We Invest in Early Stage Companies That are
We Invest in Early Stage Companies That are
Founder of Brighter Capital
I started angel investing after a decade long career as a software engineer at Facebook and Yahoo! I joined Facebook in 2006 as one of the first 150 employees, co-created Facebook Ads and helped grow the ad revenue from scratch to a multi-billion dollar business. After Facebook, I worked in a 5-person startup and then proceeded to create my own startup, which was not successful but was fortunately acquired without incurring any investment loss. Since 2012, I have invested in 200+ startups which consist of 100+ direct investments and 100+ SPV investments through AngelList, FundersClub, Microventures, TheSyndicate.com, etc. From these investments and my own experience as a startup founder, I could see a pattern of what in general works.
A successful business starts with resourceful and energetic founders with a passion for what they are working on. The same founders have to be able to adapt to the changing envrionment and to answer to what customers really want. They also have manage all aspects of their business with limited resources. Even if they get all the things under their control right, in most cases they still need luck to succeed. The day to day grind of startup life is grueling and unglamourous. Most first-time founders told me for the first couple of years, they often have self-doubts on if they are making the sound life decisions of starting their own companies (instead of working in a more stable corporate job). Startup founders really have to make their team execute at a very high level every day for years before achieving overnight success. But the worst part is that most founders and their team could work very hard for years and their startups still fail in the end. It is REALLY HARD and it's a much more difficult life than working for someone else. But we need these people to work hard to challenge the status quo, build better/cheaper products and create innovative new experiences for for all of us. I would like to support founders who are determined to make it work despite all the risks and challenges.
Brighter Capital is setup as a family angel fund. Because of this, we focus all our energy on investing rather than courting investors. We are able to invest in a large number of deals with a very high speed. Most importantly, we don't just invest in companies to generate returns. We invest in companies that are building a brighter future today: companies that help Build the Technology for the Future, Unlock Human Potential, Empower Individuals and Small Businesses, Level the Playing Field and Leave our Planet Healthy for Future Generations.
We are not afraid of taking risks. But we do look at the founding team, the idea, the traction, the founder market fit and the potential impact of a company. We are doing 10-20 direct investments per year ranging from $25K-$100K per investment depending on company stage. We believe in taking risks and mitigating risks through diversification.
I have a fairly active blog on substack awriting about economy, investings and startups. I previously wrote on medium about my investments and various other things.
"Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in ten years."
