#001 Sequoia Capital

Sequoia Capital is one of the most notable venture capital firms in the world. How notable? Well, As of this writing, Sequoia has financed companies worth over $7 trillion, yes, with a T, including three of the top six most valuable companies in the world: Apple, Google, and Nvidia. Founded in 1972 by a former Fairchild Semiconductor sales executive named Don Valentine, Sequoia rose to prominence by being an early investor in breakout companies like Atari, their first investment, and Apple, not too long after that. The success of their first fund, which included these two companies and generated a 60% IRR, increased their credibility along with the credibility of the entire venture capital ecosystem itself.  Today, we’re going to investigate why Sequoia invested in Apple, Yahoo, LinkedIn, Airbnb, and Whatsapp, how they won the deals, what Sequoia’s general investment thesis is, how you as a founder can position yourself to get funding from Sequoia, and discuss some regrettable passes they have in their anti-portfolio.  MORE ALL THINGS VC: 1. Website: I only mention a few companies, investment principles, and advice for VCs/founders, in each blog post and episode, but on my website, allthingsvc.blog, you can find dozens of companies that I provide insight into why that VC firm invested in that company and many more pieces of advice and lessons you can learn from. For example in the Sequoia blog post I talked about 5 companies Sequoia invested in, on my website I have information on about 25 companies Sequoia invested in. I encourage you to also check that out if you’re interested in learning more. 2. Substack: If you prefer to read rather than listen, you can subscribe to my substack with the same name, All Things VC, with the same logo and everything. Every essay will be shorter and more ot the point than the podcast, but still contain all the vital information within this podcast contained in 7,500-10,000 words. I recommend subscribing to both and seeing which you prefer or, ideally, consuming both! SOURCES: Episode Sources

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