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Demo your startup to win a $100k convertible note. Bring It. Kill It. Get Paid.
- metageek 16y agoI'm willing to believe this is entirely aboveboard. But the name rhymes too well with "fly by night".
- nopal 16y agohttp://www.businessfinance.com/convertible-note.htm http://www.businessfinance.com/convertible-note.htm
- jeffepp 16y agoThe event is Sponsored by Rackspace http://rackspace.com http://rackspace.com (Thanks, you rock!) The VC 'funders' are Ludlow Ventures (http://ludlowventures.com http://ludlowventures.com) & Detroit Venture Partners (http://detroitventurepartners.com http://detroitventurepartners.com) I should also mention this is a non-profit event
- acgourley 16y agoif travel_cost < win_chance*100000 then go() end DVP has a mission statement in investing in Detroit companies, does this mean there is a bias towards locals? EDIT: yes you're all correct - the formula is more complex than that, I should have said that for many people (including myself) the other factors are an order of magnitude less substantial.
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- jeffepp 16y agoWe are working on getting travel sponsors to subsidize these costs. The investors will choose the company they believe to be the best investment, regardless of location.
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- jtriest 16y agohey.. jonathon from Ludlow Ventures here. no local bias in the event. we're certainly excited to have the event in detroit, but the best company will win regardless of where they are from/located.
- Sam_Odio 16y agoYou forgot the risk premium, among other things. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risk_premium http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risk_premium
- teaspoon 16y agoThat algorithm is really only rational if the $100k in question is strings-free cash, which this isn't.
- micahb37 16y agothis looks awesome!
- dstein 16y agoBut if it's in Detroit what are your chances of getting out of the city with the money?
- Rariel 16y agoBecause people are stuck up for convertible notes all the time.
- trustfundbaby 16y agoI feel a bubble coming on.
- dshankar 16y agoHow is this a sign of a bubble? Offering a $100k purse to a startup is not unheard of (see TC Disrupt etc.) This is actually worse that those prizes since its an _investment_ and not free cash.
- gyardley 16y ago'Getting paid' and/or winning a prize is a very different thing from taking an investment. You don't 'win' a convertible note, you agree to give up an as-yet-to-be-determined portion of your company for it. The participants will almost certainly understand this, but I still find the rhetoric a bit off-putting.
- jtriest 16y agojonathon from ludlow ventures again... i apologize if any of the language is misleading. our goal is to be as transparent as possible. in fact, we will be posting the actual note soon... this way everyone knows what's being offered.
- GBond 16y agoProbably phrased that way for "oompf" factor. "Win a favorable term loan" doesn't quite have the same ring to it. Might I suggest the a new terminology for founder favorable seed-round convertible notes?: "Yuri bucks" edit: BTW, great to see an innovative startup event taking place in downtown Detroit.
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- GavinB 16y ago"Win" is perfectly reasonable to use whenever someone is gaining something that they want. For instance "I hope we win that big contract we bid on." The contract isn't free money, but it's considered a "win" because it's a favorable outcome. If your business wants a 100k convertible note, it's very reasonable to say you're going to try to win it with a great pitch. Edit: Personally I find the phrase "earn an excuse to continue living the dream" on the about page a bit more troubling.
- calbear81 16y agoI'm not sure about a site where the word "transparent" is misspelled as "transparant". Good luck any startups that are attending!
- jeffepp 16y agoGood attitude. Clearly, the work of someone volunteering their time for a non-profit is indicative of the event as a whole.
- mikelanger 16y agoI think this an awesome idea really works well for young startups! http://stuffbuff.com http://stuffbuff.com
- skullsplitter 16y agoAs a developer working w/ a MI based startup this is intriguing. Well see how it plays out but its an encouraging sign for startup's outside of the sv-hub.
- tastybites 16y ago"Winning" a chance to give away part of my freedom?
- jtriest 16y agowe look at it as an opportunity to partner with and help grow an amazing company.
- adellecharles 16y agoSo great to see that this is running as a non-profit. I think it's an awesome initiative and looking forward to the event.
- jtriest 16y agothanks for the kind words!
- marcamillion 16y ago> we're as transparent as a new layer in photoshop... That has to be one of the most interesting descriptions I have heard for ANY investor. I have no affiliation with that company or the investors. That line was pretty clever though.
- zach 16y agoWow, it's like a battle of the bands for startups. This would be a great premise for an episode of an as-yet-unproduced TV show about startup founders. However, the people watching would probably think that it was completely contrived.