Ascend

Nine out of 10 startups crash and burn — mostly from avoidable mistakes. But you don’t have to be part of that stat. Ascend is hosting Dave Hersh — founding CEO of Jive Software (NASDAQ IPO), author of Reignition, and board partner at Andreessen Horowitz — to share how, exactly, you can sidestep those traps. Usually reserved for our portfolio founders, this virtual AMA is open to?current and aspiring founders?Oct. 8, noon-1PM Pacific Time. It'll be moderated by Kirby. CC: Jen Haller & Thomas Stahura Sign up here: https://lu.ma/wfge17xd

Talk to any startup expert about building the next Silicon Valley, and they’ll often point to one key element: a strong pipeline of seasoned advisors. For those in big tech or engineering roles outside the startup ecosystem, breaking into advisory roles can be challenging — there can be broad gaps between the networks of people who’ve spent their careers in companies that have already scaled, and those of serial entrepreneurs and startup founders. They might have questions about how to meet founders, best ways to pitch themselves, or even how much money to ask for. We’ve created a FAQ for big tech professionals interested in upholding the region’s robust mentor network. We gathered insights from both seasoned and emerging advisors. We’ll start with the equity question, the rest is linked in comments. Thank you for the help Taylor Black, Jim Alkove, Aseem Datar, David Pitman, and many others.

?????? Bay Area AI friends! Ascend ?????? has backed two stealth cos out of AI Tinkerers already and we’re stoked to sponsor the upcoming session in Palo Alto. Join us Thursday at Groq HQ. https://lnkd.in/eYGyrw2M

Exciting panel at #seattletechweek on driving acceleration, getting to the first $2M ARR through founder led sales, and GTM hacks. Thank you Ascend and University of Washington for hosting and my fellow panelists Sunil Nagaraj and Brentt Baltimore for the lively debate.

Thrilled to announce Ascend's fourth annual #FoundersBash! Join us Sept. 12 at Block 41 in Downtown for an evening of networking and fun. Last year, I covered the action for GeekWire: "More than 1,000 entrepreneurs, investors and tech leaders gathered for Founders Bash 2023, a massive meet-up celebrating the region’s innovation sector." This year, I got to see the incredible behind-the-scenes work by Kailin, Jen, & Kirby. The thought and craft put into this event is amazing — and it'll be bigger than before. Huge thanks to our presenting sponsors AWS Startups (Maria Hess) and Stifel Bank (Minh Le). Additional sponsors include Summit Trail Advisors, TalentReach (Jeff S.), Portalus, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati (Craig Sherman). Don't miss out. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gg4F9FtR

Is Hedgehog ready for prime time? The open-source software startup lets cloud-native app owners deploy workloads on edge compute and distributed cloud infrastructure, just like in the public cloud. Think of it as GPU connective tissue. Hedgehog leaders Marc Austin (CEO), Michael V Dvorkin (CTO), and Sergei Lukianov (Kubernetes Engineer) will present their application before a panel of experts July 10 at 8 AM PT. It's part of a series of events at Networking Field Day, where leaders in the field discuss new tech and critical issues. Watch the livestream here: https://lnkd.in/gapM-64E

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The Ascend team is growing! We are excited to announce?Thomas Stahura?joined our team as an analyst. A recent?Purdue University?engineering grad, Thomas will develop internal automation tools, perform technical diligence, and scout new startups. He'll also code alongside engineers, hacking together new projects and tools. Thomas comes from entrepreneurial roots. As a college student, he co-founded two AI startups:?Quasi Ventures, a pre-ChatGPT AI content creation tool, and?Pondr, an AI-powered product analytics platform.

Priti Youssef Choksi has experience on both sides of M&A. She previously spent time in corporate development roles at Google and Facebook, helping guide the tech giants through the M&A process.?Now through her role as a Partner Norwest Venture Partners, she helps startups?build, scale, and?get acquired.? ? In a recent AMA session with Ascend founders, Priti decoded the process, offering her expert insights and tips.? ? "The best acquirers make it an efficient process," she says. "They have experience, which means you’re going to be treated well throughout the process. You’re going to have a very clear path to a yes or no, quickly." ? Unlock the secrets to M&A success with Priti's insights. Learn how strategic conversations can guide your startup toward a successful exit.

Congrats to our portfolio companies Groundlight AI and Atypical AI for earning recognition on CB Insights' AI 100 List!