A prolific angel investor who deserves the attention– here’s a blog post by Connie Loizos on pehub. Here’s a block on what the firm is looking for these days:
The criteria is loose, though a priority for Conway right now is the so-called live Internet — a wider trend in how users more immediately interact and share content these days — and mobile applications. In fact, concepts that combine both in particular “move to the top of the list,†says Lee.
The closer a startup is to an inflection point, the better, too. “We try to get involved when they need help with a key business development deal or a subsequent financing or with key hires,†according to Lee, who adds that occasionally, the group — operating under moniker SV Angel — will also back entrepreneurs at the concept stage. He says that it happens “rarely. It very much depends on the entrepreneur and the idea.â€
The rest of the team’s time is spent cultivating stronger partnerships with Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft on behalf of its startups, or meeting, often at Conway’s lavish San Francisco home, with the new entrepreneurs that are regularly funneled their way.
“We try to spend as much time with prospective opportunities because, at the risk of sounding corny, that’s the most fun part of this business,†says Lee. “Even if they are opportunities we don’t pursue, [meeting with them] feeds the ecosystem, and we do think it’s a pay-it-forward business.â€
