Summary
Startups are brutal. For many startups, the most grueling part is fundraising. The consequences of under or overestimating this challenge can be fatal. Teams that don’t account for creating fundable milestones will die, while those that over rotate on one-off demos, risk losing time and burning out their teams. The most skilled founders and product teams are able to create fundable milestones that align perfectly to their company and product roadmaps.
This talk endeavors to explore the process of creating fundable product milestones using the backdrop of lessons learned raising a round of funding in the Spring of 2020. Product teams developing hardware or deep tech will find it especially relevant, however the lessons learned are generally applicable. There will be a healthy Q&A as well!
About the Speaker
Igino Cafiero is the CEO of Bear Flag Robotics, acquired by John Deere in 2021. Bear Flag Robotics develops autonomous technology that can be added to farm tractors as a performance upgrade. Igino is a former founder, and has business experience across a broad range of sectors including automotive, telecom, and agriculture. He earned a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon, his MS in Electrical Engineering from Stanford, and an MBA from the Wharton School.