Josh Kopelman - The Past, Present, And Future Of Seed Investing - [Invest Like the Best, EP.170]

Published: April 28, 2020, 9:30 a.m.

b'My guest today is Josh Kopelman, the founder of famed venture capital firm First Round Capital. Prior to starting First Round, which has invested at the earliest stages in companies like Square, Uber, and Roblox, Josh was a three-time entrepreneur, so our conversation spans early-stage investing, business building, and entrepreneurship. I\\u2019ll not sure forget his analogy distinguishing between navigators and cartographers, nor the rest of the interesting ideas he shared after seeing and investing in so many great businesses. We also discuss how First Round has bucked the trend to build what I\\u2019d call a platform adjacent to the core investing business which does a lot for their entrepreneurs and is a model for other professional investing firms, both in venture and elsewhere. Please enjoy my conversation with Josh Kopelman.\\xa0\\n This episode is brought to by\\xa0Koyfin.\\n For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.\\n Sign up for the book club, where you\\u2019ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.\\n Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag\\n \\xa0\\n Show Notes\\n (2:05) \\u2013 (First question) \\u2013 How pandemic has impacted their investing strategies\\n (3:54) \\u2013 How this stressful environment impacts founders\\n (6:23) \\u2013 His early career as a founder and how startup culture has changed\\n (10:15) \\u2013 Most important lessons from his entrepreneurial career and building from just an idea\\n (11:50) \\u2013 How to analyze a founder\\n (14:05) \\u2013 Common disagreements when it comes to deciding on an investment\\n (15:33) \\u2013 How many opportunities they evaluate in a meeting\\n (16:16) \\u2013 The curvy road to their investment in Roadblox\\n (17:52) \\u2013 Whether the concept for a platform is overused\\n (19:36) \\u2013 Founders asking what google search they should build on\\n (20:46) \\u2013 Solving existing or forecasted problems\\n (25:39) \\u2013 How the startup scene is impacted by the huge legacy tech companies\\n (30:28) \\u2013 What makes a great early stage investor\\n (32:19) \\u2013 Do they focus on founders or themes\\n (33:19) \\u2013 Where will valuations and returns come back to after the pandemic\\n (36:30) \\u2013 How are business models evolving in technology entrepreneurship\\n \\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0 (36:31) \\u2013 Matt Clifford Podcast Episode\\n (39:40) \\u2013 The Dorm Room Fund\\n (43:02) \\u2013 Whether investment funds should have their own platform\\n (47:31) \\u2013 Product mistakes in software building\\n (51:52) \\u2013 What he\\u2019s most excited about for the future\\n (54:05) \\u2013 The kindest thing anyone has done for him\\xa0\\n Learn More\\n For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.\\xa0\\n Sign up for the book club, where you\\u2019ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub\\n Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag'