This document discusses the opportunities for European tech startups in a rapidly changing global landscape. It notes that the internet is growing enormously and will soon connect over 5 billion people, with most of this growth happening outside of traditional Western markets. It argues that Europe needs more diversity and flexible labor markets to keep up, and should aim to create large "unicorn" companies rather than just many smaller "zebra" startups. Overall it presents an optimistic view that with the right mindset, European tech can still thrive globally despite intensifying competition from other regions.
48. Only a few sectors have really been seriously disrupted
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Forbes 2000 Companies Companies Valued over 1$bn
Forbes 2000 list, Cruchbase, Aileen Lee’s list, Fred Wilson’s Hackpad and Index’s own research
49. Only entrepreneurs are crazy enough to believe in Unicorns
Zebras as % of city
population
51. Open Data
Open Source
Open Standards
Coding in
Schools
25% Govt IT
budget for
SMEs
Govt Digital
Services
Global thought leader in digital transformation
Kauffman report, 2012:
Looking into its portfolio of nearly 100 VC funds, including what it says are some of the most notable and exclusive names (confidentiality agreements barred it from naming them), the foundation found that only 20 of them beat a public-market equivalent by more than 3% annually, and half of those started investing before 1995.
“There are not enough strong VC investors with above-market returns to absorb even our limited investment capital,” the Kauffman Foundation concludes
HBS research:
Research by HBS which look at US venture returns from 2004-2010 says that about 75% of VC firms don’t return investors capital, based on data from 2,000 companies that received venture funding of at least $1m
More $bn outcomes in last 15 years (at least 15) than any other cities other places other than Bay Area or China
We’ve been involved in 10/15 directly or indirectly (w/Index)