Successful entrepreneurs begin with the support of a few #earlybelievers. Gopi Rangan, founding partner at Sure Ventures, interviews venture capital investors in the Silicon Valley and beyond. Guests share insider stories on how they invest in early stage startups. Do you want to learn from real-life challenges, inspiring missions and important decisions by CEOs, founders, VCs, angels, and advisors? Listen to https://podcast.sure.ventures.
https://podcast.sure.ventures
episode 126: Put Moolah in the Coolah
Chris Douvos, founder of Ahoy Capital, discusses venture capital investing as a limited partner (LP). He explores how venture capital fits in an investor's portfolio, shares his investment philosophy, and reveals how he identifies nonconformist VC investors, especially emerging managers. Chris also reflects on recent VC landscape changes and offers insights to better the industry's future and its potential impact.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
[2:28] Pre-2005 venture capital: An enigma mastered by just a few hundred experts. What's evolved?
[9:03] Contrarian view: Concentrated VC portfolios triumph over diversification.
[13:15] Ahoy's portfolio: Home to unique ventures.
[18:26] Nurturing LP/VC connections.
[23:47] Standing out in the world of 'chaos capital' as a VC investor
The non-profit organization that Chris is passionate about: Habitat for Humanity
About Chris Douvos
Chris Douvos founded Ahoy Capital in 2018 with a focus on building a boutique firm committed to investment excellence and fostering strong partnerships. With nearly two decades of experience in venture capital, Chris is a pioneering figure in the micro-VC movement. He excels in identifying and nurturing emerging funds, facilitating transparent dialogue between capital providers and consumers, and shares his insights through his blog, SuperLP. His expertise is not limited to capital; he is also sought after for his advisory role on numerous manager's boards. Chris is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and business schools, and he serves as a valuable resource for tech and business media.
Before establishing Ahoy Capital, Chris led investment efforts at Venture Investment Associates and The Investment Fund for Foundations. He honed his skills in illiquid investing while working with Princeton University's endowment and started his career as a strategy consultant at Monitor Company.
Fun Fact: Chris is known for his exclusive brick oven pizza parties, attended by LPs, GPs, and entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley.
About Ahoy Capital
Ahoy Capital is a Silicon Valley-based boutique fund manager that scours the innovation ecosystem in search of attractive risk-adjusted returns while maintaining a high level of engagement with its Partners. Focusing on investments in both early-stage venture capital funds and start-up companies, Ahoy Capital seeks outstanding opportunities in the application of emerging disruptive technologies, as well as the development of nascent frontier ideas that will continue to have profound effects on the ways in which people live and work.
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