Blog Archives

Another FKA Friday ● 29 March 2024#10

29/3/2024


	29 March 2024 #10		856+355

Matt was part of the Blue Mirror DD Team, and now wants to join FKA. He has talked with Phil, Glen, and Rudi. All reckon he'd be a good fit!

Shall we let him in? He moved from Surgical Doctor to Strategy Surgeon. If you know of any reason why he shouldn't practice with FKA, tell our Board in confidence!

Germans say 'Kunstfehler' meaning 'slip of the art' when the English say 'malpractice'. Who would have expected such leniency from Germans?

Augmented Reality! Great Easter games from a Kiwi startup Magical AR Easter!

Give it a GO!

Christian is a German angel with the Band of Angels and shares his insights about how founders have to evolve as their startups scale. Read on!

Kissing an award trophy makes a pleasant change from kissing frogs! Shout out to NZ Hi-Tech Awards and the many fine finalists of 2024! Picking out Lance & Team Punakaiki who have sponsored the Startup category. See the full list of finalists HERE. You'll spot several of FKA's portfolio companies in different categories.

Thiel, Bezos and Zuckerberg join parade of insiders selling tech stocks. SELL!

Why wouldn't you sell on a high? MORE

Beggars belief "If you leave the country [Norway] having raised money for your startup, you’ll now have to pay an exit tax of >30% of your startup’s valuation - even if you never got a dollar out of the startup personally!" More!

Two Roads Diverged: The Splitting of Venture Capital. An interesting READ!

Just like angel investing has nothing to do with shark tanks, venture capital has nothing to do with snake pits!

Also, on LinkedIn and over 2,000 FKA GIFs on GIPHY.

Another FKA Friday ● 22 March 2024#09

22/3/2024


	22 March 2024 #09		856+347

Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs) are frequent and costly. Resistant superbugs are a thing. Hand Hygiene and Personal Protective Equipment keep staff and patients safe in hospitals, if done properly. Blue Mirror to the rescue! The Pitch!

Spanish is the most frequent target language of all translation. Next on the list is Sign Language! But there are not enough translaters. This is what the Kara team wants to crack. They are building a 10k lexicon to bring simul-translation to an inclusive world, and customers are paying them to get there.□ KARA (FKA#33)!

Jason, of course, spoke of Spoke (FKA#15). A interesting presentation and highly commendable roly-poly qualities in a founder!!!

What is it

A 12-week support programme, in-person Saturday launch event where you will learn the process to go to market. Access to 1-1 mentoring, coaching and workshops, learning alongside other founders.
Who is it for

Whether you are product ready or still in development, we will help!

We salute GridAKL, FKA's HQ and the home of ADI.Clinic!

APPLY NOW

An interesting and practical analysis of the effectiveness of Google Ads. MORE!

Investor updates are a good discipline for CEOs. Angel investors may find a weekly or monthly cadence too frequent especially if an appropriate investor rep sits on the Board. See some US opinions!

Futurologists listen up! Cadbury India tells it better than most in these two clips, about dating and about learning, working, and society in general

No question venture is crazy about AI. Lots of savings and productivity gains to be made but many other implications too.

Erick Yap is a Flying Kiwi with a day job - coding and more! Otherwise he is a loud champion of quiet people. MORE!

The Eight360 (FKA#21) NOVA Simulator – developed by a New Zealand-based team led by founder, CEO and self-described ‘STEM evangelist’ Terry Miller – is the first of its kind at a Victorian university and only the second in Australia. Read ON!

1st person shooter or one person shooter game? Ross rolled in 2023, 12 months on, Leahy is laid off. More on Hillfarrance Village life HERE.

"And this isn't the only firm receiving taxpayer/NZ Super money from nzgcp that has had senior departures."

Also, on LinkedIn and over 2,000 FKA GIFs on GIPHY.

Another FKA Friday ● 15 March 2024#08

15/3/2024


	15 March 2024 #08		856+336

Who will give the perfect pitch next Tuesday? Great line up! 18:30 for drinks and nibbles, pitches from 19:00. At KPMG, 18 Viaduct Harbour Ave, Auckland.

Lazy unlike this 2019 edition. Lazy because our editor and chief gif maker is attending the GEN NZ 2024 Unconference and Workshops. Among other things he will talk about ADI.Clinic and 4FF.nz.

Also, on LinkedIn and over 2,000 FKA GIFs on GIPHY.

Another FKA Friday ● 8 March 2024#07

8/3/2024


	8 March 2024 #07		858+333

Angel investing is not like rolling a cigarette!

It takes much longer for the results!

Mindhive raise is still open. Don't miss out!

Kara raise is off to a great start!

Blue Mirror is coming soon.

From the Economist. In the world of artificial intelligence (AI) a model is said to “hallucinate” when it generates text that is nonsensical or wrong. Hallucinations are all too familiar to regular users of such tools.

The German language has a word where the English language doesn't. 'Schnapszahl' denotes a number that is made up of identical digits. This morning 333 denotes the number of totally voluntary subscribers on LinkedIn.

Some of the Mailchimp readers may have been subscribed, not so much by an act of God but an act of the editor. For those who have felt spammed the UNSUBCRIBE button at the bottom has provided swift escape. fka.nz/news/me to subscribe.

Founders & Angels! Big Round ≠ Big Success. Interesting discussion!

March 2023. «The future of Thrasio looks bright, as the company continues to execute its strategy of acquiring and growing profitable Amazon businesses.»

February 2024. «Thrasio, an early leader in aggregating Amazon sellers, filed for Chapter 11.»

Jordan is concerned for the survival of Aussie Angel Groups. More HERE.

The smaller Kiwi brothers and sisters already had to submit to regulation that the Aussies are resisting. In most other places, clipping wings is considered cruel!

9 Angels at the table, yesterday at ADI.Clinic!

Glen may look a little like Heino but does he sound like Heino? Listen

Before the Gala Dinner comes the judging! At least two Flying Kiwi are judging two of the categories. But heed one man's wise warning!

From the Herald, sponsored by ASB. «The ASB Clean Tech Fund, launched at the end of last year, is set up to be a provider to early-stage companies wanting to access capital.» But how big is the fund?

Revolving bank doors. Westpac's Red Bird Ventures closed shop quietly at the end of 2023 after investing $1.4m.

Also, on LinkedIn and over 2,000 FKA GIFs on GIPHY.

Another FKA Friday ● 1 March 2024#06

1/3/2024


	1 March 2024 #06		857+328

Revenue is a leading indicator of startup health. But let's not forget that burn is the 2nd factor of the equation that leads to positive cash flow nirvana. The Netflix way!

And HERE, as promised, comes the video pitch from CEO Arash, still a little croaky.

From the Economist. There is a Unicorn graveyard out there...

Last week we had 5 startups, and we started yesterday morning with only 1 booking. However, in the end, we had 5 sessions again. Managing climate impact, hats, hoodies, marine preventative maintenance and staff incentives.

The surge in demand for darker-colored hats signifies a cultural shift towards embracing deeper aspects of the human psyche. Dark hues symbolize mystery and introspection... The Darker Hats

Thank you to the hat-trick mentors who still showed up despite the lowly outlook in the morning. David, Glen, Mark, Mike, Olivia, Rudi & Troy. Book at ADI.Clinic!

Simon is done with sheep. Kitea Health #37 has approval for human trials! More.

Startup Aotearoa is giving founders a leg up! Join the launch! More HERE.

Also, at FKA HQ, aka GridAKL, propeller power for founders! Could be for you!

From Scoop. The Sands Of Time Are Running Out! Auckland ran out of sand for construction before Christmas. Manufactured sand may well be a key to future supply. Kayasand #36 to the rescue!

It's not always good to be at the top of a list. 869 vehicles per 1000 in NZ, against 860 in the US. See the full stats HERE.

Also, on LinkedIn and over 2,000 FKA GIFs on GIPHY.

Another FKA Friday ● 29 March 2024#10

Give it a GO!

Another FKA Friday ● 22 March 2024#09

Another FKA Friday ● 15 March 2024#08

Another FKA Friday ● 8 March 2024#07

9 Angels at the table, yesterday at ADI.Clinic!

Another FKA Friday ● 1 March 2024#06

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