EVCA Newsletter | November Edition - the latest VC news, jobs, and events
While I would have liked to share my typical musings on the state of venture capital, it would be remiss of me to repeat my ordinary routine. After all, we’re coming off one of the most divisive presidential elections in history, one in which Silicon Valley thrust itself onto center stage. Granted, a lot was on the line for the future of tech—from antitrust enforcement and crypto regulations to the intricacies of tax policy. Yet, this election has shown us, more so than any past election, that our sector is not immune to the ideological fractures running through the nation.
Here in the tech ecosystem we’ve long prided ourselves on a shared culture of openness and exchange, of pushing boundaries and questioning orthodoxy. We’re united in the belief in the power of innovation to improve lives and transform industries. We may differ on policies and approaches, but our values transcend political lines. Republican or Democrat, optimist or pessimist, if we are indeed on the brink of a new world order, let us approach the project of our future together as possibilists.
And with that bit of introductory fanfare, welcome back to this month’s EVCA newsletter!
Meet Andy Triedman, Partner at Theory Ventures
We had the chance to interview Andy Triedman, who is a partner at Theory Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on investments in early-stage software companies. Andy shares his story—from exploring academia as a former lab researcher to working in consulting at Bain & Company, to operating on the startup side, and finally, investing in early-stage startups as a venture capitalist. Andy also provides his learnings from life and career.
Featured Investor: Ale Vergara, Principal at Bee Partners
This month we highlight Ale Vergara of Bee Partners as our featured investor of the EVCA community.
Ale Vergara is passionate about AI companies that transform knowledge into prosperity, fostering collaboration between humans and machines. She focuses on AI platforms that boost productivity and creativity, alongside essential developer tools. Previously, she spent six years as a portfolio manager and FX trader, developing strong investment strategies and adapting quickly to market shifts. A competitive athlete since age four, Ale now races in road and gravel biking. Having lived on three continents, she brings a broad worldview and is a native Spanish and English speaker.
EVCA Leaders: New York Chapter Co-lead, Keshav Reddy of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield
This EVCA Leadership Series is intended to help the broader community get to know what's going on behind the scenes at the EVCA and highlight the contributions of the over 50 leads across the venture capital industry who make the EVCA possible.
Keshav Reddy is a senior analyst at the corporate development & venture investments team at Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield, where he focuses on Seed & Series A+ Healthcare investments. His investment areas include behavioral health, healthtech, analytics, telehealth, care navigation & virtual care platforms. Prior to becoming a healthcare investor, Keshav worked in management consulting & portfolio valuation. In his free time Keshav enjoys traveling, boxing, attending comedy shows, and watching the Knicks win.
EVC List Thesis Briefs
The EVC List recognizes the top emerging VCs across the industry. In partnership with Terra Nova, the EVCA publishes research insights from our EVC List winners. Below are this month’s Thesis Briefs from our 2023 EVC List Honorees.
Investing in the Age of AI Acceleration - Wesley Tillu, Partner at S32, details how application AI startups are differentiating themselves from cloud and incumbent software providers by establishing ownership of the user experience and leveraging proprietary data to continually improve their models.
The Rising Tide for Deep Tech Innovation in Consumer Health, Wellness, and Longevity - Daphne Che, Principal at Montage Ventures, examines how startups are leveraging advances in AI and biotech to innovate across beauty, longevity, and novel drug and peptide discovery.
What We’re Reading
Here we share our favorite content produced from EVCA members across the world:
Why Companies Invest in Open-Source Tech and Research - Devansh of Clientell, tries to answer the question of how a company gains from spending so much time and effort into R&D for a tool only to give it to the public for free
VC Math 101: Stages, Strategies, and Exit Distributions - The Artemis Fund created a VC math 101 crash course to help people understand what VCs look for and how they make decisions
Building the Infrastructure Backbone for Autonomous Systems - Maggie Gray and Akhil Iyer of Sheild Capital, asks the question of why haven’t autonomous systems and robotics lived up to their promise of revolutionizing transportation, logistics, warfare, and more
How AI is Powering the Future of Material Science: From Lab to Real-World Breakthroughs - Ilena Mece of Kompas VC, explores how advancements like Physics AI and generative models are unlocking new opportunities, from revolutionizing energy storage to addressing climate change
Events
YOU BELONG Series: Female Founders & Funders Dinner | November 12 | Miami, FL
Silicon Valley November Summit 2024 | November 19-21 | Sunnyvale, CA
Afore Capital's 7th Annual Pre-Seed Summit | November 21 | San Francisco, CA
➡️ For all EVCA events, which are private to EVCA members, please check the Slack community or your inbox for our monthly Member’s Digest.
Jobs
Investment Associate at Conductive Ventures, email recruiting@conductive.vc with your resume if interested
Investor at Unusual Ventures in the Bay Area, email wei@unusual.vc with your resume if interested
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Sage Geosystems, email nadia@helium-3ventures.com with your resume if interested
Investment Associate at Audacious Ventures in San Francisco, CA
Connect with us: EVCA, Sam, Adam, Isaac, and Beatris
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