21: How Not to Talk to an Investor

David Orban is the founder and managing partner of Network Society Ventures, a seed stage investment firm with investments on every continent except Antarctica (for the moment). David hears from startups pretty much non-stop, so he knows how startups should approach investors, and perhaps more importantly, how not to talk to an investor.

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Engineering A Startup #21: How Not to Talk to an Investor

David Orban is the founder and managing partner of Network Society Ventures, a seed stage investment firm with investments on every continent except Antarctica (for the moment). David hears from startups pretty much non-stop, so he knows how startups should approach investors, and perhaps more importantly, how not to talk to an investor.

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Engineering A Startup #21: How Not to Talk to an Investor

How do you get an investor’s attention? When it comes to David his philosophy, for everything really, is to think about how you can add value. That’s why Network Society Ventures is a benefit corporation, which means they don’t just maximize profit, they also care deeply about producing positive outcomes on society. For example, they invested in a South African company called Sun Exchange, a crowdfunding platform for solar panels built on the blockchain – “streaming African sunshine into your digital wallet”.

David has also been involved in the artificial intelligence space for 30 years and is a member of the faculty and advisor at Singularity University, an initiative founded by futurist Ray Kurzweil and Peter Diamandis, founder of the X Prize Foundation. He shares a lot of amazing insights into what makes a successful startup.

How do you get an investor’s attention? When it comes to David his philosophy, for everything really, is to think about how you can add value. That’s why Network Society Ventures is a benefit corporation, which means they don’t just maximize profit, they also care deeply about producing positive outcomes on society. For example, they invested in a South African company called Sun Exchange, a crowdfunding platform for solar panels built on the blockchain – “streaming African sunshine into your digital wallet”.

David has also been involved in the artificial intelligence space for 30 years and is a member of the faculty and advisor at Singularity University, an initiative founded by futurist Ray Kurzweil and Peter Diamandis, founder of the X Prize Foundation. He shares a lot of amazing insights into what makes a successful startup.

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