Weston Baker

Venture design bridges the gap between visionary ideas and viable business models, turning entrepreneurial dreams into tangible, investable assets.

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For me, this is the promise of technology, to add quality of life, aesthetic or otherwise, without needing to exploit low-paid human labor, in this case, to bring back a lost art to maintain architectural marvels and create new ones. There is an interesting conflict of opinions about what this will mean for future architectural projects, with the start-up founder predicting a renaissance of building and decorating in quarried stone, and an architecture professor opining that building with concrete and other more modern materials will continue to dominate, likely in conjunction with 3D printing and robotics. The professor's forecast is made more interesting by the ongoing shortage of sand needed for concrete: https://lnkd.in/g5D-7AeG I'd love nothing more than to see buildings made with the architectural flourishes of past styles, instead of the plain, boring, utilitarian modern styles that seem to dominate contemporary city skylines, no matter what material is being used to facilitate it. #architecture #stonework #buildings #construction #concrete #sand #3dprinters #robotics #automation

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One of the most critical aspects of fundraising is calculating valuation and understanding dilution. These are not static figures and must be reevaluated frequently to ensure strategic planning and optimal decision-making. To assist you in navigating this complex landscape, we've created a simple, user-friendly template with valuation benchmarks. Our analytics team has provided benchmarks to guide you, but you can also customize them to suit your specific needs. 💡 Our template is free and easy to use. Follow the link in the first comment to access it. #VC #Fundraising #Valuation #GingoPartners #Startu #InvestorRelations

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I had an absolute blast with Michel Gagnon and the Stun and Awe crew - THANKS again for having me... Sneak peek of the substance below: > Micro SaaS companies can be just as safe and stable as larger businesses, offering lower valuations and less competition from institutional players. > Founder-product fit is crucial, as founders solving their own problems often create useful products with great retention. > Founder burnout can be a buying signal, indicating a solid business with a founder ready to move on. > The first 90 days post-acquisition should focus on visibility, documentation, transition, and validating diligence assumptions before pursuing growth. > Building transparently and maintaining open communication with users post-acquisition helps preserve the human element and avoid the pitfall of going silent. > Simplicity equals mastery - if it takes a complex explanation to justify an acquisition, you probably don't fully understand the business. > Establishing reasonable incremental growth goals based on baseline performance (systems over goals) is more effective than setting arbitrary targets. > Fostering a culture of care and respect enables honest feedback and allows teams to move faster through a shared commitment to truth-seeking.

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🚀 AlleyCorp Closes $250M Fund to Fuel Tech Innovation in NYC and Beyond🗽 🌟 Founded by NYC internet entrepreneur Kevin Ryan, AlleyCorp incubates and invests in transformative companies across diverse verticals including Diversified Technology, Healthcare, Robotics, and Impact. 💡💰 🤝 The fund, backed by a select group of LPs, supports AlleyCorp's mission to originate ideas, hire teams, provide initial funding, and maintain integral leadership throughout the company’s lifecycle. 🌱🔍 💼 With about 20–30 new investments and 5–8 incubations per year, AlleyCorp has a track record of nurturing early-stage tech pioneers. 📈🌐 🦄 Notable investments include MongoDB (NASDAQ: MDB), Business Insider, Gilt Groupe, Zola, and Nomad Health, shaping the landscape of tech innovation in NYC. 🌆🌟 🔬 AlleyCorp also announces the incubation of Radical AI, pioneering AI-driven materials design, and Conduce Health, revolutionizing access to personalized healthcare specialists. 💻🏥 ✅ Looking to raise capital for your #fund and increase the international pool of your LP #investors?   🤝 Need warm #LP introductions?   📝 Selling #secondaries to increase liquidity?   🧐 Looking for co-investments?   ▶ G+QUANT's link for inquiries and fund decks: https://lnkd.in/gjC_EuTE #VentureCapital #TechInnovation #NYCTech #StartupInvestment #Incubation #AlleyCorp #ImpactInvesting #HealthTech #AI #Robotics #DiversifiedTechnology #InvestmentStrategy

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The business model and numbers of a corporate venture builder, Coplex - Venture Studios, launched 150+ startups (65+ are alive today) and builds studios for corporates: 1. Originally, it was a digital agency. Zach Ferres joined as CEO in 2012. In 2016, they transitioned into a venture studio, building startups with corporations (initially taking 5% equity in addition to fees). In 2020, they switched to the GP/LP funds model with corporates. 2. Build 10+* venture studios for corporates. 3. Each fund is $20-40M. 4. Now, the process starts with a $300-500K* charge for several months of studio design, resulting in a 120+ page document describing all processes of the future studio. 5. They always work with external ideas from corporates. 6. Equity split: on average, 20% studio, 30% corporation, 35% CEO, 15% ESOP. 7. The studio usually takes 20 to 30% carried interest in the fund. They don't charge a management fee but do charge an annual fee to run the studio. 8. When the studio co-invests alongside corporate partners, they can participate in the upsides as an LP. 9. On average, these funds invest $500K in each startup. The funds support building 5 to 10 companies a year for 3-4 years, with the remaining capital allocated for pro-rata follow-on investments. 10. They have a team of 8 full-time employees. Before COVID, they had 35 employees but decided to leverage vendors and freelancers instead of an in-house team. 11. They find the CEO for corporate studios and then hire a team. For startups, they prefer to attract non-technical and revenue-focused CEOs. 12. Ideal corporate partner: Minimum $1B in revenue; launched their CVC (a good sign); large and boring vertical businesses. Why partner with corporates? 1. They didn't want to have huge sales teams to attract entrepreneurs and investors. 2. Raising external capital is very difficult for studios. In 2016, it was so challenging to raise capital for a venture studio fund that they decided never to do it. This is where corporations come in with their capital. 3. As a studio, you don't need to charge startups. Challenges of working with corporations: 1. Competing with their internal functions. The studio must be outside the corporation because dependence on internal corporate staff makes it very hard to run a studio. 2. Long sales cycles to convince their boards to take the risk of building externally and then having a separate team. 3. Complex legal, tax, and structural implications, especially when working with finance, healthcare, insurance companies, and nonprofits. 4. It’s still a 10-year lifecycle. View the full interview for more insights: https://lnkd.in/dF-whjYR * Some updated numbers are from Michael Ellenby at last Friday's meeting of the Venture Studio Family. Join the paid community to get more studio insights and participate in regular online meetings with studios.

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Want to become a successful start-up founder without any fail I think you must watch this videos because this videos just change my thoughts about how to become a start-up founder. Thanks to fn7 team for this amazing videos. Must watch alert 🚨 #startups #innovation #ai #entrepreneurship #technology #digitalmarketing #business #onlinemarketing #startup #entrepreneur #management #leadership #success #b2b #softwaredevelopment #fintech #artificialintelligence

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Startup & Venture Lessons by BlueRun Ventures: Jay Jamison from BlueRun Ventures delivered a compelling presentation at Wharton, offering invaluable lessons for entrepreneurs navigating today’s dynamic startup environment. Here are some crucial takeaways: 1) Golden Age for Founders: It’s cheaper and more resourceful than ever to start a company, but this ease creates a double-edged sword, raising the bar for everyone. 2) Critical Startup Factors: The most critical elements for startup success include market fit, the right team, and innovative product development. 3) The Art of the Pivot: Successful startups aren’t afraid to pivot, leveraging lessons learned to adapt and thrive in ever-changing markets. 4) Embracing Rejection: Learn to navigate frequent rejections in fundraising and product market fit with resilience and a clear focus on long-term vision. PS. check out 🔔 for a winning pitch deck the template created by Silicon Valley legend, Peter Thiel https://lnkd.in/ejp-Bhnu

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Anytime is a good time to practice your pitch. Pitch your startup in the comments and include 🚀, if you want an invite to our private pitch practice group chat with other startup founders & investors! There is also a pitch event strictly for Early-stage SaaS founders coming up next month. Link will be in the comments Picture: My business partner Sunny Su ⚡️ Venture Alchemist offering Pitching Mentorship to Founders in South America #earlystagefounders #gotomarketstrategy #saas

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Now that Generative AI is at everyone's fingertips, what’s next is figuring out how to effectively use this tool to create sustainable value. On July 10th at the Generative AI Summit in Austin, I'm moderating a panel of experts to explore this very topic and more. What burning questions do you have about turning AI’s potential into tangible results? Drop your thoughts below and I might include them in the firing squad...err, well-moderated conversation 😉 AI is both what's now and what's next.

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We are certainly entering a golden era of Hard Tech innovation. Some predictions/trends to watch over the next ~10 years: - IPO/exit markets open up - Time to exit will shorten - Faster paths to revenue - Capital efficiency improves - Big Tech talent shift - More Hard Tech startups - Founder visions widen - VC funding rises - Government funding rises - Regulatory slowly improves - Less reliance on primes Agree/disagree? What would you include that I did not mention?

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VC funding in healthcare has been more resilient than in other industries. Here are some key takeaways from recent Carta data: 👉 At the priced seed, Series A, and Series B stages, dilution for health startups has noticeably decreased, while dilution for SaaS startups has stayed flat or increased slightly. 👉 In priced seed rounds, median dilution for healthcare companies dipped to 14.2%, compared to 20% for SaaS.  👉 The frequency of bridge rounds surged in the health sector in Q1, jumping to 44.3% from 36.9% in Q4 2023. This is the first significant increase in bridge rounds in healthcare over SaaS since early 2022. 👉 More founder-friendly terms for health startups may result from enduring VC interest since COVID. Healthcare has remained strong through economic turmoil, enabling higher valuations with smaller round sizes. What are the implications? The healthcare sector might see a rise in new ventures due to favorable investment conditions and lower dilution rates. The surge in bridge rounds suggests that certain sectors within healthcare face unique challenges that require interim financing solutions. Founders and investors in the healthcare space- what are your thoughts on this? I’d love to hear from you. If you know a founder innovating in healthcare, tag them in the comments! The Artemis Fund is especially interested in groundbreaking care tech companies. You can check out Carta’s full blog linked in the comments. If you haven’t read our latest blog on care tech, you’ll find that there too. #healthcare #caretech #fundraising

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Cold outreach can still be effective, but it's all about the approach. When you're reaching out to potential clients, ditch the salesy vibe, the cookie-cutter pitches, and the pressure for a response. Instead, aim for a tone that's light, conversational, and friendly. Make each message personal. Tailor it to the individual you're contacting and ensure it's relevant to them. Include a clear call-to-action, but make it feel optional, not demanding. The key is to remember that if what you're doing with your business is right, people will naturally want to get involved. For more tips, including how to find a co-founder and your first clients, check out my blog post: https://lnkd.in/d7bCaynu

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🔥Tune In to the Latest Fireside Chat with a VC in Healthech🔥 What percentage of VCs are former founders? 30% maybe more? I'd think a fair amount, yet how *exactly* does that transition happen and what perspectives change *radically* afterwards? Sigvards Krongorns shared exactly that - his journey from PwC consultant to Healtech founder, to a VC shaping the future of Healthtech startups. What we talked about: ✨ Sigvards' transition from a PwC consultant to founder to a VC ✨ What steps are necessary to bring innovative medical devices from concept to market ✨ How being a founder can prepare you for a role in venture capital ✨ What strategies help navigate the regulatory landscape in healthtech startups ✨ The right way to engage with VCs for startup funding ✨ What future trends in venture capital and Healthtech look like #HealthTech #VentureCapital #Innovation #StartupJourney #HealthcareInnovation #Entrepreneurship #FiresideChat #VentureCapitalInsights Full conversation can be found here:

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Reminder to marketplace founders: Prioritize building your founder network. Having others you can relate with & turn to will help make things easier.

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It was really amazing attending this masterclasses everyday as startup or before creating any mess it will be help full having this knowledge's.Thank you fn7 team for this amazing webinar by Brian Frumberg #startups #innovation #ai #entrepreneurship #technology #digitalmarketing #business #onlinemarketing #startup #entrepreneur #management #leadership #success #b2b #softwaredevelopment #fintech #artificialintelligence His full webinar link- https://lnkd.in/e-YW-HQ5

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The fun part of hosting a podcast is you just never know where an interview will go. This week’s episode with William Tincup is a wild one. Check out our newest Founder’s Journey Podcast, featuring William Tincup, Advisor, Investor, and Venture Partner. In this podcast we dive deep into … -> Finding an industry focus and how this makes your life easier. -> Making your co-founder relationships work for the long term -> How to build a culture around listening to your team and taking immediate action. -> Why your team’s judgement is probably better than yours when hiring. 🔥Learn more from William’s experience in this week's edition of The Founder's Journey Podcast! Link in comments.

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