About me.
I earned my first money…
At a very young age, I made a huge amount of money, on paper, with my first startup, which I cofounded when I was in graduate school. But it crashed and burned, and so I thought maybe I had just lost more money than I would ever make in my life. But then my second company went public.
If I wouldn’t be an investor I would be…
An entrepreneur. I have spent most of my career as an entrepreneur, and I still consider myself to be an entrepreneur, launching new variations of Garage.
I get annoyed when…
people take credit for things they don’t deserve credit for, and they don’t take responsibility for things they are responsible for, and they don’t give credit to those who deserve it.
You might not believe it, but we…
were the first investors in Pandora.
My favourite movie is…
Casablanca.
About passion and profession.
Photo credit: Garage Technology Ventures
My investment fund is focused on startups in…
novel spaces with novel technologies and the potential to make a dent in the universe.
I wouldn’t like to work anywhere else because…
it is the nature of my job that I get to work in everything everywhere.
The investment plan for the next years is…
to focus on finding brilliant entrepreneurs with novel technologies in novel spaces and the potential to make a dent in the universe.
Our business relationship with startups is characterised by…
wanting to help them in every way however we can, without getting in their way.
Besides money I offer…
charm, good looks, a sense of humor, and a relentless focus on getting it right. Well, at least the last thing.
About working with startups.
I was most impressed by the persistence of entrepreneurs who have snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.
In a startup I am looking for…
a brilliant team with the right balance of confidence and humility, a novel technology with a sustainable competitive advantage, and a compelling value proposition in a market that can be validated with a reasonable amount of capital.
Characteristics a founder team should have are…
high integrity, high respect, high urgency, high confidence, appropriate humility, complementary skills, complementary perspectives, brutal honesty, mutual trust, and unstoppable persistence. I don’t believe in passion. It’s not reliable.
I was most impressed by…
the persistence of entrepreneurs who have snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.
I was least impressed by…
people who are clearly impressed with themselves.
You get most out of relationship with me when…
you are open and honest, willing to push back and engage in the struggle to get it right.
