Startup Jedi: 3 phrases every VC or angel wants to hear during a pitch

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[Editor's note: Startup Jedi is a new column by GeekWire chairman, investor and serial entrepreneur Jonathan Sposato. Future columns will be made available exclusively to GeekWire members in a special members-only area of the site. You can become a GeekWire member by registering here]. I hear a lot of startup pitches. I can tell you… Read More…

Portland just isn’t where young people go to retire: It’s where they get VC money too

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They’ve got The Timbers, and we’ve got the Sounders. They have a mediocre NBA team, and we’re getting ours back. They’ve got a quirky TV show with Kyle MacLachlan, and we once had one in the form of Twin Peaks. The Portland-Seattle rivalry is a fun one, and we like to do our part to… Read More…

Q&A: Why this former Microsoft exec wanted to become a venture capitalist

Ted Kummert

Ted Kummert is a Seattle homer. He attended Roosevelt High School, and still bleeds University of Washington “purple and gold” where his father served as a law professor and he studied electrical engineering. “I practically grew up on campus,” said Kummert. Now, the former Microsoft executive will be able to impact the Seattle region in… Read More…

Idea, market or team? Here’s what 4 venture capitalists say is most important to them

Len Jordan

Venture capitalists invest in revolutionary ideas, huge markets and smart teams. But what’s the most important factor they take into consideration before writing that check? At the World Financial Symposiums event in Seattle last week, we heard from four VCs who offered their take on what makes a good bet. As you’ll see, there was… Read More…

Dog sitting marketplace Rover.com laps up $7M from Foundry Group, others

Aaron Easterly with Caramel on the GeekWire podcast

Online dog sitting marketplace Rover.com just fetched $7 million in fresh funding, including new cash from Brad Feld’s Foundry Group. The money comes three months after Rover.com’s primary rival, DogVacay, scored $6 million from Benchmark and others. It also follows a $3.4 million round in Rover.com last year. Formed at a Startup Weekend by venture… Read More…

Women’s online eyeglass seller Rivet & Sway peers ahead with $2 million

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Seattle retailers have helped transform the way people buy outdoor gear (REI); high-end fashion (Nordstrom) and everything else (Amazon.com). Now, a new Seattle startup wants to overhaul the way women purchase prescription eyeglasses. The company, Rivet & Sway, today is announcing that it has raised $2 million in fresh funding from investors that include New… Read More…

Blab nails down $1.5M to predict conversations taking place on social media

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What are people going to blab about next on social media?  Seattle startup Blab just raised $1.5 million in new funding to help folks find out. Total funding now stands at $3.25 million. Blab said its online tools help brands join discussions with their audiences, and help lead them. “Traditional big data analytics tools are limited to… Read More…

Ignition’s Cam Myhrvold: The problem in Seattle isn’t money, it’s the entrepreneurial talent

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What’s the missing ingredient in Seattle’s startup community?  Is it a lack of smart money? Or a lack of solid entrepreneurs? Well, for one of Seattle’s top venture capital firms the answer is pretty clear: It’s the entrepreneurs.  Cam Myhrvold of Ignition Partners delivered some bitter medicine about the Seattle startup community in remarks Wednesday afternoon at… Read More…

B2B startup accelerator 9Mile Labs taps Microsoft VP, veteran VC to lead the charge

Enrique Godreau

Sanjay Puri thinks more needs to be done to help entrepreneurs in the Seattle region — one of the reasons why he recently formed the startup accelerator 9Mile Labs. He calls the early-stage funding environment in Seattle at the moment “inadequate” — something I’ve also discussed in recent columns and remarks. Well, now the former marketing… Read More…

The wisdom of Tom Huseby: Advice and zingers from Seattle’s most quotable VC

Tom Huseby at the World Financial Symposiums event in Seattle

Tom Huseby knows a thing or two about investing in startups. After all, the former wireless executive now is affiliated with three venture capital firms — including the mega-fund Oak Investment Partners and the Seattle early-stage investor Voyager Capital. I’ve interviewed Huseby countless times over the years, and I’ve always found him to be a… Read More…