Comments on: Will TheFunded be good or bad for Europe?

By: Christoph Jaggi

Christoph Jaggi — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 15:56:52 +0000

I think that there needs to be at least some transparency to the outside. While I agree with Fred Destin that TheFunded can be gamed, this is an issue of every single system and not something that is specific to TheFunded. It is a drawback that is more than compensated by the transparency it can provide. As in every industry there are companies and people that show unethical business behavior, have a problem with the truth and are more into power plays than getting things done. These companies and people need to be exposed.
To be fair to both sides (the raters and the rated) anonymous posting should only be allowed in special cases and the context needs to be put there, so that to an outsider it he reasons for the rating are clearly understandable.

By: Mike Butcher

Mike Butcher — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 21:46:00 +0000

@Fred – Yeah, and on that note, I believe Google are working on the Open Social Venture Capital Widget as we speak. And I can’t wait for the iPhone SDK to spawn the ‘Track Your VC’ app. LOL.

By: Fred Destin

Fred Destin — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 21:20:46 +0000

PS Joe, I love you man.

By: Fred Destin

Fred Destin — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 21:19:27 +0000

So I am a VC and here is my view on theFunded: it’s way too easy to game on the one hand, and on the other hand it rates genuine posts as suspect. WTF. I think this is just pretty flawed. Simple example: the guys at Mangrove got all their CEOs to go and comment (that is because Mangrove is web savvy and decided to strike first). Don’t think they ever tried to influence them (the comments look and feel genuine) but got people they backed to post their thoughts — regardless of their level of honesty these CEOs are not really going to get medieval on their backers, are they ? You can game theFunded provided you ask enough people who like you to go and comment. In other words, how good you look will primarily depend on how much time you spend caring about what tF says about you. A bizarre mix of amateurish and wannabe scientific that just does not hit the mark. In my book, “open source venture capital” is still looking for its killer tool.

By: Mike Butcher

Mike Butcher — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:59:37 +0000

Alan p – right on. iterate faster than the other guy, right? Same applies to VCs.

By: alan p

alan p — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 21:44:45 +0000

There are huge structural shifts emerging in the startup funding world from a combination of social, economic and technical forces. This is another one of them, the drive to more open-ness is probably irresistable.

In my view the best way for the EU VC community to avoid TheFunded’s worst impact is to become more open itself.

By: Peter Robinett

Peter Robinett — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:32:07 +0000

There are already several European VCs on The Funded, though only Wellington, Atlas and Index have been rated by multiple people. Maybe European entrepreneurs just need to start rating more VCs…

By: Joe Cohen

Joe Cohen — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 16:36:43 +0000

Mike – I find this really facinating. Entrepeneurs use handles on the funded to mask their identity – I suspect because they worry that VC’s might not like them for their next round if they write something negative.

VC’s are very paranoid about how they are perceived in TF’d and clearly TF’d itself is hyper-paranoid about gaming of their system. So paranoid in fact they labeled my posts as suspect because they were positive (I also use my real name when I post and maybe because my posts are positive people think I am just kissing ass but I have really good investors and want people to know but this is now a long-running aside).

My point is that everyone is scared shitless of everyone else and it’s silly. Investors go around like te CIA on rendition flights and entrpenuers carry NDA’s in their lunchpail – and no one is truth-telling.

It’s important for people to realise that we have a cosmology in which we all need one another to exist; LPs, VC’s, and operators are interdependent – as Rodney King said, “can’t we all just get along?”

By: Kosso

Kosso — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:54:17 +0000

I had a good look around The Funded yesterday and went to see comments on a load of VCs I have met and pitched to. So much of what people had to say was spot on.

Also, I was interested to see the UK/European-based investors listed there, some of whom I might now try to get in touch with/in front of for an interesting system I’ve been cooking here at home which will need some seed/angel funding soon

By: Vincent

Vincent — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:38:37 +0000

Check out this recent interview with Adeo Ressi, the man behind The Funded, on intruder.tv http://uk.intruders.tv/The-Next-Web-Adeo-Ressi-from-TheFunded-com_a400.html