Vodka, my kind of new venture!
I drank vodka last night. I love vodka. So do a lot of people. But there are so many vodka brands on the shelf these days it’s hard to know which ones are really good or are just pretty bottles. This is why Noah Cohen and his...
From research to marketplace: the NSF challenges scientists to think entrepreneurially
All you get is 90-seconds to communicate your big idea and how it can change the world. That’s a tall order for anyone; it’s a unique challenge among academic scientists who tend to talk longer rather than shorter, and use...
Could Portuguese startups make it in Pittsburgh?
Entrepreneurship is the answer to Portugal’s economic woes. This means that Portuguese entrepreneurs have to get their startups beyond the border and into some broader markets. In Portugal startups face the constraints that come...
US immigration policy tries to make America uncompetitive!
The US immigration policy stinks for entrepreneurs and startups. I believe that the US has confused and confounded two separate and distinct immigration issues: high tech entrepreneurs from outside the nation who want to stay in...
Knopp, a uniquely Pittsburgh startup story
Knopp Neurosciences is a Pittsburgh story. The drug development company is a startup gem – from founding, raising money, and executing on its business plan. But wait; Pittsburgh is supposedly not a good place to start a drug...
Joshua Baer, serial entrepreneur from a dorm room to the board room
Joshua Baer is 36 and he has founded and sold four companies. His most recent startup, OtherInbox, was acquired at the end of 2011 by Return Path. In addition to the technology companies, Joshua founded Capital Factory, an...
Top 10 ways to kill a university startup
Recently, I was asked to be on a panel for the National Council on Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer (NCET2) conference that was in DC January 18-20). I was on the panel with Murali Nair, from the National Science...
How to kill a university spin out
There are lots of ways to screw up in entrepreneurship. There are particular challenges in commercializing university technologies. Getting from the lab to the marketplace, from benchtop to bedside, is fraught with many valleys...
Thoughts on entrepreneurship: The Seven Deadly Sins
Musing on the Seven Deadly Sins and their transposition to the world of entrepreneurship. These sins, also known as Capital Vices or Cardinal Sins, comprise a classification of the most objectionable vices that has been used...
Thoughts on When to Form the Company
First time entrepreneurs often ask me “when should I form the company?” What does form the company mean? Does it mean come up with the idea for the core product/service for the company? Does it mean making a decision with a...