Female venture capitalists (VCs) who are launching funds face the challenge of being compared to other female VCs, expected to only invest in female founders, or to have a diversity, equity, and inclusion angle as a core thesis. The ever-homogenous group of limited partners (LPs) or even founders who see female VCs as monolithic has led to some female VCs rebranding their firms altogether so they are seen as beyond their gender. This situation poses a branding issue for emerging, diverse fund managers. This conversation about the known bias in venture capital has grown louder over the past few months. The article, “For female VCs, bias is a branding issue,” published on TechCrunch, explores this topic in depth.
Upfront Summit 2023 Features AI
The Upfront Summit 2023, a two-day invite-only event that brings together industry insiders and celebrities to talk about the future of capital, recently took place. The conference featured AI as the omnipresent celebrity on stage, according to an article on TechCrunch. Although hyped-up technologies often get outsized interest, the atmosphere was different from what it was in 2021 when investors were throwing billions of dollars at 15-minute grocery delivery companies and web3. Venture dry powder is locked up, deals are getting done slower, and some investors are still licking their wounds from the downturn thus far.
Better.com and Amazon Partnership
Better.com, a loan origination system, has been an Amazon Web Services customer since 2015. Recently, news broke that Amazon is letting employees use their stock to finance home purchases and even second homes, and Better.com is one of the companies involved in the partnership. This creative, but surprising partnership follows struggles that Better.com has faced, casting doubt on its future. The latest and greatest headlines on this topic and others were discussed on Equity, a show by TechCrunch, in which the whole show was a hoot.
