Angel Investment: California Leads in Deals and Dollars
On March 8, The Angel Resource Institute, Silicon Valley Bank and CB Insights released the first Halo Report, which analyzes early-stage investments by angel investment groups. Of particular note: In 2011, California accounted for 21% of the deals and 29.8% of the funds invested.
Other noteworthy findings: (more…)
WSJ: Rent a Desk, Rather than an Office
In an article yesterday (Can’t Afford an Office? Rent a Desk for $275), the Wall Street Journal observed that use of shared workspaces – renting a desk in an open space, rather than renting an office – is increasing throughout the United States.
Such resources have been used for many years by technology startups here in the San Francisco Bay Area. The article specifically cited Plug and Play Tech Center in Sunnyvale (which is exploring expansion to other cities).
Can an Undocumented Immigrant Form a Corporation?
This post is based on a question that I answered on OnStartups.com. The short answer is “Yes, an undocumented immigrant can form a corporation.” The rest of this post is adapted from the full answer that I provided.
You can form a corporation – no problem. I have helped dozens of foreign clients (non-citizens, no social security number) go through that process.
MarketWatch: Europe’s Start-ups still Drawn to the Valley
An article, “For Europe?s start-ups, Silicon Valley still calls”, was published yesterday by MarketWatch, part of The Wall Street Journal Digital Network. It discusses why the tech entrepreneurs behind Europe’s start-ups continue to flock to the San Francisco Bay Area.
The article’s theme:
Divided by geography, language, regulation and, in some cases, just old-fashioned cultural prejudice, the region has struggled to shed fully its image as a place where men and women with ideas are born, but where they do not necessarily stay, prosper or secure funding.
“Giant Cock” Excluded from Apple’s App Store
Yesterday, in San Francisco, I talked to one of the many foreign attendees at the Game Developers Conference. He told me about a game he had developed, which featured a giant rooster.
In the developer’s native language, the word for “rooster” is similar to the English word “cock”, so he called the game “Giant Cock” and submitted it to Apple’s App Store. Apple rejected the game without explanation. (more…)
I Think the Economy – and Business Confidence – are Improving
I think the economy – and business confidence – are improving. The reason: During the past week, two of my clients received unsolicited acquisition overtures from well-known Bay Area companies.
I’ll readily admit that this? does not represent a statistically valid sampling of local businesses. Nevertheless, I find this development meaningful because the last time a client was acquired was years ago. (more…)
