Panel Picker Submission for SXSW 2014

1. Five Disruptive Forces for Venture
Capitalists
SXSW 2014 Panel Picker Submission

2. The Panelists
Paul Singh
Dashboard.io and 500
Startups
Evan Burfield
1776
InterviewerSpeaker

3. Venture capital exists to fund innovative, disruptive companies. Yet venture capital
is an industry in its own right and one that is undergoing major disruptions. Evan
Burfield, cofounder of 1776, will interview Paul Singh, a Venture Partner at 500
Startups and the founder of Dashboard.io. Evan and Paul will discuss how five
disruptive forces have the potential to profoundly change how startups are funded
over the next few years.
The Discussion

4. 1. Efficiency. The falling costs of launching startups—particularly software startups—continues to
lead to an explosion in the number of startups forming around the world, which makes the signal
to noise ratio harder and harder for traditional VCs to navigate.
2. Crowdfunding. With innovations like AngelList Syndicates, regulatory changes like the JOBS
Act, and maturing models like pre-order crowdfunding, the avenues available to founders seeking
funding are becoming more and more varied, further lessening founders need for VCs in the early
stages.
3. Accelerators. Accelerators and incubators are proliferating around the world while some VCs are
experimenting with value-added business services. As with the increasing number of startups, the
sheer number of accelerators is muddying the signal to noise ratio for traditional VCs.
4. Secondary Markets. Secondary markets are making it possible for early stage investors to realize
returns while later stage venture capitalists are able to get into deals they might have missed at
the earlier stages.
5. Transparency. Traditional VCs trade in their proprietary deal flow and access to benchmarks. Deal
flow is already much more transparent than it was 10 or even 5 years ago thanks to accelerators
and AngelList while benchmarking is just starting to open up.
The Five Disruptive Forces

5. 1. Are we essentially now at the “ramen and rent” imposed bottom or are
further efficiency gains possible in the cost of building startups?
2. What new crowdfunding models will emerge and who will they disrupt?
3. What are the key trends going forward in startup acceleration?
4. Are secondary markets a niche phenomenon or will we see them evolve
into fully liquid markets for private capital?
5. What about are the trends in transparency for benchmarking startups and
what are the implications?
Five Key Questions