Matthew Sánchez

Appreciative of Tim De Chant's article on Crosscut Ventures' evolution. We've (Rick Smith and Brett Brewer) been building #SoCalTech for 16+ years and have naturally been drawn to the techno-manufacturing revolution of #ElSegundo driving innovation in #FrontierTech. Portfolio companies like Umbra, Aalo Atomics, Proteus Space, Carbon Ridge, Airloom Energy and many others yet to be announced have the potential to transform energy, advanced manufacturing, space and defense to push global decarbonization, secure America's borders and drive the continued commercialization of space. https://lnkd.in/gmy-Srgn #longLA #DeepTech #ClimateTech #SocalTech #Hawthorne #ElSegundo #Torrance #venturecapital #nuclearenergy #aerospace #defense #advancedmanufacturing

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Consumer founders in SF come check out our event next week and register below

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🎉 Exciting news: We’ve closed an oversubscribed $2.2M round & launched our Waitlist! 🎉 I’m thrilled to share that Andrés Ornelas Vargas, Jason Kim, and I successfully closed an oversubscribed $2.2M round for Verve Market! This milestone brings us closer to our mission: to empower you to plan, discover, and shop for food in minutes—no matter how unique your needs are. Over 110MM Americans regularly navigate a dietary need or preference—60MM for a medical reason. While following a diet leads to better health outcomes, adherence is hard: hours spent meal planning, shopping, and checking labels. Products and recipes you choke down instead of enjoying. Cheat days turn into cheat weeks, your health worsening all the while. The fact is, the food industry isn’t made for us—partially hydrogenated what? Semolina, spelt, durum—did you know there are 100 terms for wheat? Rosemary extract sounds nice—oh, it’s a preservative the same as any nitrate? Cool. It’s no wonder navigating food is exhausting; they make it So. Damn. Hard. Now add a diet; Low-FODMAP can treat IBS—I saw this myself—but it involves removing or limiting dozens of ingredients and thousands of products. Grocery shopping was like playing gut Russian roulette and yet, my case was pretty simple; many households have to manage multiple, competing diets—yikes. That’s why we’re building Verve: to make it effortless to find the foods that make you—and your family—feel their best. An online supermarket built around your needs. 💫 𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆—𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝘂𝗽 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲! 💫 https://lnkd.in/gpb4G-bs — A heartfelt thank you to our amazing backers and supporters: Noramay Cadena, Federico Antoni, Jimena Pardo, Shayna Harris, María Fernanda González, Rachel Stinebaugh, and Jose Manuel Martin. Your belief in us and our vision has been, and will always be, a cornerstone of our journey. #PersonalizedNutrition #FoodTech #HealthAndWellness #HealthyLiving #Nutrition #Startups

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At TechCrunch Disrupt last week, I was shocked by the consumer apps I spoke with. Their long-term monetization plans were… nonexistent. When asked, “Cool that you have 10k users, but how are you going to monetize?” most consumer founders just shrugged and said, “We’ll turn on subscriptions down the line.” For a venture-backed company, that’s a crazy take. Here’s why: Churn risk: When users are forced to pay in the future, churn will be high, especially if they joined for free. Scale challenge: Consumer subscriptions alone are unlikely to achieve a venture-scale return. Sustainable growth needs multiple revenue streams. To me, it’s obvious that AI-native apps serving consumer needs—from search to entertainment—must monetize through brand partnerships, affiliate links, or advertising to survive long-term, unless targeting a high-end market. These companies need to catch up fast, or they’ll be outpaced by free alternatives already monetizing with ads and affiliate links (through KOAH Labs, of course).

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Hi everyone! I don’t share too often on here, but we’re at a very exciting moment at AptDeco, and I wanted to let you all in on it. AptDeco opened a community investment round and the response has been incredible. We’ve raised over $2M so far from institutional investors, customers and supporters. Nothing is more validating than customers doubling down with their own capital. And now, I’m inviting you, my network, to be part of our journey. When we started AptDeco, we set out to make buying and selling furniture easier. Over the years, many of our competitors have come and gone, but AptDeco continues to thrive. Why? Our technology, logistics and branding continues to set us apart and that's why major retailers including West Elm, Pottery Barn, La-Z-Boy, Article and 30+ more have partnered with us. The beauty with this investment round is that anyone can be an investor. Learn more and invest directly at wefunder.com/AptDeco.

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Earlier this year, we surveyed our fellow Los Angeles-based GPs to get a pulse check on the LA venture ecosystem. Here’s what we found: 💗 Deal flow is healthy, and most LA venture investors (68%) are seeing the same or more deal flow YoY. ✈ LA investors are spending time in a variety of markets, with NYC, Austin, and SF following closely on LA’s heels. 🔍 Innovation is concentrated in AI and machine learning, space, and commerce. 💸 Funding is happening, but it’s barbell-shaped, with deals concentrated at the early and late stages. Funding post-Series A has been challenging. 🚩 LA is differentiated, but not without its challenges. Key difficulties include not attracting enough AI talent (despite having the largest number of engineers graduating from our region over any other in the United States); talent relocated to more tax-friendly or less expensive locations; and the great SoCal / NoCal divide 🙏 Thank you to all our many respondents! I’m so glad to be part of a venture ecosystem that includes great minds like Anna Barber, Brent Murri, W. Christine Choi, Sarah Tomolonius, Rob Smith, Win Chevapravatdumrong, John Tabis, Jill Royster, Jesse Draper, Ashley Balla, Britt Danneman, Tram Lai, Carmen Palafox, Elaine Russell, Deborah Benton Amanda Schutzbank, Brian Lee, Petra Griffith, Minnie Ingersoll, Shamin Walsh, Gabe Greenbaum...wow, this list could go on forever...plus too many other exceptional humans to name. You know who you are! Explore our findings more deeply with our survey dashboard: https://bit.ly/3JsaLaB

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Excited and honored to join VC Lab Cohort 16! This incredible opportunity aligns with my commitment to ethical venture capital, and I’m proud to endorse The Mensarius Oath. I look forward to driving meaningful change in the venture capital landscape and fostering innovation that truly matters. Thank you to the VC Lab team for this opportunity—let’s create a better future! #TheMensariusOath The ethical code of conduct for investment professionals: The Mensarius Oath of ethical investing is an code of conduct for venture capitalists and other finance professionals designed to foster positive outcomes for humanity. ‘Mensarius’ is a Latin noun that refers to a banker or financier, and the tenets of the Mensarius Oath were based on the Hippocratic Oath used in the medical profession. As a financial professional investing with personal or investor capital, I pledge to uphold these values. If determined by myself or a panel of my peers that I have violated these values without reconciliation agreed between all involved parties, then I will voluntarily leave the industry. Integrity: I vow to invest with integrity, ensuring my actions benefit humanity and consciously avoid harm to any parties. Excellence: I commit to maintaining the highest professional standards, setting an exemplary ethical benchmark in finance. Fairness: I endeavor to be fair in my dealings, standing against abuse of power, unfair advantage, seduction, corruption, or mistreatment. Equality: I pledge to promote inclusivity and equitable treatment in all financial endeavors, consciously working to reduce inequality. Respect: I promise to treat individuals and opportunities with the respect and the attention deserved in business interactions. Transparency: I affirm to be transparent and honest in dealings with investors, founders, and colleagues. Confidentiality: I swear to safeguard private, confidential, or personal information, keeping it safe from public or other unwanted disclosure. Growth: I am resolved to embrace feedback from clients and peers, committing to ongoing personal and professional growth. I support the Mensarius Oath for ethical investing: https://lnkd.in/gFMKQqn3 #VCLab #VentureCapital #MensariusOath #EthicalVenuterCapital

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NY friends! Please come see me at Tech Day on my panel discussing the future of the NY tech ecosystem and what I hope to bring to it!

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Let's finally get rid off the "VC alphabet song" and redo the system to become more founder friendly. "The benchmarks set by funding stages are often arbitrary and not necessarily aligned with the actual development needs of individual startups." #vc #venturecapital #founder #fundraising #startups #fundingstages #funding #fundingrounds #pitchbook

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Excited to join Blackout Tuesday # 18 at LocalGlobe this coming Tuesday centered around the theme: 'Increasing Venture-backed Black Founders: Journey from Seed to Series A and Beyond'. This event will focus on the challenges Black founders face when scaling startups and provide insights on navigating growth stages from Pre-seed to Series A. After a panel of founders sharing their experiences, the breakout session will dive into practical strategies for scaling. ✏ Register here: https://lnkd.in/eHZpMDN2 Launched in 2020, Blackout Tuesday aims to: 1. Increase Black representation in VCs 2. Boost venture funding for Black founders 3. Elevate Black employees in venture-backed companies 4. Support Black GPs 5. Increase Black or Black-aligned LP representation Balderton Capital Phoenix Court Blackout Tuesday

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🎙️ New ASOM Pod Episode Just Dropped! 🎙️ This week, we’re in costume for Halloween 🎃, and things get a little spooky as Jimmy Kim, Amer G., Bryan MacDonald, and I dig into the “scary” realities of startup life in today’s economy. Let’s face it: founders are facing new hurdles every day, but we’re here to talk about what’s behind the struggle — and share some insider tips to make it through. Episode Highlights 🔸 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝘀: Forget the fluff; customers see right through it. Real, honest connection is what matters, and we’re breaking down how to make it happen. 🔸 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄-𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗜𝘀 𝗘𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹: Staying afloat starts with understanding the basics. When it comes to budget cuts or resource allocation, financial literacy is the superpower every founder needs. 🔸 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁-𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗙𝗶𝘁 𝗜𝘀 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴: Great product, wrong market? That’s a dead end. We dive into why adaptability is non-negotiable and how staying nimble can keep your startup alive. 🔸 𝗜𝗻-𝗛𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀: No one’s closer to your brand than your own team. We’re talking about why handling things internally can often beat outsourcing and bring better results. 🔸 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲: Profitability sometimes requires hard choices. From budget adjustments to operational shifts, this episode explores what it really takes to keep moving forward. 🔸 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗖𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀: Feedback is priceless. We explore how founders can use customer insights to guide meaningful adjustments — and build lasting loyalty. 🔸 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘃𝘀. 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝘁𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻: Choosing between outside funding or bootstrapping isn’t easy. We weigh in on both sides to help founders make the best call for their goals. This episode has the real talk, practical tips, and insights every founder needs right now. Episode links 👇 Shout out to Salvit Advisors, Recharge, and Creators Combine for being ASOM sponsors and making this all possible! #asom #ecommerce #podcast

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Gusto Empowers Non-Tech Staff in AI Development Edward Kim, Gusto's co-founder and head of technology, challenges the prevailing notion of replacing existing teams with AI specialists. In a recent discussion, he emphasized the value of non-technical team members in AI development, highlighting their deeper customer insights over conventional engineers. Gusto, a payroll startup boasting over $500 million in annual revenue by April 2023, innovates by involving its customer experience team in creating AI solutions. One notable outcome is "Gus," an AI assistant designed to interact with customers based on "recipes" written by these non-technical members, marking a significant departure from traditional software development paradigms. Kim illustrates this transformative approach with the story of Eric Rodriguez, a former customer support team member turned influential software engineer, thanks to his self-taught AI prowess. Rodriguez's creation, a CoPilot tool for the customer experience team, streamlines workflows by providing instant, accurate responses sourced from Gusto's internal knowledge base. This example underscores Kim's vision of leveraging non-technical employees' domain expertise to enhance AI applications, making software development more accessible. Gusto's strategy of empowering non-technical staff to contribute to AI development without coding knowledge reflects a broader shift towards a more inclusive, bottom-up approach to technological innovation. By providing tools that translate their domain knowledge into AI functionalities, Gusto not only democratizes AI development but also aims to improve efficiency and customer service. Kim criticizes the industry trend of hiring expensive AI specialists, arguing for the value of upskilling existing employees to advance AI applications, a philosophy that promises to reshape the company's workforce composition and operational dynamics in the face of AI integration. https://lnkd.in/dQkKDZVk Platform: TechCrunch Author: Anthony Ha #technology #ai #artificialintelligence #gusto #techindustry #techstartups #aidevelopment #techstaff

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Here’s an interesting read/concept to consider from TechCrunch! AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT are incredible innovations that are worth being excited about — but it’s important to also remember that we haven’t perfected these platforms yet. When it comes to chatbot technology and inclusivity, there are still multiple obvious shortcomings. #ChatGPT and other AI tools of the same vein currently struggle to read cultural nuance, and the algorithms that power these services mostly approach things from a Eurocentric/Western lens. Basically, one of the most popular and widespread AI platforms we have today was not built with the perspectives of #POC #BIPOC in mind. As a result, we’re starting to see alternative chatbots/modifications of ChatGPT in an attempt to create #PersonalizedAI such as John Pasmore’s Latimer.AI, an AI language model that tailors its answers to the experiences of Black and brown people. See also Erin Reddick’s beta ChatBlackGPT, which adjusts the harsher language and rhetoric regarding Black historical events, was trained by Black authors, writings, and philosophers. So, do you think #culturallyspecific AI models are a good solution? Or eventually, should broader companies that own ChatGPT/chatbots have a responibility to make them as inclusive as possible? Could that even be achieved with the structural racism and persistent inequalities that prevail in the tech ecosystem today? I want your takes.

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It is competitive advantage when a founder is connected to their company and product mission on a deeply personal level. As one of the parents I interviewed put it , "neurodiversity hit us like a comet!" But we see solutions around better support for parents, and we are working hard to make Hey Joey App available for parents around the world. #neurodiveristy #autism #parenting #startup #femalefounder

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How to Raise a Series A in 2024: What Founders Should Know. The venture capital market may be stabilizing, but raising a Series A is still tough. Here’s how founders can navigate today’s challenges: 1. Start Early: Begin fundraising with 12-15 months of runway left. Investors recommend prepping your business model and metrics at least 12-18 months in advance. 2. Focus on Metrics: Investors are prioritizing profitability and customer retention. A strong product-market fit is essential. Founders need to demonstrate a clear path to profitability and solid unit economics. 3. Prepare Your Pitch: Decks should emphasize the team’s strengths, market potential, and customer acquisition costs. Metrics, not flashy presentations, will secure the funding. P.S. When do you plan to start your Series A journey? Learn more about how we are helping Startups raise Series A: https://lnkd.in/dKFgJcbF #StartupFunding #SeriesA #VentureCapital

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I'm soo freaking lucky to call Wesley Chan my partner. Not cuz he's one of the smartest investors I know or his ridiculous track record (Canva, Flexport, Robinhood, Gusto, Ring, Plaid...& more) but because of how humble and authentic he is. Not many know his personal journey like I do, having known him for 20+ yrs from MIT days, but it's one of the things that make him so endearing and such a fearless fighter for any founder he works with. He came from nothing, against all odds and still he gets up every day and thinks he's lucky to get to work with founders that are changing the world and are underestimated like he was. He cleaned beakers at Caltech amongst the many odd jobs he had to support his single mom... and that chance job led to the famed scientist, Ellen Rothenberg recognizing how wicked smart and hard working he was and offering him a research job. Which then led to her pushing him to apply to MIT (he wasn't even sure about college because he had to work), and her tilting the scales in his favor with a glowing recommendation and a nudge to MIT to overlook his "unpristine" report card. That led to a CompSci & masters degree from MIT, and then came the parts that everyone knows -- early employee at Google, building GoogleAds and Google Analytics, GV (Google Ventures), Felicis, Canva, Robinhood, Plaid, Ring, Gusto, Guild and on and on. He says, “Somebody took a chance on me... I don’t think I would have had the opportunities that I did today if it wasn’t for someone who said, ‘He works hard. He wants to do research.’” He wakes up wanting to take those very chances on founders and he's ok being a contrarian doing it because he's not afraid of being lonely - he's been lonely before being the unconventional odd guy from the wrong part of town, and he's proved people wrong every time. As he says best, "Who cares if the rest of the world is laughing at us; you get this amazing amount of grit and the ability to like being lonely and be okay being lonely.” When people ask me why I left my high powered corporate jobs & boards to start FPV Ventures with Wesley, it should be obvious from this article. He's a remarkable human and way too humble to give himself any real credit, but I can, aside from being lucky and hardworking, he is one of the smartest people I know too...and I went to MIT, I should know ;) We both grew up as poor immigrants and as outsiders but we worked hard and learned to pave our own path and most importantly we feel so lucky to be where are now, and have the chance to work with amazing founders where we too can look past the pedigree, background or sex and look for the grittiest founders that are happy being lonely because they see the world so clearly even if others don't yet. Wesley, to say I'm lucky & grateful to call you my friend and partner is an understatement. Here's to many more years of laughing, debating and building together!

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A stroll through San Diego led me to Geppetto's, where a life-sized puppet and friendly staff turned me into an unexpected customer. 🌟This IS the magic of independent retail. 🌟 With consumer spending down, small businesses need innovative strategies beyond discounting to thrive without sacrificing profitability. Curious about how #indieretailers are navigating these challenges? Check out my latest article in Total Retail. #Retail #SmallBusiness #CustomerExperience #Innovation #IndependentRetail #SMB #boutiqueowner #retailer #fashion

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Overwhelmed with gratitude! For the third time in just six months, TechCrunch has featured our journey, and I'm truly at a loss for words. To see our pitch deck not only highlighted but also positively evaluated by TechCrunch editors is something I could only dream of. Thank you to Haje Kamps! This article is a must-read not only for tech founders but for anyone who ever thought about creating a startup.  Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/eS3dY5ct

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We've been fortunate to be early partners to multi-billion dollar companies like Stripe, Gusto, Netlify, and Commure. Through Designer Fund Partnership, we’re offering founders up to $1 million in funding and applying the design best practices we've honed over the past decade. What we look for in investments: 🌱 Early stage startups, Pre-seed to Series A 💪 Mission driven founders who have technical, design, and business domain expertise 🌎 Companies aligned with our impact goals of health, prosperity, and sustainability 📈 Products that are 10x better than existing alternatives 💸 Multi-billion dollar markets with poor user experiences There's just 10 days left to apply—get your application in by Friday, October 4 if you’re in the early stages of building a company: https://bit.ly/3WWNq74

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