Quoth The Economist:
It is boom time again in Silicon Valley. Startups are sprouting like mushrooms after rain. Investors are showering them with cash. Hoodie-clad geeks are quaffing champagne in trendy bars, as they celebrate their nascent firms’ multi-billion-dollar valuations.
Except: those aren't proper startups. Those are the ones that have made the right connections, made it past the venture-capital filters, and gotten their $10 million quantum of venture capital.
The real startups are withering in back bedrooms, because they don't have their $10 million, and with the resources an individual innovator (or a small group) can typically come up with these days, it's no longer possible to expand beyond the back bedroom. Absent VC funding, just about everyone needs a day job, and you can forget about renting a small commercial/industrial space at any sane price.
And, if you do make the right connections and get the $10 million? You don't own the business. You're just an employee. Maybe with a token equity stake and a fancy title, but just an employee.
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