Thursdays at Abnormal Returns are all about startup and venture capital links. You can check out last week’s links including a look at the downside of having a toxic work culture.
Quote of the Day
"When I think about the big wins we have had over the years, they almost all exhibited a combination of a large market, a great product, and a talented founding team."
(Fred Wilson)
Softbank
- A new SoftBank Innovation Fund is focused on opportunities in Latin America. (techcrunch.com)
- Uber is looking for investors to put capital into its self-driving unit. (wsj.com)
Companies
- How Wish became third-biggest e-commerce marketplace in the U.S. by sales. (forbes.com)
- Real estate startups are venturing into the business of actually buying properties. (wsj.com)
- Mawuli Ladzekpo, "There is plenty scope for operating assumptions of legacy B2B media companies to be challenged." (medium.com)
- Airbnb has purchased HotelTonight. (nytimes.com)
Gender balance
- Ellen Pao lost her discrimination case but has put the issue of gender discrimination in VC on the table. (ft.com)
- Some ways to (effectively) improve gender balance in VC. (behavioralscientist.org)
Venture capital
- 2018 saw a record number of nano-VC funds launch. (techcrunch.com)
- On the advantages of diverse investing syndicates. (avc.com)
Employment
- There is a real cost to extending option exercise periods for employees. (avc.com)
- Exploding job offers are a red flag. (angel.co)
Startups
- Why it sometimes makes sense to hit pause and make sure you have the right systems in place before really trying to scale revenues. (hunterwalk.com)
- What happened to all the 'Uber for X' startups? (theatlantic.com)
- Five tips on how to go into business with a friend. (qz.com)
- Why the former employees of successful companies often form investing 'mafias,' a la PayPal. (nytimes.com)
- Higher costs are increasingly going to make California a tough place to launch a startup. (medium.com)
- Alex Tabbarok, "Despite never having built a working product, Theranos accumulated hundreds of patents." (marginalrevolution.com)
