First Funders

First Funders Trailer Bonus Episode 9 Season 1

08 Takeaways: Charles Hudson, Precursor Ventures: macro, team vs market, fund size vs. outcomes

08 Takeaways: Charles Hudson, Precursor Ventures: macro, team vs market, fund size vs. outcomes08 Takeaways: Charles Hudson, Precursor Ventures: macro, team vs market, fund size vs. outcomes

00:00
Join Shaherose & Aamir as we reflect on our conversation with Charles Hudson of Precursor Ventures

Highlights: 
  • Don’t forget the macro: Government regulations can lead to massive opportunities or failures. We discuss case studies of companies like Samsara, Movtive (fka KeepTrucking), Republic, and Zum, showing how regulatory shifts led to category-creating opportunities. Charles’ worst investment was wiped out due to changes in government regulation. 
  • Team vs market: We discussed the interplay between having the right team, idea, and timing for startup success. Charles evaluates opportunities 70% team and 30% idea. Both Aamir and I take a more balanced approach than Charles does.
  • Fund size vs. outcomes: Reflecting on the past learning, "Your fund size is your strategy." We wonder what role that played in Charles’ decision to invest in the Athletic, later acquired by the NY Times for $550M.
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Disclaimer: This is for information purposes only. This is not investment advice.

  • (00:00) - Introduction and Format Change
  • (00:39) - The macro matters
  • (03:40) - Learning from past investments while staying open minded, what about bias?
  • (04:12) - Team vs. Market
  • (10:36) - Fund size vs outcomes
  • (16:17) - Investors don't know it all

Creators & Guests

Host
Aamir Virani
Helped 50+ orgs grow product and scale teams.Software Engineer ➡️ Product Manager ➡️ Founder (Nest Cam fka Dropcam) 🔀 Investor, CRE, Founder@pifgov 2021
Host
Shaherose Charania
Venture Investing at @CakeVentures and @joindvc | Always helping founders | Raised on Atari, MS-DOS, Bollywood & Hip Hop. 🇨🇦in 🇺🇸
Guest
Charles Hudson
Managing Partner @precursorvc. Fan of @chelseafc @lafc @lions and all things Michigan. Most days in Jackson Square in SF. I invest $250-500K at pre-seed or seed

What is First Funders?

Learn from angel and seed investors bold enough to write the first check.

How do they decide which startups to invest in?
How do they gain conviction in founders and ideas?
How do they add value to their companies?

Shaherose Charania and Aamir Virani are operators turned investors. They chat with their friends investing in early-stage technology startups and learn about their strategies to fund the best founders and startup companies.

If you are an angel investor or seed investor, you'll hear how others operate.
If you are a startup entrepreneur, you'll hear how investors filter and decide on writing that first check.