Discussion Topics

In this episode, Hall welcomes Pieter Dorsman of Angel Forum and E-Fund. Angel Forum is one of the longest-serving angel networks in Canada. They are a non-profit organization and presenting companies have raised over $35 million directly through…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Anurag Ahuja of TakeOut7. Anurag is a serial entrepreneur, founder, and CEO with over 20 years in the SaaS platform, internet marketing, retail, eCommerce, and data & analytics. TakeOut7 is an AI-based platform that…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Samara Gordon of Hyperplane Venture Capital. Hyperplane Venture Capital is an investment firm focused on exceptional founders building machine intelligence and data companies. They partner with exceptional founders who…

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Henry Yoshida Founder and CEO of Rocket Dollar Inc. Rocket Dollar was founded in 2018 with the belief that retirement is changing. They believe that people should not be limited in their investment options as they…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Nick Iovacchini of KettleSpace, a New York City-based drop-in coworking that partners with local businesses. A former college baseball player, Nick has been an entrepreneur since leaving college. He used his experience…

The terms sheet sets out Drag along rights and Protective Provisions Drag along rights give the investor the right to force the shareholders (founders and others) to sell the startup. Drag along rights are common in VC deals. The primary reason for…

In this episode, Hall is joined by Manuk Hergnyan co-founder and managing partner of Granatus Ventures. Granatus Ventures is the first Venture Capital firm in Armenia to provide funding, expertise, and networks to promising technology-driven startups…

In this episode, Hall is joined by Brian Morin of the Soteria Battery Innovation Group. Soteria Battery Innovation Group is dedicated to enabling portable electric power without the risk of fires, no matter the circumstances. Their material…

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Paul O’Brien of MediaTech Ventures. MedicaTech Ventures is an Austin-grown venture development group and holdings company that connects capital and people in the media and technology industries. An online technology…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Mikael Krogh, Managing Partner and Founder of Investigate VC. Mikael has experience as both an entrepreneur and investor across four continents, Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. Investigate is a…

In this episode, Hall is joined by Jason Todd of Thinker Ventures, business development and consulting firm specializing in startups and small to mid-size growth companies. An entrepreneur with a background in sales/marketing, programming, and…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Daniel Hallawi of KapVista, a global platform showcasing emerging companies across 15+ countries to over 15,000 high net worth, professional, and international investors. Through an investor-focused website and tailored…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Matt Johnson of Johnson Venture Partners, a micro VC fund investing in high-growth startups in the Southeast. Matt’s curiosity about the founding stories of successful companies led to a passion for early-stage…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Rob Wray, CEO of BlueStar SeniorTech. BlueStar provides aging-in-place technologies to seniors, particularly those in families with veterans. Multi-faceted businessman/admiral: fluent in technology, people, processes,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Brett Commaille of Hlayisani Capital. Hlayisani’s investment philosophy is focussed on the acquisition of either significant minority or majority ownership stakes in market leading organizations that are high-growth…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Jon Trauben of Altitude Investment Management. Altitude Investment Management, LLC is a U.S.-based global venture capital fund manager investing in the legal cannabis industry. The manager’s strategy is to invest in a…

In this episode, Hall is joined by Paul Rosen, Executive Chairman for Global Go, a consulting firm specializing in the U.S. and international cannabis/hemp market. Paul began as an attorney in Canada, before turning to a career as an entrepreneur in a…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Eva Yazhari, Co-Founder and CEO of Beyond Capital Fund. Eva shares Beyond Capital Funds thesis. They are a social impact fund that invests in for-profit social enterprises throughout India and East Africa. They invest in…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Vik Sasi of Dreamers VC. Dreamers VC, founded by Will Smith and Keisuke Honda is a venture capital fund bridging established Japanese corporate investors with early-stage, US-based companies. The company was conceived…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Amrit Robbins of Axiom Exergy. Axiom Exergy’s cloud-based platform provides active power management services for buildings with large thermal loads. Today, 60-70% of a typical building’s electricity bill is driven by w…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Vinay Singh of Fireside Ventures. Fireside Ventures is an early-stage investment platform focused on consumer brands. From prototyping and consumer testing to a longer initial gestation period, and a greater need for…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Sergio Paluch of Beta Boom. Beta Boom is a pre-seed fund focusing on startups in emerging tech hubs around the world. They believe that tech innovation has no boundaries and that founders from underserved groups present…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Yigit Ihlamur of Vela Partners. Vela Partners is an investment firm, composed of five partners supported by technology, commercial and legal advisors. Their main focus is software companies, with investments spanning…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Greg Baker of Alumni Ventures Group. Alumni Ventures Group (AVG) is a different type of venture capital firm. Designed for individual investors, AVG makes this key asset class available to millions of individuals who…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Geraldo Melzer of A.B.Seed Ventures. A.B.Seed Ventures focuses on investing in startups that seek seed investment, with a SaaS B2B business model. Their proposal goes beyond capital and network. They support…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Atin Batra of Twenty Seven Ventures, a VC firm focusing on education and the future of work technology. Atin is a serial entrepreneur and began his investing career with a corporate accelerator before starting his firm….

In this episode, Hall is joined by Brian Phillips of The Pearl Fund, an early-stage VC fund specializing in Opportunity Zone (OZ) investments. Brian’s background in computer science led to numerous jobs with tech startups. Through these experiences,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Laura Baldwin, Managing Director of Golden Seeds. Golden Seeds is an investment firm dedicated to pursuing market returns through the empowerment of women entrepreneurs and the people who invest in them. The group was…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Jyri Engestrom of Yes VC, a small seed-stage fund focusing on community-driven startups. Jyri started out as an entrepreneur and uses his experiences with successful startup exits to inform his investing philosophy. Jyri…

In this episode, Hall welcomes GreenBar founder Larry Cynkin. Larry ​is a serial entrepreneur who has been CTO or VP Engineering at five startups, with experience in industries ranging from health care to personalized e-commerce to ed-tech. Larry…

In this episode, Hall is joined by Sid Mookerji of Silicon Road, an early-stage fund, accelerator, and advisory group focused on retail and eCommerce. After founding a custom application development firm for eCommerce and retail, Sid saw the…

It’s About Execution Some startups think their business will succeed based on the idea, the technology, the market or something else. They think their technology will win the day, or that their idea is so great, or the market is growing so fast that…

In this episode, Hall is joined by Pierre Rogers of PuroTrader, an online cigar-trading platform. Purotrader was created by two aficionados to bring more transparency and access to the global cigar market. The site aims to educate connoisseurs,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Dr. Orrin Ailloni-Charas of RedCrow, a healthcare-focused, early-stage startup investing network. Orrin’s background in medicine led to consulting roles with various healthcare startups. He received his MBA from…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Tracy DeForge of The Players’ Impact, a group that connects professional athletes with the world of startups and investing. Tracy has worked in the sports industry for her entire career. At The Players’ Impact, she is…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Karthee Madasamy of MFV Partners. MFV Partners’ approach is to back visionary entrepreneurs developing deep technologies and solutions that disrupt traditional verticals and ecosystems across automotive, manufacturing,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Amy Salzhauer of Good Growth Capital. Good Growth Capital is a venture capital platform focused on early-stage technology companies. Good Growth Capital’s General Fund focuses on the east coast, filling the gap with…

I recently saw a pitch deck from a seed stage startup which had a small amount of revenue. The deck claimed a valuation of $50M because a similar company exited at that valuation. I asked about his valuation, and he said he claimed $50M because…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Joe Jesuele of HomeJab, a nationwide real estate media production company. HomeJab applies innovative technology and user-friendly customer experience to make on-demand, professional-quality media services available to…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Gil Hernandez of GXH Capital. GXH Capital is a minority-owned venture capital firm to alter the diversity landscape in tech. They invest in startups with missions that will help the world. Their goal is to invest in…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Wenyi Cai of Polymath Ventures. Polymath is a company builder focused on emerging markets, with offices in Mexico City and Bogota. They are specifically interested in sectors experiencing global disruption enabled by…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Bá Minuzzi of San Francisco-based UMANA. After starting as an entrepreneur at an early age in Brazil, Bá became interested in capital and joined an investment firm, before starting her own investment boutique focused…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Martin Mulvihill of Safer Made, a VC firm specializing in early-stage companies that bring safer products and technologies to market and protect our health and the natural world. With a background in chemistry, Martin…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Kerry Rupp, General Partner at True Wealth Ventures. True Wealth Ventures is an early-stage venture capital fund run by women. They invest in women-led companies with products and technologies in the sustainable consumer…

Every startup has one key metric to grow their business to the next level. For consumer product companies selling through retail, the key metric is same-store sales. You track ongoing sales by units per store each week or month. This metric tracks…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Sasha Shtern of Zero G Capital. Sasha is a seasoned entrepreneur with deep ties to the Denver startup community, and known for investing and operating companies in manufacturing, construction services, and technology. In…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Vickie Zisman, Owner at Bastet Communication. Vickie is a skilled corporate communications professional. She has led corporate activity in marketing, marcomm, events, as well as investor/partner/international relations….

The first vision of a business may seem grand and clear.  Upon launching the business you’ll find it doesn’t exactly fit with the market so you pivot.  It takes 3 pivots to get to the growth phase of your startup.   The first…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Brian Deutsche, Founder of XV Capital Group. XVVC focuses on seed-stage investments across industries in the US. Before XV Capital, Brian was a CPS by trade with a focus on chemical manufacturing. Brian then went on to…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Josh Chapman, Managing Partner of Konvoy Ventures. Konvoy Ventures is an early-stage venture capital fund that focuses exclusively on video gaming & esports. Josh has a background in finance and has worked at both…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Paul Sethi of 2048 Ventures. Paul is a co-founder and Managing Partner at 2048 Ventures. For 7+ years prior to 2048 Ventures, Paul was CEO of Redbooks, leading sales data and intelligence platform for the marketing…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Michael Mealling and Steven Jorgenson of Starbridge Venture Capital. Michael co-founded Masten Space Systems, was CTO of Seraph Group (a seed-stage VC fund), is the CEO of the Waypaver Foundation, and the President of…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Grant Newlin of Newlin Ventures. Grant started his career as a management consultant at UI, before moving to investment banking, M&A, financial planning, and eventually working in food tech with Kraft Heinz. He…

  In this episode, Hall welcomes Reed Berglund of iSnap. Reed is a tech startup advisor and CEO of iSnap, a SAAS company with a platform that is helping businesses collect customer video stories and gauge customer satisfaction. As an advisor,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Ciarán Hynes, co-founder and Managing Partner at COSIMO Ventures, a deep technology firm specializing in Blockchain. With over ten years of deep tech market experience, Ciarán leverages his extensive network of…

In this episode, Hall welcomes James Somauroo of HS. Ventures. James is a Founding Partner at HS. Ventures, which build, scales and invests in the best health tech startups. James is a health tech contributor for Forbes and hosts the HS. Health-Tech…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Kevin King, Managing Director of Texas Halo Fund. Texas Halo Fund (THF) is an investment company that specializes in investing in early-stage businesses with promising growth prospects and exceptional management teams….

  In this episode, Hall welcomes Stephen Meade of MonetaPro, a B2B sell-for-credit exchange using blockchain technology to deliver better efficiency, liquidity, and trust to global trade. Stephen is an entrepreneur, executive, and founder who has…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Gary Madsen of ProTransit Nanotherapy. Gary Madsen, Ph.D., has over 30 years of experience in developing and launching biotechnology products in a wide variety of markets at companies of various sizes. He spent 17 years…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Djalil Reghis of Agroecology Capital. Agroecology Capital is a mission-driven early-stage venture fund that invests in technologies that help agriculture transition toward practices focused on safety, sustainability,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Stephanie Campbell of Houston Angel Network and The Artemis Fund. Stephanie is the Managing Director of the Houston Angel Network, one of the most active angel networks in the country. She is also Managing Partner at the…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Manuela de Paula of Babel Ventures. BABEL Ventures is a VC firm based in Silicon Valley that focuses on investing in early-stage startups founded by antifragile entrepreneurs. They focus on innovation and technology,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Rufo Guerreschi CEO and Founder of Trustless.ai. Rufo is an entrepreneur, activist and researcher in the area of leading-edge IT security and privacy. As a founder of startups and NGOs over the last 20 years, he has…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Faris Ghawi of Vytalize Health. Vytalize Health enables primary care providers to enhance the scope of care provided for Medicare patients. Their comprehensive services include in-home, remote and brick-and-mortar care,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Bader Alam of CAVU Venture Partners. CAVU Venture Partners is a consumer-focused investment firm founded by operators, that aims to partner with operators in building high-growth and disruptive businesses. They are…

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Forbes’ Top-50 angel investor James Sowers. Since we heard from James last, he has been speaking at several family-office conferences and working with corporations to further educate them on blockchain technology,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Mark Lesney of Chilligence. Early in his career Mark worked in the retail-automotive space as Vice President of Operations with a large automotive company that was acquired by the Blackstone Group. Mark had colleagues in…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Flavia de la Fuente of BuildGroup. BuildGroup is an operator-led investment company that provides permanent capital to entrepreneurs building the next generation of technology businesses. Their innovative structure…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Gene Wang, CEO of People Power, a developer of consumer and white-label IoT solutions. Gene is a four-time CEO with a history of successful exits. Gene talks about how People Power uses IoT technology in the clean tech…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Max Brickman, Managing Director of Heartland Ventures. Max is an entrepreneur and venture capitalist with a passion for expanding technological innovation into smaller, underrepresented Midwestern communities. He founded…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Ben Jones of Skipcart. Skipcart is an on-demand last-mile delivery company. Retailers, grocers, and local businesses have the option to give their customers same day delivery by utilizing software and a crowdsourced…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Jef Sharp CEO of Qnect. Qnect is an intelligent, cloud-based connection app that gives fabricators, detailers, and engineers fast and flexible connections with significant cost and schedule savings. In minutes, users can…

On this episode, Hall welcomes Anton Golub of flovtec, a financial technology company focusing on providing liquidity for digital assets. After exhibiting a talent for mathematics at an early age, Anton eventually entered the high-frequency trading…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Trent Simmons, Founder, and CEO of Bess Corporation. BESS Corporation is a private holding company that specializes in lower market business acquisitions. At Bess, Trent maintains responsibility for strategic direction,…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Jason Jacobsohn, Managing Partner of Propellant Ventures. Propellant Ventures is filling the funding gap with a powerful investment focus on fast growth early stage opportunities. They invest in “Game-Changing”…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Richard Raizes, Partner at Plutus21 Capital. Plutus21 is a Dallas-based investment firm focused on alternative assets such as crypto, venture capital, and real estate. Before early-stage investing, Richard received a…

  In this episode, Hall welcomes Gerry Reihsen, Founder and CEO of Coasis Coalition. Coasis Coalition is an organization that builds community and offers a range of services to all participating or interested in participating in Opportunity Zones…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Brett Lanuti, CEO and President of Nocimed. Nocimed centers on providing a better approach to low back pain diagnosis and related patient management. Brett has been in the medical device space for 25 years, focusing on…

In this episode, Hall welcomes David Chaplin of Searchdex. SearchDex is a Dallas based SEO Service and Technology company with over 15 years in the eCommerce solutions space. They believe that every search should produce meaningful outcomes. No other…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Dr. Scott Augustine, CEO of Augustine Surgical. Augustine Surgical is dedicated to developing innovative products that target surgical safety to improve outcomes. Dr. Scott Augustine is the inventor of the HotDog Patient…

In this episode, Hall welcomes David Blankman of Title3Funds.com. Title 3Funds provides investment opportunities in curated startups and growing businesses. They work with leading incubators to find the next big idea for their subscribed investors to…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Dr. Suri Ganeriwala Founder and President of Spectra Quest Inc. Spectra Quest, Inc. is a leading developer and manufacturer of complete Turn-key Systems for training and diagnosis in Machine Vibration Analysis, Rotor…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Henry Liu of Yeoman’s Growth Capital. YGC is a venture studio focused on driving enterprise adoption of blockchain. They identify enterprise blockchain needs within Fortune 500 companies, then launch, fund, and staff new…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Robert Morris of TerrAvion. TerrAvion provides high revisit rate aerial imagery for agriculture. Since 2016 they have been the largest volume provider. Robert founded TerrAvion in 2013. His professional mission is to…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Jason Hull, Cofounder of Broadtree Partners. Broadtree Partners is a group of entrepreneurial investors focused on acquiring businesses where the owners are looking to transition from their current roles. They specialize…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Ronald LeMay CEO of Main Street Data. Main Street Data was formed in 2017 to bring precise data to the agriculture world. While data has improved in many other industries, agriculture remains behind the curve and Main…

 In this episode, Hall welcomes back Hélène Thibieroz, founder and senior managing partner of We Grow Green Tech. We Grow Green Tech focuses on accelerating growth for green technology innovation and impact by partnering with early to…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Christian Garces of Texas ColdWorks. Texas ColdWorks is the first state of the art public cold storage complex being developed in Austin, Texas. With over 280,000 SF, it will house food producers, co-packers, and…

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Will Szczerbiak of Greycroft Partners. Greycroft is a leading venture capital firm focused on investments in the Internet and mobile markets. Greycroft leverages an extensive network of media and technology industry…

  In this episode, Hall welcomes Bruce Worrall CEO of IntellaSphere. IntellaSphere is the first Brand Affinity Marketing System. They help businesses/#SMBs market more effectively using a socially collaborative approach. Brand Affinity Marketing…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Richard May of Invest in Texas Initiative. The Invest in Texas Initiative is a statewide non-profit industry trade association of economic development officials, attorneys, consultants, developers, business owners, and…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Kirk Otis of Merger Partners. Hall and Eric talk about how companies can move their marketing function from a startup stage to a growth stage company. Merger Partners, a mid to lower market Investment bank, focuses on…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Gale Bowman of IrishAngels. IrishAngels was formed in 2012 as an angel investment network affiliated with the University of Notre Dame. Investors in the network all have ties to the university and they currently have…

In this episode, Hall welcomes Ed Pearce of Paragon Digital. Before investing in early-stage companies, Ed was an attorney for many years. He was general counsel of two publicly-traded companies. When both companies sold, he went to work for a venture…

Today, we’ll talk about the different type of investors you will find in the startup world. There are four type of investors for your startup — Venture Capital, Angel Investors, Family Offices and High Networth Individuals. There are lenders who…

In this episode, Hall is joined by Eric Bielke with GE Ventures. After working with one of the early firms in Data Science, and a foray as an entrepreneur in the solar energy space, Eric joined the VC space focusing initially on energy investments….

Today, we’ll talk about the deal structure you should use for your fundraise. There’s equity, and then there are convertible notes and SAFE notes. If you want a straight loan, then you should use a promissory note. Equity agreements set the…

On this episode, Hall welcomes Jeff Canin of E8 Angels and Element 8 Venture Fund. Element 8 Ventures is focused on entrepreneurial ideation, experimentation, research and education. They are investing in entrepreneurs that are tackling grand…

Today, we’ll talk about should you raise funding and if so, how much should you seek. – Funding accelerates what you already have going in your business today. You should have a core process for acquiring customers and providing a service. If you…

On this episode, Hall welcomes Ben Faubion of Reactive Canvas, and Austin-based digital design firm specializing in startups. He talks about how design has evolved over the years into a more strategic, problem-solving service. He explains how design…