風投界值得關注的七大創新計劃
????? Hack/reduce(Atlas Venture風險投資公司):這個“大數據”計劃的目標是在波士頓建立一個樞紐,吸引來自私營部門的、富有經驗的科技人員和剛剛從當地大學畢業的年輕科技人才,共同探索和尋求新的數據相關技術。進駐者可以獲得免費的空間,還能使用數據工具、存儲和數據集合。作為一家非營利組織(迄今已募集100萬美元,用于運營融資),Hack/reduce不會在其培育的公司中持有股份。 ????? Rough Draft Ventures(General Catalyst風投公司):類似于首輪資本公司的Dorm Room 基金,這家由學生管理的基金得到了General Catalyst風投公司的資金支持,擬投資大波士頓地區的學生創業計劃/初創企業。他們計劃每年進行10-20筆投資,投資金額從幾百美元到20,000美元不等。 ????? University Hacker Olympics(General Catalyst):這各項目涉及美國25家頂尖工程學校,每家大學分數最高的五名學生將受邀前往洛杉磯,參加為期3天的總決賽(費用全包)。這是一個非常聰明的舉動,在美國頂尖的年輕科技人才中廣撒網,提高知名度。 ????首先,要向首輪資本公司致敬,它推動了這么多創新計劃(緊隨其后是General Catalyst風投公司)。其次,很有意思的一點是很多計劃都是著重于大學,表明風投公司已經開始加大力度,希望能從創業者和吸引人才的角度更加貼近當前校園。 ????我期待2013年會看到更多的創新計劃:風投界領袖們正在繼續創新,爭奪優質公司過程中的附加值標桿將不斷上升,其他公司也會努力跟進或建立自身的獨特創新計劃。 ????本文作者目前是波士頓地區一位專注于創業企業的營銷高管,過去曾擔任高地資本公司的高級副總裁。 ????譯者:早稻米 |
????? Hack/reduce (Atlas Venture): A "big data" initiative aimed at establishing a nexus in Boston for bringing together experienced technologists from the private sector with young technical talent coming out of local universities to explore and pursue new data-related technologies. Residents receive free space and access to data tools, storage and sets. Setup as a nonprofit (it has raised $1 million to date to fund its operations), hack/reduce will not take equity in companies that emerge from it. ????? Rough Draft Ventures (General Catalyst): Like First Round's Dorm Room Fund, this student-led fund is backed with capital from General Catalyst to invest in student initiatives/startups in the Greater Boston area. They're looking to make 10-20 investments per year, ranging from a few hundred dollars to up to $20K. ????? University Hacker Olympics (General Catalyst): Involving 25 of the top engineering schools in the U.S., the five highest-scoring students at each university are invited to participate in an all-expenses-paid, three-day "finals" event in San Francisco. It's an exceptionally smart move to cast a wide net and get exposure into some of the top technical talent in the country. ????First, hats off to First Round Capital for being the driver behind so many of these initiatives (with General Catalyst right behind). It is also interesting to note that many of them are university-focused as firms step up their efforts to get closer to what is happening on campuses from both an entrepreneurial and talent perspective. ????I suspect we'll see more novel programs launched in 2013 as the leaders continue to innovate, the bar around value-add continues to rise in the competition for the best deals, and other firms look to match or establish unique differentiation themselves. ????Michael Gaiss (@MichaelGaiss) is a Boston-area marketing executive focused on entrepreneurs, and a former senior VP with Highland Capital Partners. |