by After sales software startup TigerEye closed its Series A and established a board of directors, its co-founders gave notice:
One thing we wish we never did is the three hour non-strategic board meeting, too complicated.
“Every board deck I’ve ever made and seen is over 80 pages long,” says Tracy Young, co-founder and CEO of TigerEye. “I am not exaggerating.”
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In this TC+ article, she explains how to structure a one-hour board meeting that creates real value for founders and investors. Step one: replace your massive deck of cards with a three-page memo.
We’re taking Monday, May 29th off to celebrate Memorial Day, so I’ll be back with another TC+ rundown in a week’s time.
Have a fantastic weekend!
Walter Thompson
Editorial Manager, TechCrunch+
@seuprotagonista
Why aren’t venture capitalists flocking to fund cybersecurity startups?
Image credits: Robert Ax (opens in new window) / Getty Images
The accelerated shift to digital has been great for mature cybersecurity companies: Palo Alto Networks, Scaler and CrowdStrike are all showing strong revenue multiples, reports Alex Wilhelm.
But there doesn’t seem to be a halo effect for enterprise-backed cybersecurity startups. According to Crunchbase, funding for companies in this sector dropped 58% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the first quarter of 2022.
“Given that valuations are low across all sectors, current cybersecurity stock prices have dropped sharply, even as they remain more expensive than other tech subcategories,” Alex writes.
Profit over growth: 5 investors explain their mantra for South Korean startups
Image credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch
South Korea has seen a unicorn boom in recent years but, like the rest of the world, is feeling the impacts of a global market correction.
“Venture finance in Asia in Q1 2023 is down 33% from Q4 2023 and 57% from Q1 2022,” reports Kate Park, who interviewed five investors to get her 2023 forecasts and find out how they are advising their portfolio companies. :
- Han Kim, General Partner, Altos Ventures
- Tim Chae, Managing Partner, 500 Global
- JP Lee, CEO and Managing Partner, SoftBank Ventures Asia
- Yeemin Chung, Managing Director, BRV Capital Management
- Eunse Lee, Founder and Managing Partner of 541 Ventures
Ask Sophie: What are my options if a company terminates my OPT job offer?
Image credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch
Dear Sofia,
I’m an international student graduating this month, but the company I was supposed to start working for on OPT has rescinded my job offer.
What are my options?
– grappling
3 things companies must do to secure their apps in the age of AI
Image credits: Henrik Sorensen (opens in new window) / Getty Images
Companies with AI-enabled applications give bad actors a broader attack surface when it comes to phishing, bots and other attempts to access customer accounts.
“We’re already seeing examples of websites reverse-engineering AI to get free AI computing,” says Reed McGinley-Stempel, co-founder and CEO of Stych, a customer identification and access management (CIAM) platform.
Venture leasing: the unsung hero for hardware startups struggling to raise capital
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Hardware startups have always been challenged when it comes to high upfront capital expenditures and open R&D timelines.
Fortunately, venture leasing creates “a happy medium between expensive debt loans and venture capital financing that works particularly well,” says Felipe Chávez Cortés, CEO and co-founder of robotic food delivery company Kiwibot.
To get products to market faster and avoid dilution, his company entered into a $10 million lease.
“Hardware companies should not feel limited to venture capital funds to finance their high-risk, high-growth operations,” according to Cortés.
Pitch Deck Teardown: Faye’s $10 Million Series A Deck
Image credits: faye
Insurtech startup Faye has shared a redacted version of the 19-slide deck its founders used to land a $10 million Series A round.
“Let’s address this right away,” says Haje Jan Kamps. “This is a truly excellent pitch deck.”
- cover slide
- summary slide
- team slide
- problem slide
- Market size slide
- Insurance market overview slide
- Product overview slide
- Product features slide 1
- Product features slide 2
- Product features slide 3
- Product features slide 4
- market entry slide
- Financial growth metrics slide
- Customer growth metrics slide
- Customer validation slide 1
- Competitive scenario slide
- The Ask slide
- Customer validation slide 2
- Closing slide with mission statement
