TechCrunch+ Roundup: South Korea Investor Survey, 1-Hour Board Meetings, Venture Leasing Basics

After the sale software startup TigerEye closed its Series A and set up a board of directors, its co-founders put them on notice:

One thing we would never want to happen is a three-hour, very awkward, non-strategic board meeting.

“Every board deck I’ve built and seen is over 80 pages long,” says Tracy Young, co-founder and CEO of TigerEye. “I’m not exaggerating.”

Full TechCrunch+ articles available to members only
use discount code tcpplus roundup To save 20% off a one or two year subscription

In this TC+ article, she explains how to structure a one-hour board meeting that creates real value for founders and investors. Step one: replace your massive deck with three page memos.

We’re taking Monday, May 29th off to celebrate Memorial Day, so I’ll be back a week from today with another TC+ roundup.

Have a great weekend!

walter thompson
Editorial Manager, TechCrunch+
@yourprotagonist

Why are venture capitalists not coming forward to fund cyber security startups?

The quick shift to digital has been great for mature cybersecurity companies: Palo Alto Networks, Scalar and CrowdStrike are showing strong revenue multipliers, reports Alex Wilhelm.

But the halo effect doesn’t appear to be the case for venture-backed cybersecurity startups. According to Crunchbase, funding for companies in this sector fell 58% in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 2023.

Alex writes, “Given that valuations are down across the board, today’s cybersecurity equity prices are down dramatically, even though they are more expensive than other technology subcategories.”

Profitability over growth: 5 investors explain their mantra for South Korean startups

Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch

South Korea saw a unicorn boom in recent years, but like the rest of the world, it is feeling the effects of a global market correction.

“Venture funding in Asia in the first quarter of 2023 down 33% from Q4 2023 and 57% from Q1 2022,” reports Kate Park, who surveyed five investors to get their predictions for 2023 and found out On how they are advising their portfolio companies:

• Han Kim, General Partner, Altos Ventures
• Tim Chai, Managing Partner, 500 Global
• JP Lee, CEO and Managing Partner, SoftBank Ventures Asia
• Yemin Chung, Managing Director, BRV Capital Management
• Eunse Lee, Founder and Managing Partner, 541 Ventures

Ask Sophie: What Are My Options If a Company Rejects My Opt Job Offer?

Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch

dear sophie,

I’m an international student graduating this month, but the company I was supposed to start working for on opt-in has rescinded my job offer.

What are my options?

– Grappling Grad

3 things businesses must do to secure their applications in the AI ​​era

Image Credits: henrik sorensen (Opens in a new window) / Getty Images

When it comes to phishing, bots and other attempts to access customer accounts, companies with AI-enabled applications give bad actors a wider attack surface.

“We are already seeing examples of reverse engineering AI-powered sites to get free AI computing,” says Reed McGinley-Stempel, co-founder and CEO of Stitch, a customer identity and access management (CIAM) platform.

Venture Leasing: The Unsung Hero for Hardware Startups Struggling to Raise Capital

Image Credits: rebel1998 (Opens in a new window) / Getty Images

Hardware startups have always been challenged when it comes to high initial capital expenditures and open-ended R&D timelines.

Fortunately, venture leasing “forms a happy medium between expensive debt loans and VC funding that works particularly well,” says Felipe Chavez Cortes, CEO and co-founder of robotic food delivery firm Kiwibot.

To get products to market faster while avoiding dilution, his company closed a $10M venture leasing deal.

According to Cortes, “hardware companies shouldn’t feel limited to VC funds funding their high-risk, high-growth operations.”

Pitch Deck Teardown: Faye’s $10M Series A Deck

Image Credits: Faye

Insurtech startup Faye shared a modified version of the 19-slide deck its founders used in their $10M Series A round.

Haje Jan Camps says, “Let’s get this straight off the bat.” “It’s a really excellent pitch deck.”

• cover slide
• summary slide
• team slide
• problem slide
• market size slide
• Insurance Market Overview Slide
• product overview slide
• Product Features Slide 1
• Product Features Slide 2
• Product Features Slide 3
• Product Features Slide 4
• go-to-market slide
• Financial Growth Metrics Slide
• Customer Development Metrics Slide
• Customer Verification Slide 1
• competitive landscape slides
• ask slide
• Customer Verification Slide 2
• Closing slide with mission statement