Michael Baum

Stop focusing solely on your pitch deck: (Here’s how Jensen Huang got funding for Nvidia) 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗗𝗼: - Don’t wait until you need money to start building relationships. - Don’t focus only on the pitch—investors want to know you first. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗗𝗼: - Start networking early: Connect with investors months before you need funding. - Attend investor events: Be present at key industry events, webinars, and conferences. - Make yourself visible on LinkedIn: Consistently share updates about your product, company milestones, and industry insights. This builds trust over time and keeps investors engaged. - Provide value first: Offer insights, introductions, or support to build a relationship before asking for money. 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻: When Jensen Huang was ready to start Nvidia, he was introduced to Don Valentine, one of the most well-known venture capitalists. Even though Huang was nervous and felt he gave a terrible pitch, the relationship he had built beforehand was what mattered. His former boss had already vouched for him, and Valentine had trust in him before he even walked into the room. Valentine’s parting words were blunt: “If you lose my money, I’ll kill you.” Huang’s story shows that the strength of relationships can outweigh even a poor pitch—trust and connections often matter more than the perfect presentation. Start building relationships and not just pitch decks. Pitch decks are for intriguing investors, not convincing them. The convinced part happens when they 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄, 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 and 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 you. -MK

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💡 Where's the VC Capital for Africa’s Innovation? Africa's innovation potential is untapped, yet we still rely on outdated funding mechanisms. Most venture capital focuses on late-stage companies, leaving early-stage innovation in critical fields like microchips, bioengineering, deeptech, and automotive severely underfunded. 🚀 We need new funding models: Crowd investing: Engage African communities and the diaspora to participate in economic growth. Stronger M&A: Without a robust M&A sector, exits will remain out of reach, stifling growth. It’s time to rethink how we fund Africa's SMEs. Let’s build a system that truly supports innovation and drives the development of Africa’s future industries. 🌍✨ #InnovationInAfrica #FundingAfrica #EarlyStageInvesting #DeepTech #AfricaRising

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🚀 Ready to launch your VC fund? VC Lab Cohort 17 has a new AI-powered mission control, LP mixers, new tracks, and more. Learn how we can help... 🛠️ AI-Powered Launch Suite + Decile Base: Your AI co-pilot + Smart LP targeting & network analysis + AI-powered thesis builder + Personalized outreach tools 🤝 Enhanced Support + Regional Demo Days + Global GP-LP mixers + Premium mentoring + Institutional-grade resources 🌌 Specialized Tracks + Space Technology + Later-Stage (Series A/B) + Family Office Funds + Enhanced Emerging Manager Program 👉 Perfect Timing + Exceptional deals at reasonable valuations + Billions in LP capital seeking emerging managers + Unique window as established firms face challenges The Early Admissions Deadline for Cohort 17 is Monday, November 18th. Join the 50+% of new VC firms we've launched in the last two years. 🚀

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𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹: 𝗪𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗩𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗜𝗜 𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗰𝗮𝗽, 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆-𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲! 🚀 🌍 When we started with Vsquared Ventures deep tech was a niche to many and it has been great to see and experience that this has changed. Right now there is immense opportunity for #Europe to become a global deep tech powerhouse and to make the continent future-proof. Companies that solve real problems through real technology on a global scale will be successful and these are the ones we partner with. We are excited to have already invested in amazing companies with Vsquared II (Synthara AG NEURA Robotics, cylib, Quantune Technologies GmbH Dynelectro constellr , Atrandi Biosciences | Droplet Genomics , Lace Lithography). As we continue to drive forward with Vsquared II, we remain dedicated to leveraging not only capital, but also our expertise, extensive partner and network for our founders, with the goal in mind to prove that the next global deep tech leaders can and will be European. Thank you to the LP’s for trusting and supporting us on this journey and the best team, for being part of this! Thanks a lot to Miriam Partington at Sifted and Nadine Schimroszik Handelsblatt for the coverage 🙏🏽! (Link to the articles in comments) Cc: Lise Rechsteiner, PhD , Dr.-Ing. Herbert Mangesius , Benedikt von Schoeler , Patrick Tucci , Ferdinand Vermersch , Michael Jobst , Jakob Lingg , Gina Krymalowski, Patrick Hümmer

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https://lnkd.in/g83iStzp Very interesting article. Relatively simple premise being explained and corresponding well to the “graphic of the century”

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Physical Intelligence (PI): The Next Chapter in Human Innovation A fascinating new study from a Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher Aidan Toner-Rodgers reveals the double-edged impact of AI in scientific innovation: While AI-assisted researchers from an R&D lab in a large U.S. firm discovered 44% more materials and increased patent filings by 39%, the benefits were dramatically uneven. Top scientists nearly doubled their output by effectively leveraging AI suggestions, while lower-performing researchers struggled with false positives. Most strikingly, 82% of scientists reported decreased job satisfaction, citing reduced creativity and skill underutilization. This study highlights the critical interplay between human expertise and AI in research, suggesting that successful AI integration requires not just technological implementation, but careful consideration of human factors. This paper highlights a crucial technological imbalance in our AI future. While AI-assisted scientists generated more potential new materials - humans are still needed to physically test and validate these suggestions in the lab. This exemplifies a broader pattern: software-based AI excels at creative and cognitive tasks, while we lack the robotic systems to automate physical work. Consider: ** In scientific research: AI can propose thousands of novel experiments but robots are still evolving reliably handle test tubes ** In manufacturing: AI can design innovative products but we still need humans for complex assembly ** In healthcare: AI can diagnose conditions but can't provide basic patient care ** In homes: AI can plan perfect recipes but can't load a dishwasher The bottleneck isn't algorithmic - it's mechanical. Until we develop sophisticated robotic systems that can reliably interact with the physical world, we're stuck in an odd middle ground: AI generates creative solutions at unprecedented speed, while humans become high-end "operators" - selecting, testing, and implementing the most promising AI suggestions. This is perhaps the greatest opportunity in technology today. While software AI has seen breakthrough after breakthrough, robotics represents the next great frontier. Imagine the possibilities when we can bridge this gap: - autonomous labs conducting millions of experiments, - manufacturing systems that can adapt and retool themselves, - healthcare robots providing 24/7 patient care. The companies and researchers who solve these complex challenges in robotics will unlock unprecedented potential across every industry. Full paper here: https://lnkd.in/gtcBGqVy #Robotics #FrontierTechnology #DeepTech #Innovation #EmbodiedAI #PhysicalIntelligence #PI

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Ever wonder why the best tech doesn't always win in defense? Meeting lots of defense tech founders recently has shown me a hard truth—99.9% of them vastly underestimate defense go-to-market. This isn't a market where the best tech wins by default. Winning in defense requires much more regulatory capture than people realize—-product-led growth (PLG) is essentially non-existent. Traditional tech founders face huge disadvantages when building exclusively for DoD customers. In this field, having cutting-edge technology isn't enough, you need a massively unfair advantage (beyond technology) to succeed here. It's an area where connections, understanding the bureaucracy, and navigating the procurement maze are critical. I don't recommend building for this sector unless you're prepared for these unique challenges.

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Are you sending pitch decks out to investors? You need to know this: Investors are extremely busy, they get hundreds of pitch decks sent to them per: month, week, or even days. Investors use their gut-feeling and data when looking at pitch decks. They try to use the least time they can to make a call if they are interested or not. What that means is that your pitch deck NEEDS to be skimmable. Easy to skim through in a very short time and give the investor an answer to these 3 questions: - What are you doing? - Why now? - Why you? Hopefully you answer all 3 in a way that gets them excited enough to spend precious time on a meeting with you. Be clear, concise and sharp in your: - Design - Ambition - Words - Experience Make yourself exciting to the investor by saying the most you can with the fewest words possible. This will increase your chances with investors significantly. _________________________________________________________________________________ My name is Mikkel. I have raised over 4 million dollars for my startup Airflight. I can help you do the same or even better. But the best thing is I can help you not burnout while doing it. Follow me for more content on fundraising, entrepreneurship and mindset.

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🚨Boom! 8090 Industries portfolio company Armada led by Dan Wright and Jon Runyan lands another $40M led by Microsoft marking $100M raised to date after announcing its Series A and coming out of stealth in 2023 just 7 months ago and shares new customer partnerships with Haliburton and Skydio. 🌪 “Extreme situations like hurricanes reinforce the need for “edge” computing, the practice of processing data locally rather than sending it back to the cloud. “Lots of oil and gas companies are really very concerned about these types of disasters. You can’t have any latency. You have to be able to respond in real time.” Dan Wright, cofounder and CEO of Armada, While disaster response is the obvious application, Armada’s edge technology also has a big role to play in all sorts of remote environments where uninterrupted data access is critical. Think real-time safety monitoring at high-risk worksites, real-time emissions tracking for oil rigs, and automated operations for mines. In regards to the newly inked partnership with Microsoft: It’s a natural fit, says Pradeep Nair Armada’s founding CTO and a 10-year veteran of Microsoft’s Azure business. “If you look at all of these customers we’re hitting—oil, gas, and mining—these guys are legacy, traditional customers and Microsoft is their biggest vendor,” he says. The partnership with Microsoft “opens up the whole pipeline, without us needing to go through the whole procurement process.” Cc Kerem Ozmen Garuth A. Wes Mendenhall Filip Vurdelja Haluk Sabanci Dincer Grant Brown Ishan Meswani Andrew Irwin Shilpa Patel

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What an incredible achievement by our portfolio company, Q*BIRD B.V., as they bring scalable quantum security to Europe's largest port, the Port of Rotterdam. This trial marks the first of its kind in the world. To put things into perspective, the Port of Rotterdam is a powerhouse: 👉 It generates over 500,000 jobs 👉 It adds over €60 billion of value to the Netherlands. 👉 It ranks as the world's fifth most significant bulk port. 👉 It is the tenth largest container port. 👉 It accommodates 28,000 oceangoing ships and 90,000 inland vessels every year. Staying ahead of emerging security threats is crucial for the port, which already has cryptographically secured communications. However, the increasing sophistication of hackers and growing geopolitical tensions in the world require increased security measures to protect critical infrastructure like ports. This remarkable achievement is the result of a close collaboration between Q*BIRD B.V., Port of Rotterdam, Cisco, Eurofiber, Portbase, Intermax, and InnovationQuarter. QDNL Participations, Chad, Cheryne #quantumsecurity

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Every experienced VC will tell you. At the beginning of their career when evaluating a new investment they were solely focused on TAM, Metrics, etc But as they got more time under their belt, they learned the only thing that matters is the people. Do I enjoy this person, Do I want to grab a beer with them after work? VC founder relationship is a marriage. You are going to be together for a minimum of 10 years. So you better make sure you like each other. Lior M. VC Battery Ventures Link to the full episode in comments

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Great startups deserve great platforms! High Tables by ah! Ventures connects VCs, Family Offices, and UHNIs to fund innovators like you 💯. Ready to take your venture to the next level? Reach out through the link in our bio to learn more! #ahventures #startup #funding #venturecapital #hightables #ahventures #investment #entrepreneur #success #innovation #business

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https://lnkd.in/dn_CRSwH "Generative AI is having far reaching impacts on datacenters and new data shedding light on the nature and extent of the impacts. Analysts Melissa Incera and Dan Thompson return to the podcast to dig into the data and discuss the ramifications for enterprises, datacenter builders and operators and those putting AI to work with host Eric Hanselman. The computational requirements of generative AI are unique, taking demands similar to high performance computing or cryptomining and spreading them across a vast new community of users. The demands for GPU-based capacity are consuming more power, sometimes with order of magnitude increases. It’s also driving retrofitting of existing datacenters. The need for higher capacity and innovations like liquid cooling are causing a new surge. We’re at the beginning of the shift from a focus on model training to greater amounts of inferencing, changing where capacity is needed.  Looking at money flows in this market offers additional nuance. Investments in AI startups have been massive. Capital investments from hyperscalers in their own infrastructure is also massive, but it remains to be seen if they’ll pay off in equivalent amounts of revenue. Is all of this sustainable? It’s an complicated question in the many aspects of the word."

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How to think about Founder Dilution In the just concluded educative live session, Peter Walker explained the Founder's dilution, fundraising, Bridge rounds and Safe conversion. Emphasis was made on key points using data from Carta and I would encourage #founders to use the Carta Launch platform to get a better insight on how #Safes and Investment rounds impact dilution. #Key take home, a founders' union is likened to a marriage, any potential friction could affect the company's dilution. It is a decision that should be thought through by the founder.

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Suppose you are a VC, Early investor, or CIO trying to keep your eye on the industry trends. In that case, you’ve probably heard already about hallucinations, context shifts, and accuracy measurement problems in LLMs. These scary concepts kill motivation to invest in LLM-based projects and build RnD departments. Are they really so scary? Yes, but just for now, you have a good strategy to cope with them. Is this strategy already known? Yes, old but still one of the most effective approaches- knowledge graphs in combination with fresh new RAGs will allow you to keep your models free of hallucinations, stable in accuracy, and easily adaptable for context change. Btw, do you know that knowledge graphs are seeing as one of the most impactful AI enables during this year?🙌🏻 How big companies like Deutsche Telekom and Microsoft are seeing the future of LLMs adoption you can find here https://lnkd.in/d4B3t56z

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Industry experts call for tailored AI rules in post-election UK

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More than 40 countries have national elections this year. We’re seeing in real time how easy AI makes it to create convincing deepfakes that can deceive audiences and influence votes.   Deepfakes won’t go away when elections end.    In fact, they’re already hitting enterprises around big events like IPOs, M&As, product releases, and earnings calls, posing substantial business risks. Just yesterday, Wiz’s CEO said the company was targeted with a deepfake attack that used his voice. And we haven’t forgotten about the finance worker who was duped into sending $25 million to attackers who used a deepfake “video conference” earlier this year.    Companies are hungry for deepfake security solutions, and we expect deepfake security tools will soon be a regular part of the enterprise tech stack. After talking with security executives and founders, Bayan Alizadeh and I have identified six categories those solutions will fall into. We see a ton of room for innovation, especially in audio and video.    Check out the categories in our Deepfake Market Map here, and read more in our Norwest Venture Partners Read here: https://lnkd.in/gNUBxXga

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Dear Founder, keep it interactive (the pitch), please! 😊 As a venture capitalist, over the years I have sat through countless startup pitch calls - almost 4 to 5 2-hour long calls per week. But in most cases I have noticed founders delivering their pitch as if it’s a monologue they’ve rehearsed countless times! Unfortunately, leaving no room for interaction. While their heart is in the right place—it makes the pitch tedious for the listener. Worse, it can cause a VC to lose interest, not just in the pitch but in the founder’s potential as a partner. Making the pitch interactive is easier said than done. But here is the cheat code directly from a VC's den, so I bet it could help out a couple of you :) 1. Start with a foundation check. Before diving into your story, take a moment to gauge the VC's familiarity with your sector, technology, or use case. A quick check helps you find common ground. For example, if you’re pitching a blockchain-based solution, ask if they have seen similar use cases or understand the basics. You don't know anything about their past experiences. The foundation check avoids redundant explanations and keeps the conversation relevant. Let's say they have exposure in Agriculture among other things, and now you have common ground to build upon! 2. Anchor the narrative. Once you find that common ground, use it as the anchor for your pitch. Drive examples, analogies, or pain points from that single point of understanding. This keeps them engaged because you’re speaking their language and building on something relatable. So, in the Agriculture example, you talk about GI tagging and unit traceability through blockchain to solve the authenticity problem of the produce. 3. Take them on a quick (customer) journey. Instead of a data dump, simulate a live experience of your product or service. Help them see the problem through your eyes and how your solution fits into the bigger picture. Make them feel like they are a part of your process. So essentially in your Agri-blockchain use case, you make them role play as the farmer and show how your company takes them through the relationship and realisation of the benefit at the end. An then, something amazing happens: * The VC stays fully engaged because the conversation feels tailored and dynamic. * They ask more relevant questions, which, once answered, leaves them confident in their understanding of your business. * Decision-making becomes faster, and they can present your business with more conviction in internal discussions. Remember, a pitch isn’t just about selling; it’s about storytelling and collaboration. Make it interactive, and you’ll not only grab their attention but also build a stronger and long-lasting connection. Looking forward to hearing some engaging, interactive pitches soon! 😊 #VentureCapital #StartupTips #Fundraising #Entrepreneurship #storytelling #pitching

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