Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
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Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#2"...the Valley is an order of magnitude closer to being self-aware." LOL.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#3this resonates at different levels for different communities. most important to me: Dollars/(Control+Speed) Ratio
A close second is also the number of deals an angel has done. It signals two things to me: a) they are comfortable/know how to do this b) they have an extensive network of other people they have done deals with. 20 different deals with an average of 4-5 investors in each, means a network of 80-100 investors they've coinvested with. will obvi be some overlap. You can disregard this for newer angels and use a gut instinct to see if this is something they really want to do. I know you just started doing investments as an angel, but it's very clear out there that this is something you plan on doing, enjoyit, and know the way it works.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#4All this reasons have to do with raising money and valuations. I will concede that this is important but I think the problem that any other area runs into when trying to take something back from Silicon Valley isn't the money, but the community.
The Boston tech community, like the Chicago, Austin, or NYC ones, have a few technological superstars. Yet, Silicon Valley has more. A ton more. It's had decades of a headstart.
That, imho, is the biggest asset that Silicon Valley has. Part of that has to do with money (all the reasons the article mentions) but a lot of it just has to do with the fact that the Silicon Valley network and community is just so damn good.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#5All this reasons have to do with raising money and valuations. I will concede that this is important but I think the problem that any other area runs into when trying to take something back from Silicon Valley isn't the money, but the community. The Boston tech community, like the Chicago, Austin, or NYC ones, have a few technological superstars. Yet, Silicon Valley has more. A ton more. It's had decades of a headsta…
He gets into that in point five:
>To paraphrase Terminator II, the Valley is an order of magnitude closer to being self-aware, and evolving at a rapid pace as an innovation ecosystem. ...Whether it’s Y Combinator’s special access to Facebook’s latest private-beta APIs; ... or sharing secret tips over beers on what viral or SEO or marketing technique worked for Quora, Mint or Tagged, there is a big knowledge-sharing and access advantage.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#6Naive Optimism.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#7however, once a consumer web start-up in boston does get some initial traction and raise money, it has incredible access to talent. gemvara.com and SCVNGR are two great examples. they've been able to use the dearth of consumer web investments in boston to their advantage and recruit all this great young talent, and not needing to fight with 10 hot competitors to retain them.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#8But its a self-fulfilling prophecy - if we don't do everything to keep companies where they are founded (which requires VCs and Angels to be more forgiving), it will only continue to improve the SV area and hurt the other tech communities, like Boston. I think if you are a founder, you should really focus on grabbing money in your local ecosystems and STRESSING to VCs/Angels that this is an investment in the local economy, and strengthening our presence in the entrepreneurial community.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#9As a Bostonian since 2005, November, December, January, February, and March are pretty compelling reasons to move.
Re: Reasons startups move to Silicon Valley And Things Boston can do to keep them
#10"...the Valley is an order of magnitude closer to being self-aware." LOL.
I don't know why I'm getting downvoted. That quote from the article was funny.
I should preface this next statement by saying, I'm not trolling, this doesn't apply to the Valley in particular and this is serious food for thought:
Does anyone worry that all the sharing of tips about what worked for company X and what new thing company Y is doing actually stifles innovation by creating an echo chamber of sorts?
Do these tips and tricks become "rules" that keep a person's thinking inside a box? Are the innovations just re-applications of existing ideas?
Not in every case, but certainly in many. Not to pick on anyone in particular, but let's look at Posterous. It's an email gateway for a blog. It's simple and elegant to use (I use it and love it), and they obviously rock at the biz/dev/marketing aspect of the business --- but is it really that innovative? How much does Posterous further the evolution of the Internet?
How about Quora? Again, great site --- but it's a question and answer app. It's been done at least a dozen times before. Does Quora increase the pace at which the Internet evolves?
I remember reading something from PG about music startups (paraphrased), that "the music industry is a just a vacuum to suck your VC dollars." Hence, he's not super stoked on investing in music startups.
He's obviously seen his share of failed music startups and has talked to others in the Valley who also have first hand experience with failed music startups.
But, is it possible that the Valley isn't thinking creatively enough about music startups? That maybe the Valley can't think creatively enough because it innovates between the lines?
It's also crucial to recognize that most disruptive businesses don't start in the Valley. They move there so their VC can keep an eye on them.
I don't know. I'll probably get banned from HN for thinking a little dangerously and questioning the established thinking so openly.