Avoiding buzzwords and marketing-speak (feat. Thomas McInerney) | E2236
Some pitches sound just like ads… and it’s a huge red flag for investors. On our latest edition of TWiST Tokyo, Jason welcomes legendary angel investor (and long-time friend of the pod) Thomas McInerney. His list of investments reads like a Who’s Who of the tech elite, including Notion, SpaceX, Uber, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Perplexity…. At Founder University x Tokyo, they discuss how the angel investing landscape has shifted, why it’s so important for founders to stay humble, the reasons that investors need to stay not just optimistic but aggressively so, and what angels can add to companies beyond just writing checks. Plus we revisit some classic TWiST clips featuring Thomas from over 10 years ago AND take a look at three of our favorite pitches from our Japanese founders.
Key Points
- Thomas McInerney emphasizes the importance of founders being able to simplify their ideas without relying on buzzwords, demonstrating a deep understanding and clear vision.
- Both Jason Calacanis and Thomas McInerney stress the need for startups to focus on frugality and ensuring they do not run out of money, emphasizing the importance of careful financial management.
- The importance of optimism and taking risks in early-stage investing is highlighted, along with the need for founders to have a clear, focused initial market and strong personal connections to their business ideas.
Partners
Chapters
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Transcript
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