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Biotech or fusion energy startups generally require a serious R&D investment whereas a social media webapp does not. MySpace isn't a good model to use for the n

Biotech or fusion energy startups generally require a serious R&D investment whereas a social media webapp does not. MySpace isn't a good model to use for the next Fairchild Semiconductor.

AndrewKemendo 7y ago
I don't even place the former two in the same category of startup as software startups. Again, if we define startup as "Growing company in search of a business model" then fusion energy falls completely outside of that. You don't get "hyperscale" growth with science (biotech) or infrastructure projects (fusion energy). I'm unaware of any biotech startups that have grown to hyperscale. Genentech is the only giant biotech company I'm aware of and it was started 40 years ago and acquired before any kind of hyperscaling like you see with software startups.
- fuzzfactor 7y ago
  I think the outcome for Packard & Hewlett would have been much different if they had not put so much effort into meaningful R & D. Once you get that much going on, nobody can launch it all anyway. If you could, Thos Edison's lab or Bell Labs would have probably scaled most hyperly themselves. As a technology marketer, I think you should have much more technology that you are not selling compared to what you are promising to deliver. Even better if you can just keep the technology coming to delight customers more so as you go along. Sometimes a highly scaled startup seems to define itself as an unsolved problem where there is exponential uptake begging for a solution. If someone can figure it out.
- EthanHeilman 7y ago
  Not sure what hyperscale qualifies as. I do agree that companies which are only building a webapp or mobile app can scale and grow in a very different way than companies that need to build infrastructure. >I'm unaware of any biotech startups that have grown to hyperscale. Genzyme[0] comes to mind, founded in 1981, went public in 1986 (raising 28.2 million [1]). It was acquiring other companies, building manufacturing plants at a pretty fast pace. Not sure if you would call it hyperscale. What do you think about companies like spacex or tesla which are science heavy? [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genzyme https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genzyme [1]: http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/genzyme-corporation-history/ http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/genzyme-cor...

Biotech or fusion energy startups generally require a serious R&D investment whereas a social media webapp does not. MySpace isn't a good model to use for the next Fairchild Semiconductor.

AndrewKemendo 7y ago

I don't even place the former two in the same category of startup as software startups. Again, if we define startup as "Growing company in search of a business model" then fusion energy falls completely outside of that. You don't get "hyperscale" growth with science (biotech) or infrastructure projects (fusion energy). I'm unaware of any biotech startups that have grown to hyperscale. Genentech is the only giant biotech company I'm aware of and it was started 40 years ago and acquired before any kind of hyperscaling like you see with software startups.

fuzzfactor 7y ago
I think the outcome for Packard & Hewlett would have been much different if they had not put so much effort into meaningful R & D. Once you get that much going on, nobody can launch it all anyway. If you could, Thos Edison's lab or Bell Labs would have probably scaled most hyperly themselves. As a technology marketer, I think you should have much more technology that you are not selling compared to what you are promising to deliver. Even better if you can just keep the technology coming to delight customers more so as you go along. Sometimes a highly scaled startup seems to define itself as an unsolved problem where there is exponential uptake begging for a solution. If someone can figure it out.
EthanHeilman 7y ago
Not sure what hyperscale qualifies as. I do agree that companies which are only building a webapp or mobile app can scale and grow in a very different way than companies that need to build infrastructure. >I'm unaware of any biotech startups that have grown to hyperscale. Genzyme[0] comes to mind, founded in 1981, went public in 1986 (raising 28.2 million [1]). It was acquiring other companies, building manufacturing plants at a pretty fast pace. Not sure if you would call it hyperscale. What do you think about companies like spacex or tesla which are science heavy? [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genzyme https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genzyme [1]: http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/genzyme-corporation-history/ http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/genzyme-cor...