Niko Bonatsos' Keynote at AngelHack Santiago Winter 2013

1. TIPS FOR SUCCEEDING IN
SILICON VALLEY AS A 1ST TIME
FOUNDER
Niko Bonatsos
General Catalyst Partners
@bonatsos

2. Last Night in Santiago…
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3. @bonatsos

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7. 2 Magicians
Francisco - Nixter Greg - AngelHack

8. Who am I?
• Made in Athens, Greece
• Studied engineering at NTUA, Harvard, University of
Cambridge and Stanford
• Worked as a computer engineer in Tokyo, Japan
• Launched a social network for “networkers” with one of
LinkedIn’s co-founders; we failed – wrong platform to build
on top on.
• Early stage investor in IT with General Catalyst Partners
in Palo Alto, CA.
@bonatsos

9. General Catalyst Partners
• Early Stage VC firm with $2.3 billion under management
• Offices in Cambridge (MA), NYC and Palo Alto (CA)
• Investing in consumer & enterprise IT
• Very active EIR program
• Portfolio companies include
• Investing in all YC teams through YC VC
@bonatsos

10. Off we go…
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11. Drive to Silicon Valley…
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12. @bonatsos

13. A short story
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14. Why be a founder in SV?
• Tech is the no1 industry
• There is a critical mass of early adopters, founding team
talent, mentors
• Failing is ok
• Risk appetite is very high and the gold rush mentality
pertains
• There is a lot of $ up for grabs by startup founders
• If things go well you can be on the fast track… before you
realize it…
@bonatsos

15. And…
• You are far away from your parents & social circles
• This makes it ok to do crazy stuff (at work)
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16. Key Challenges
• You don’t know anyone
• Nobody knows about you and your past is irrelevant to
them
• You have no $ in the bank
• You have no team
• You have little idea about how to execute your vision
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17. But you have…
• You
• An idea
• Hopefully a crazy enough idea
• Insane drive to chase the dream
• A lot of other folks around you that speak the same
language as you
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18. Some areas to focus on
• The Idea
• The Team
• The “Wander”
• Raising $
• Keeping the Burn Low
• Exit
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19. The Idea
• Be different (aka no more photosharing)
• Be particularly insightful about your space
• Focus on a big market
• Timing matters
• Be insanely audacious
@bonatsos

20. The team
• Everybody is technical…
• Hire some locals & add some grey hair
• Only hire A players
• Get married to the right investors
• Be smart about it (data exhaust: Github, LinkedIn, stack
overflow)
• Create a culture for building a category defining product
@bonatsos

21. The wander (aka “I still haven’t found
what I am looking for”)
• Tons of ups and downs… lonely journey
• Lack of credibility
• Building a startup is like surfing
• Always look for shortcuts and leverage
@bonatsos

22. Raising money (aka “Running up and
down Sand Hill road)
• Important… otherwise you will be running into a standstill
• Need to find somebody who will take a chance on you
• Build a network
• Seek introductions from other founders
• Focus on fundraising and get it done
• Use Angelist
• Leverage tech bloggers
• Create hype
• Know who you are meeting with
@bonatsos

23. Keep the burn low
• Infinite runway
• Investors like it
• You can get more shots on goal
• Cash in the bank is more important than your mom
• “Silicon Valley proverb”
@bonatsos

24. Exit
• Some foreign teams are bit further along and have top
technical talent.
• If it is a small idea or the inflection point is in the next 2-3
years…
• Sell now and get a green card and a salary
@bonatsos

25. The 7 habits of highly successful SV
founders..
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26. You are always hiring
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27. You are always selling
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28. You are always listening to customer
feedback
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29. You are always fundraising
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30. You are always shooting for the moon
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31. You are always building a product and not
a technology
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32. You are always disrupting a big market at
the right time, with the right team and the
right product
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33. Simple stuff we often forget
• English
• Immigration
• First Stop should be SF
• Socialize
• Learn more about the status quo
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34. And…
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35. The Greek adds to this…
Be patient as it is a marathon!
@bonatsos