Silicon Valley
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How Silicon Valley can put local businesses back on the map
I come from a small-business family. My mom has owned three small businesses; most recently, a medical clinic in the South Bay. But it was in her first business, a Chinese restaurant outside Chicago, where I saw firsthand the challenges facing small-business owners. Unfortunately, for most of its life, Silicon Valley has failed to address this critical segment of the economy. Read More
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Beware the pitfalls of Silicon Valley
A recent article in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung titled “Will Facebook Enslave Us?” captures a sentiment prevalent among companies around the world: admiration for Silicon Valley — albeit, with a dash of fear. International media outlets eagerly cover disruption developing in labs up and down the San Francisco peninsula. Boards of directors are spending hours debating how… Read More
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As Silicon Valley chills, Europe’s tech gets hotter
We are accustomed to hearing that European tech is perpetually in Silicon Valley’s shadow. Now there have been suggestions that the local tech scene is starting to feel Silicon Valley’s valuation woes. If true, this should raise alarm bells, because if European technology startups struggle to raise money from wary investors, it could hit the brakes on Europe’s budding… Read More
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Puppet Labs Secures $22M Credit From Silicon Valley Bank
Portland, Ore.-based DevOps company Puppet Labs today announced that it has secured a $22 million credit facility from Silicon Valley Bank.
In addition, the company today appointed former Genentech CFO Lou Lavigne to its board, where he will be the chairman of its audit committee — a critical role Puppet had to fill as it prepares for a future IPO. Read More
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Why Silicon Valley Should Bring Unsexy Back
Neckties embedded with QR codes. Pants that make drum noises. “Uber for medical marijuana.” These are just a few of the goofy startup ideas that have cropped up in Silicon Valley in recent years. I can’t be the only one who’s disappointed with this. The Valley is the birthplace of game-changing innovations, like the microprocessor and the PC. It’s home to… Read More
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A Closer Look At European Investing
We’re bullish on Europe, and that strikes some folks in the U.S. as a bit strange. It’s not that Europe is all we know — we’re an investor in early venture stage funds (an “LP”) in the US, Europe and Israel. Our portfolio skews towards the U.S.; and within the U.S., to the Bay Area. Over the last 18 months or so, we’ve been crossing and re-crossing… Read More
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How Legal Immigration Failed Silicon Valley
Twelve years after filing for U.S. residency, I finally took the oath of citizenship in a quaint suburban theater, having spent seven of those prime entrepreneurship years mired in the Green Card queue. This wait damages the entrepreneurship spirit and, worse, impacts career prospects, thereby crimping the economy. Our immigration system hinders entrepreneurship, innovation and productivity. Read More
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Why Startups Should Leverage Compliance
Business Insider recently reported that “The Clearing House, an advocacy group owned by the world’s largest commercial banks, is gunning for payment startups.” Not surprisingly, the banks don’t enjoy being the only ones told to play by the rules. More to the point, though, forcing Wall Street regulations onto Silicon Valley is their approach to dealing with the threat… Read More
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Mobile Exits Drop Below Investments For First Time Since 2013
It’s been party time for mobile, with massive growth and disruption helping VCs to raise huge funds, entrepreneurs to raise massive rounds, and valuations to skyrocket. With 89 mobile Internet unicorns now worth almost $1 trillion, it’s no surprise that folks from Silicon Valley to Shanghai are asking what’s going on with return on investment. Read More
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Controversial Climate-Change Solution May Be In The Clouds
In a move that has some environmentalists up in arms, a group of retired Silicon Valley engineers and scientists are proposing a new approach to fighting climate change. They want to brighten clouds. It’s one of the many solutions being proposed in the controversial industry of geoengineering. Read More
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