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Zebras vs Unicorns: Money & Power in the Valley

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Thanks for coming to our panel!

Zebras vs Unicorns: Money and Power in the Valley

Capitalism is a hell of a drug. When used responsibly, it can create freedom, innovation and efficiency. But unchecked, hoarding, exploitation and careless behavior can run rampant. The tech world has created a great example of this with venture capital and “unicorns.” It’s not greed and growth at all costs…it’s just business. Right? Wrong.

We’re entering a new age, one where entrepreneurs want to create solutions to improve the human experience and quality of life without playing a zero sum game. This is the age of the zebra. Learn why purpose and profit do not have to be mutually exclusive, why creating alternatives to the venture capital status quo is a moral and economic imperative, and how innovation in business financing can help us solve the world’s big challenges.

Here’s a link to the deck we presented, as well as some further reading about Zebras, Unicorns, and inclusive capital.

🦓You can also learn more about Zebras and join the dazzle here: zebrasunite.com

Follow:

Astrid Scholz | @ajscholz

Jennifer Brandel | @jennierbrandel

Mara Zepeda | @marazepeda

FURTHER READING

New York Times: More Start-Ups Have an Unfamiliar Message for Venture Capitalists: Get Lost

Forbes: Platform Cooperatives Like Stocksy Have A Purpose Uber And Airbnb Never Will

Wall Street Journal: Venture Capital and Its Discontents

SaaStr: Why Only 12% of VCs Can Be Considered Successful. Max.

TechCrunch: The meeting that showed me the truth about VCs

Recode: Why venture capital doesn’t work for everyone

The Economist: The wave of unicorn IPOs reveals Silicon Valley’s groupthink

Fortune: ‘The Cheap Money Era’: 2019’s IPOs Have Delivered Some Harsh Lessons to Venture Capital

American Affairs Journal: Uber’s Path of Destruction

Buffer: We Spent $3.3M Buying Out Investors: Why and How We Did It

TechCrunch: Investors and entrepreneurs need to address the mental health crisis in startups

Zebras Unite: Zebras Fix What Unicorns Break

Inc: American Entrepreneurship Is Actually Vanishing. Here's Why

Strong Words: Indie VC v3 Terms

Village Capital: Alternative Investment Strategies to Drive Inclusive Innovation

Entrepreneur: Out of $85 Billion in VC Funding Last Year, Only 2.2 Percent Went to Female Founders. And Every Year, Women of Color Get Less Than 1 Percent of Total Funding

New Partnership With Village Capital and Additional Foundation Funding for Zebras Unite Releases the Potential of Impact-Oriented Entrepreneurs

We Have Met the Enemy…and He is Us: Lessons from Twenty Years of the Kauffman Foundation's Investments in Venture Capital Funds and the Triumph of Hope Over Experience

WHO IS EXPERIMENTING IN THIS SPACE…?

Zebras Unite

IndieVC

Village Capital

Candide Group

Earnest Capital

Lighter Capital

Decathlon Capital Partners

Corl

Bigfoot Capital

Alternative Capital