Thursday, 1 January 2009

Bessemer's Investments

Here are posts on some of our investment road maps, new investments, and exits.


Sept. 25, 2007
A Carbon Footprint Reduction Plan
Bessemer to offset and reduce carbon emissions for the firm and new portfolio companies.


Oct. 12, 2008
Take Back the Web!
Our new project to restore Tim's original vision of a web graced with benevolent hyperlinks.

Feb 4, 2009
Mash Feeds Link the Web to your Site, Syndicating Content to the Browser
MashLogic uses your RSS feeds to mark up the web with links back to your site.


Aug. 12, 2005
Road Map Investing
A more proactive approach to venture capital that's a little harder to screw up.


Aug. 8, 2005
The Wormhole Factory
In the dark ages of 2002, an internet startup named Netli learned to overcome the speed of light.



Nov. 18, 2006
Preventing Identity Theft
Keeping your credentials private is futile. So how do you protect yourself from crooks?




Jan. 14, 2007
Cheating Death
Geniuses in Singapore and Sirtris show God who's boss.









October 9, 2007
SaaSy Security Suits SMB
Why I wrote my biggest check ever in yet another security company.





Oct. 5, 2007
Bessemer is once again the venture firm with the top number of investors recognized by Forbes.



Sept 11, 2009
MIT Professor Ron Rivest chooses Tilera's Tile64 to develop the new standrad for hashing algorithms.

Oct. 5, 2007
There Once Was A Founder Named Scott...
A marriage toast for Postini and Google.




July 21, 2007
Is BVP Too Flashy?
How the oldest VC firm in the nation tries to strike a balance between Stodgy and Neon.





Aug. 18, 2005
Consumer Investing: Part 1 and Part 2
Why we have turned our attention to consumer investing, and what we look for.





May 14, 2006
Television 2.0
Fianlly, the networks can no longer hold back demand for interactive, on-demand video, and they're sprouting dangerous leaks of ad revenue.





June 11, 2006
Bessemer's Fall 2006 Television Lineup
7 recent investments in TV 2.0


















May 26, 2006
Dwight Schrute Bobbleheads!
Delivery Agent enables e-commerce for the entertainment industry, selling products seen on your favorite shows.



Aug. 27, 2005
Consumer Driven Healthcare
How Health Savings Accounts put US consumers in charge of our own healthcare decisions.


Aug. 28, 2005
Vimo (formerly known as Healthia)
Introducing a comparison shopping portal for medical services, enabling Consumer Directed Healthcare.

Sep 21, 2006
Finding Vimo
Naming internet startups is hard. But we got lucky.



Nov. 2, 2006
British Telecom Dials Up Da Vinci Code
BT acquires Counterpane, and Europe goes ga-ga for Bruce Schneier.







Oct. 23, 2005
Next Intel Emerges from Stealth
World-class microprocessor team announces low-power, mixed signal PowerPC.



Sept. 12, 2005
Rob Stavis and Skype
Congratulations to my partner Rob on eBay's acquisition of Skype (where he led the Series A round).



Oct. 5, 2005
A Day of Mashups, Wikis, Ajax, and Open Source
Notes from the heady Web 2.0 Conference.





March 27, 2006
Wikia, Jimmy Wales' Startup
We're in business with the Wikipedia founder and core editorial team, creating wiki-based communities.





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Personal Stuff

Here are some posts drawing from personal anecdotes. (If nothing else, read the first one--it's worthwhile.)

Heracles' Marathon How do I fly to Europe with an expired passport?

A Sky Spectacle. Flying over an electrical storm.

The Sinful Joy of Wet Shaving Once you try it, you'll never go back...


A short documentary about a 10-year-old's dreams.


What my son and I learned from dropping off the grid.

Who Will Buy?  My son's barbershop quartet croons about the liquidity crisis.

A Benign Addiction Read about the compulsion that gets me out of the house at 2AM.

Freshman Week My most embarrassing moment.





Hospital Corners A psalm to the Flying Spaghetti Monster.





Separation Anxiety Someone can't handle summer camp...

It's a Wonderful Life George Bailey comes to life in a real world story.

Favorite Gadget Yes, I carry a purse.


Grammar Nerds Correcting hyper-correction.

Peace Rally Triggers Memory The 10 year anniversary of an assassination.



More personal stuff from the archives:

Limits of Rationality My smarty pants college roommate proves I'm irrational.

How I Lost 160 Pounds An adventure in zero-gravity.

Too Many Security Startups? I turn to crime to make a point...

Saving Serendipity Facing information overload, I need my local bookstore.

And a Child Shall Lead Them The mayor loses to a 4-year-old.

Arnold's Angels A good Samaritan rescues me by the side of the road.

Go-Ogle! Do no evil?

I Want a DUMP button! Notes from Washington DC.

Accidental Philanthropy A lucky break of the green for my favorite charities.

Stroll Down Wisteria Lane The real thing!

The Week in Mumbai A bumpy ride through India.

Snoopy Cowan: 1990-2006 Goodbye, my friend.

Clear the Way for those Rabbis! Turns out my Zeyde was an activist!

High Tech Marital Aid Online romance goes too far.

Slow News Day at WSJ This is what happens when you go to ONE party....

Do No Weevil Does Google Earth need a new name?
Blogged with Flock
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Startup Stuff For Entrepreneurs

Here are articles I have written of interest to entrepreneurs.


Sept 7. 2005
Best Startup Advice I Have
Remember Mark Leslie's advice to plan for the Sales Learning Curve.



January 23, 2006
Practicing the Art of Pitchcraft
Crafting an effective elevator pitch for your startup.

Nov. 17, 2005
How to NOT Write a Business Plan
Entrepreneurs often ask me for a sample business plan they can use as a model for their fundraising efforts. They are surprised when I send them a powerpoint file.


moz-screenshot-10.jpg August 23, 2008
My Internet Law
The time and money required to develop a secure, scalable e-commerce application drops in half every 18 months.



An original, short film documents the hope, critical thinking and determination of a 10-year-old entrepreneur.




July 11, 2005
Thank You, Henry Phipps
My first blog post ever, and how I got here.




November 26, 2006
Bubble Memory
Authentic conversation from 1998, when Silicon Valley service providers were starved for talent.




Aug. 12, 2005
Road Map Investing
A more proactive approach to venture capital that's a little harder to screw up.




Jan. 1, 2006
Control Roulette: A Bet on Red or Black
Crafting the right board of directors has nothing to do with legal structure, and everything to do with getting the right people in the room.



GetBigCheap



Nov. 12, 2006
Get Big Cheap
"Get Big Fast" didn't work so well, so here's my new motto.




Dec 1, 2005
The Secret of Success
According to one venture capital legend, what is the most common trait of successful investors?



Dec. 11, 2005
Limits of Rationality: Beware the Paralimbic Cortex
Harvard economist proves there is value to you in sharing control of your own board.





Sep 21, 2006
Finding Vimo
Naming internet startups is hard.



July 19, 2007
Three Sealed Envelopes
Serial CEO leaves secret, emergency instructions for his successor.




Startups gather and share stories from the battlefield.



Dec. 18, 2006
Festival of Light Spending
Santa Claus may have scale, but Judah Macabbee was one hell of an entrepreneur.



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Science, Scams and Superstition


These articles of mine address the poor state of science education, the persistent intellectual tyranny of religion, and the consequent lack of critical thinking in our country.

Aug. 27, 2006
They Stood at the Foot of the Mount
My family witnesses the ill effect of group-think on hundreds of Disneyland tourists.



Nov. 7, 2006
Silicon Valley Loves Richard Dawkins
Hear the evolutionary scientist's comments to a Who's Who gathering of techno-stars.

Oct 8, 2009
Praying with Richard to the Flying Spaghetti Monster
Richard Dawkins returns to the Valley to raise funds for Reason and Science, and to sign books at Keplers.


Aug. 5, 2006
Blink: The Nonsense of "Thinking Without Thinking"
A less-than-generous book review of the allegedly non-fiction bestseller, why Goerge Bush likely read this book, and suggested alternative reading.





April 19, 2006
CREATED BY A SCHOOL TEACHER!
Read how a scamming couple turns Airborne, a thoroughly untested medical remedy, into a $100m blockbuster product.

Dec 21, 2006
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN: Airborne Baloney!
Science mag features my blog.

March 6, 2008
Science prevails! Company loses $23 million verdict in deceptive advertising lawsuit.





A 16 year-old with ADHD busts myths about the mental health epidemic.






October 9, 2008
Militant Avamparists Are So Annoying!
How can you be so sure that vampires and easter bunnies don't exist? Are you really so dogmatic?





January 27, 2008
Con man cashes in on bizarre consipracy theories, and another explains how.



March 26, 2006
Bullshit
Profile of magician Penn Jilette--prompted by my encounter with the celebrity atheist in Vegas--and his expose of bottled drinking water.




July 18, 2007
Dinner with Dawkins and Hitchens
Recap of Dawkins' encore visit to Kepler's and our dinner with Christopher Hitchens.




January 20, 2007
7-Year Old Critical Thinker
What happens when we encourage children to think for themselves?





Dec. 11, 2005
Limits of Rationality: Beware the Paralimbic Cortex
My college roommate, a behavioral economist at Harvard, illustrates how brain structure distorts human calculus of short term versus long term tradeoffs.





Aug. 28, 2005
A "Natural Cure" for the Author's Debts
Confidence artist tops the bestseller list by playing on people's mistrust of corporations.



Oct. 7, 2008
Skeptics Sellout to Christians
Leonard Susskind, Mr. Deity, and a Christian walk into a bar... My notes from a Skepctics Society conference at CalTech.



Aug. 16, 2005
The United States of Almighty-God
What does it say about our country when Time Magazine ignores standards of journalism, pandering to Christians with alleged news on mythological characters?





Feb. 10, 2007
Alyssa Milano: Net Neutrality is Like So Cool
A storm of regulation brews, whipped up by vapid sound bites from anti-experts.



















Jan. 14, 2007
Cheating Death
Geniuses in Singapore and Sirtris show God who's boss.









































March 11, 2007












Reading lists for skeptical grownups and kids.



























Oct 27, 2006
Religion: Even Stevphens
Rabbi sends me Daliy Show video featuring Islam v. Christinaity face-off.



Oct. 27, 2006
Richard Dawkins Coming to Kepler's
Profile of evolutionary scientist Richard Dawkins, prior to his standing-room-only book signing at Kepler's Bookstore.



Sept 5, 2006
Shermer Coming to Kepler's
Profile of Skeptic/Professor/Author/Editor/Producer Michael Shermer, prior to his book signing of Why Darwin Matters.



June 20, 2006
China Pulls Ahead
While US Rep. Westmoreland campaigns on the Colbert Report to post the Ten Commandments in Congress, China invites Stephen Hawking to its Great Hall to lead a debate on physics.



Nov. 22, 2005
Kansas School Board More Religious Than Vatican
Vatican Astronomer rips intelligent design theory.


Nov. 2, 2005
Maybe Harriet Wasn't So Bad
Bush nominates devout Catholic Samuel Alito. Children, learn your prayers.













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