get in the way of merit: - Politically-connected startups get funded first - Political goals other than merit (diversity, "social justice," etc) are used as criteria - Arbitrary political limitations get placed on the company ("you can't do business with anyone who [performs abortion | does business in Li…
I don't see a fund ever happening specifically for these reasons. Any state/federal dollars given to a startup will very quickly result in someone making the powerful and valid argument "I don't want my tax dollars going towards [some sensitive activity/company/person]". Tax breaks on the other hand make that argument much less meaningful.
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#7There is a way to get money from the government funds now for your startup. One of the companies I work with went after grants (and were awarded them) to help develop our technology.
You have to attempt to solve a problem that those offering grants care about, but I think this is an often overlooked opportunity for startups.
I won't be holding my breathe for a fund here in LA.
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#8Letting politicians decide which startups get funded and which don't seems like an inevitable way to let politics get in the way of merit: - Politically-connected startups get funded first - Political goals other than merit (diversity, "social justice," etc) are used as criteria - Arbitrary political limitations get placed on the company ("you can't do business with anyone who [performs abortion | does business in Li…
They could do a matching fund, or provide tax incentives.
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#9California can barely keep itself running - the odds of this great idea happening are 0 unfortunately.
Re: Why Los Angeles Should Have a Startup Fund
#10Government-run funds are doomed to be crap. I'd much rather have it go towards entrepreneurial education or something. Teach more young people about the idea of starting their own company. They'll do the rest.