Funding 2.0 - SVASE

Last Thursday, I attended an SVASE event - "Funding 2.0 – How To Build A High Growth Startup Fast And Cheap." It's always interesting to check out the mindset of the Valley's newest entrepreneurs and hear what its successful members have to say.

Panel members were:

Mike Cassidy, Entrepreneur in Residence, Benchmark Capital
Matt Mullenweg, Founder, WordPress
Naval Ravikant, Partner, The Hit Forge
Peter Yared, Founder & CEO, wdgtbldr

Here are a few memorable one-liners (might be slightly paraphrased, but I think I'm close....):

Mike Cassidy on developing a strong Web 2.0 company:
"Find the lock-in effect; the network effect. That makes it hard for users to switch."

Matt Mullenweg referring to start-ups that are beginning to turn the corner:
"When you're in the green, the best times are ahead of you."

Peter Yared about outsourcing hardware:
"There should be no IT people in a software company."
"Why buy the elephant when you can ride the elephant?"

Naval Ravikant on making money on the web:
"Most money on the web comes from search mistakes."

I spoke to Peter for a couple of moments before the Panel began. Unfortunately, I didn't know of his success as an entrepreneur - our conversation was rather light. Had I known, I would have pressed him for some advice about Altos Research and our AltosCharts application...

SVASE continues to impress with their abundance and quality of events. I recommend their events to any enterpreneur that wants to get out, practice their pitch to strangers, meet people like you, and learn more about what to expect in getting your ideas from concept to realization. Must have been 150 people there.