The United States boasts the largest and most dynamic startup ecosystem in the world, with major hubs like Silicon Valley, New York City, and Boston. This ecosystem is characterized by a strong venture capital presence and a supportive culture for innovation and entrepreneurship. The U.S. continues to lead globally in technological innovation and startup activity, contributing significantly to economic growth and job creation.
Size of the Market
As of 2024, the U.S. is home to approximately 77,927 startups. The startup ecosystem is supported by substantial venture capital investments, which totaled around $162.6 billion in 2022. This robust financial backing highlights the confidence investors have in the U.S. startup market, ensuring ample funding for innovation and growth.
Key Strengths
Key strengths of the U.S. market include a highly skilled workforce, advanced technological infrastructure, and a culture that encourages risk-taking and entrepreneurship. The presence of major tech companies like Google, Apple, and Facebook fosters a collaborative environment and provides ample opportunities for startups. Additionally, the U.S. government offers support through various grants and tax incentives, such as the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.
Major Hubs
Silicon Valley remains the epicenter of innovation, driving advancements in AI, biotechnology, fintech, and clean energy. New York City excels in finance and media, while Boston is strong in biotechnology and education-driven startups. These regions are crucial to the U.S. startup ecosystem, offering a wealth of resources, talent, and opportunities.
Emerging Hubs
Cities like Austin, Denver, and Seattle are emerging as significant tech hubs. These cities provide a favorable business climate, quality of life, and are becoming attractive locations for startups and talent. The rise of remote work has further expanded opportunities for startups to access talent from various regions, contributing to the growth of these emerging hubs.
Support Systems
The U.S. startup market benefits from a comprehensive support system of accelerators, incubators, and co-working spaces. Programs like Techstars and Y Combinator have been instrumental in nurturing early-stage startups, providing mentorship, resources, and funding. These support systems help startups at various stages of their journey to scale and succeed.
Challenges
Despite its strengths, the U.S. startup ecosystem faces challenges such as high costs of living, regulatory hurdles, and intense competition for talent. These challenges can create barriers for new startups and require strategic navigation to ensure long-term success.
Opportunities and Future Outlook
The U.S. startup market features a diverse customer base and a culture that encourages innovation and entrepreneurship. The rise of remote work has expanded opportunities, allowing startups to access talent from various regions. The future outlook remains positive with continuous growth and innovation, driven by emerging technologies such as blockchain, quantum computing, and green energy.
Resilience and Adaptability
The U.S. startup ecosystem is characterized by its resilience and adaptability. Despite challenges, the ecosystem continues to evolve, driven by a strong culture of entrepreneurship and technological advancements. This ensures the U.S. remains at the forefront of global innovation, contributing significantly to economic growth and job creation.
Case Studies: Successful Funding Rounds with Angel Investors on Angels Partners
Media • FinTech (& Financials services) • Entertainment (& Sports) • Payments • Consumer
Description
General Partner at TCV
General Partner at TCV
Josh Felser
Investing in Retail (& E-Commerce) • Sales (...
San Francisco Bay Are..., U.S.A.
Previous Investments
• Patreon:
$60000000 (Later stage VC)
• buildingconnected:
$22000000 (Later stage VC)
• ApplePie Capital:
$16500000 (Later stage VC)
• BetterUp:
$12900000 (Early stage VC)
• Fi:
$7020000 (Early stage VC)
• Ease Central:
$6500000 (Early stage VC)
• TrueFacet:
$6000000 (Early stage VC)
• Embark Veterinary:
$4500000 (Seed Round)
• Agentology:
$4500000 (Early stage VC)
• Trizic, Inc.:
$3300000 (Seed Round)
• Nestio:
• HiveWatch (Network Management Software):
• Arrive Recommerce:
$16000000 (Series A)
• Arrive Recommerce:
$5000000 (Seed)
• Xclaim:
$7000000 (Series A)
• Xclaim:
$7000000 (Seed)
• Xclaim:
$4000000 (Seed)
• ClimateAI:
$12000000 (Series A)
• WeaveGrid:
$15000000 (Series A)
• Arrive Outdoors:
$5000000 (Seed)
• Floating Point Group:
$2000000 (Seed)
• The Happy Home Company:
$4000000 (Seed)
• ENSO:
$3000000 (Seed)
• 9GAG:
$3000000 (Seed)
• Message Bus:
$3000000 (Series A)
• Cardpool:
(Seed)
• Infectious:
$750000 (Seed)
• Friendster:
$2000000 (Series A)
Josh Felser
San Francisco Bay Area - California, U.S.A.
Investing In
Retail (& E-Commerce) • Sales (& Marketing) • Cosmetics (& Fashion) • Entertainment (& Sports) • CleanTech • Gaming (& eSports) • Advertising • Analytics • Developer tools • Local commerce • Payments • Mobile Apps • Online Social
Description
Josh Felser is a Co-Founder and serves as Partner at Freestyle Capital. He also serves as Advisor at Catalyst Investors. Previously he Co-Founded and was CEO of Crackle, formerly known as Grouper Networks, a company that uses P2P technology to allow users to share their personal media within private groups. He previously served as Vice President of America Online and as General Manager of AOL's music brands Spinner, Winamp and Shoutcast. Felser was the co-founder of Spinner.com, a leading Internet music destination and served as President until its May 1999 purchase by America Online. In July 1996 he founded Internet music startup, RadioCo (a division of Organic Online), which ultimately merged with DJ.com (renamed Spinner.com). Previously, Felser was a Director of Business and Product Development in the Multimedia Group of U.S. West; an executive with News Corp. and a Manager, Business Development for News Corp.'s Fox Inc. in Los Angeles. Felser received his BA in Political Science from Duke University and his MBA from Fuqua School of Business at Duke. He is also the Co-Founder of FYI Living and serves as Chairman of the company.
Daniel Ibri
Investing in FinTech (& Financials services) &bul...
Mountain View Califor..., U.S.A.
Previous Investments
• Turing (Media and Information Services (B2B)):
$32000000 (Later stage VC)
• PayKey:
$10000000 (Later stage VC)
• Taranis:
$7500000 (Early stage VC)
• Sepio Systems:
$6500000 (Early stage VC)
• Scoutible:
$5000000 (Seed Round)
• Workcapital:
(Early stage VC)
• DOV:
(E)
• SAM Seamless Network:
(Seed Round)
• Emedgene:
(Seed Round)
• Geo Semiconductor:
(Later stage VC)
• Clearview MD:
• 109 World:
(mid stage)
• Soko:
(late stage)
• Unreasonable Capital:
(early stage)
• Girl Effect Accelerator:
• Unreasonable at Sea:
• Unreasonable Group:
(early stage)
• UNREASONABLE.is:
• Unreasonable Media:
• Founder Institute:
(late stage)
• Aceleratech:
(mid stage)
• iMusics:
(early stage)
• Mindset Ventures:
(early stage)
• Acelera Partners:
(early stage)
• Beta-i - Association for the promotion of Innovation and Entrepreneurship:
(mid stage)
• Grid Investments S.A.:
(early stage)
• Moore Capital:
(mid stage)
• Covercy:
$4000000 (Seed)
• Turing.com:
$32000000 (Series B)
• Turing.com:
$14000000 (Seed)
• Widow Games:
$100000 (Convertible Note)
• Bishop Fox:
$75000000 (Series B)
• Trellis Research:
$15000000 (Series B)
Daniel Ibri
Mountain View California - Sao Paulo - Sau Paulo San Francisco, U.S.A.
Investing In
FinTech (& Financials services) • Entertainment (& Sports) • Consumer
Description
Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Mindset Ventures | Professor at Insper
Currently CEO at Acelera Partners, enhancing the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Brazil and Partner at Mindset Ventures, investing in startups from Israel and USA
Raj Kapoor serves as the Chief Strategy Officer at Lyft. He is also the Head of Business for Lyft's self-driving division. He is the co-founder and CEO of Mayfield portfolio company fitmob, a mobile company that is re-inventing the gym through social/local workouts. He serves as board advisor at ClassPass. He also currently serves as Venture Advisor & Managing Director to Mayfield Fund. He has been working in the internet/mobile/interactive space for 21 years. He started in interactive TV at Bell Atlantic, founded the internet club at Harvard Business School, was an early employee at @Home, and later ran e-commerce services at Excite@Home. He co-founded Snapfish in 1999 as CEO and then sold the company to Hewlett Packard for $300 million. His next venture took him to Mayfield, where he invested in 12 companies including Lyft, Qunar, Red Beacon/Home Depot, and Rubicon Project.
Dustin Drees
Investing in Software (Web Marketplace Saas..) &b...
Atlanta - Georgia, U.S.A.
Previous Investments
• ConnexPay:
$13100000 (Later stage VC)
• 2080 Media:
$8000000 (Later stage VC)
• OncoLens:
$7250000 (Early stage VC)
• Gro Solutions:
$4250000 (Later stage VC)
• Inked Brands:
$4000000 (Early stage VC)
• CAR360:
$3550000 (Early stage VC)
• Acivilate:
$3000000 (Seed Round)
• Splitty Travel Ltd.:
$2400000 (Seed Round)
• AchieveIt:
$1700000 (Later stage VC)
• MLevel:
$1500000 (Later stage VC)
• Vibenomics:
(mid stage)
• Cypress.io:
(mid stage)
• DemandJump:
(mid stage)
Dustin Drees
Atlanta - Georgia, U.S.A.
Investing In
Software (Web Marketplace Saas..) • Media • Entertainment (& Sports) • Advertising • Developer tools
Description
Venture Investor at BIP Capital
Vice President at BIP Capital
Greg Gottesman
Investing in Software (Web Marketplace Saas..) &b...
Joshua Baer is a Co-Founder and serves as Chief Executive Officer at Capital Factory. He also serves as Advisor at Liveintent. He is the Founder and also serves as Board Member at PostUp. He founded his first startup in 1996 in his college dormitory at Carnegie Mellon University and now teaches a class at the University of Texas for student entrepreneurs. He was recently recognized as a Henry Crown Fellow and Braddock Scholar at the Aspen Institute, a member of the National Committee on US-China Relations Young Leaders Forum and an Eisenhower Fellow. He holds a degree in Computer science from Carnegie Mellon University.
Jesse Rasch
Investing in PropTech • BioTech • AgroT...
Ontario California , ..., U.S.A.
Previous Investments
• WedPics:
$8150000
• Clearpath Robotics:
$30000000 (Later stage VC)
• Sensibill:
$17300000 (Early stage VC)
• Figure 1:
$10000000 (Later stage VC)
• ROSS Intelligence:
$8700000 (Early stage VC)
• SnapTravel:
$8000000 (Early stage VC)
• Procurify:
$7000000 (Early stage VC)
• Hubdoc:
$6000000 (Seed Round)
• Knix:
$5700000 (Early stage VC)
• Clarify Health Solutions:
$5400000 (Other)
• Solink:
$5000000 (Later stage VC)
• FundThrough:
$4600000 (Later stage VC)
• Drop Loyalty:
$3750000 (Seed Round)
• Willow Cup:
$2651861 (Later stage VC)
• Zoocasa:
$1345000 (Seed Round)
• Synervoz Communications:
$1100000 (Other)
• Hyasynth Bio:
$1035000 (Seed Round)
• Aspect Biosystems:
(Later stage VC)
• Opencare:
Jesse Rasch
Ontario California - Toronto Ontario - Toronto (Ontario) - Toronto (), U.S.A.
Jesse Rasch is a Co-Founder and serves as Chairman & Chief Executive Officer at Hedgewood. He is the co-founder and past Chairman & CEO of WebHosting.com and InQuent Technologies. He co-founded CareGuide. InQuent provides private label hosting solutions to telecommunications customers including Bell Canada, KPN, Telecom New Zealand, PCCW, AT&T, Comcast, & Cox Communications. WebHosting.Com was one of the largest business web hosting companies in the world. In 2000, Rasch sold InQuent and WebHosting.Com to AT&T. In 2002, Rasch orchestrated a management team acquisition of InQuent from AT&T. Rasch successfully sold InQuent once more in 2003. InQuent was merged with Network Solutions and is now part of publicly traded web.com. Rasch is widely credited with establishing the white label web hosting market segment that is a significant component of the $95 billion annual web hosting market. VerticalScope, which Rasch co-founded, develops and acquires online media and community properties. VerticalScope's network of websites is visited by over 85,000,000 people per month. VerticalScope's automotive publishing division, the Modified Automotive Group, was acquired by KKR / Primedia in 2007. Torstar acquired 56% of VerticalScope in 2015. Rasch is a proponent of venture philanthropy and is active in encouraging entrepreneurs to participate in strategic philanthropy. He established the Jesse & Julie Rasch Foundation in 2000 to invest in causes that reflect Rasch's broad charitable interests. In 2001, Rasch was awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award. He has been featured in Time Magazine, The Globe & Mail, Canadian Business, The National Post, Network World, Macleans, and on CBC, CTV, Global, City-TV, BNN, and many other print, televised, and radio media. He was a founding member of the Canadian E-Business Opportunities Roundtable, a joint private and public sector advisory group on e-business in Canada.
Brian Garrett
Investing in IT (& TMT) • Media • Enter...
San Francisco Califor..., United States
Previous Investments
• Fuzzy:
$4500000 (Seed Round)
• Boom.tv:
$3500000 (Seed Round)
• Purple Squirrel:
$2700000 (Seed Round)
• RelationUp:
(Later stage VC)
• Retina.AI:
(Seed Round)
• IMMORTALS:
(Seed Round)
• HiveWatch (Network Management Software):
• Teampay:
$12000000 (Later stage VC)
• Branch Messenger:
$10000000 (Early stage VC)
• Conversion Logic:
$9000000 (Early stage VC)
• Narvar:
(early stage)
• Club W:
• Intelligent Beauty:
• Lettuce:
(early stage)
• SHIFT.com:
(early stage)
• StyleSaint:
(early stage)
• ShoeDazzle:
(early stage)
• GumGum:
(early stage)
• Crosscut Ventures:
(early stage)
• Verve:
(early stage)
• Palomar Ventures:
Brian Garrett
San Francisco California - Los Angeles California - Venice Italy, United States
Investing In
IT (& TMT) • Media • Entertainment (& Sports) • Real Estate (& Construction) • Investment Management • Mobile • Restaurants
Description
ex-Entrepreneur and Seed-Stage investor in LA
ex-Entrepreneur and Seed-Stage investor in LA
Co-Founder of LA-based seed fund CrossCut Ventures
Linked In Description:
Brian Garrett is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Crosscut.
Brian is very active in the Los Angeles start-up community and currently works actively with the following companies: GumGum, Verve Mobile, Reaction Commerce, Jyve, Sales Pro Quo, The BlackTux, Narvar, Omaze, Robin Care, Foray, Fuzzy, Umbra Lab, Fastdata.io and Saber es Poder.
With over 20 years of both investing and operating/entrepreneurial experience, Brian tries to bring humility and empathy to the lonely plight of starting and scaling start-up companies and works tirelessly to help his entrepreneurs succeed.
Prior to co-founding Crosscut, Brian was a Partner at Palomar Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm based in Santa Monica, California. Mr. Garrett joined Palomar in 2001 and played an active role in managing and investing two funds over 6 years totaling more than $400 million. While at Palomar, he was the sponsor of and/or an active board member in nine Palomar portfolio companies, including successes such as Entone (a video on demand company that sold to Harmonic), Lombardi (business process management software that sold to IBM) and Datallegro (data warehouse appliance company sold to Microsoft in 2008).
Prior to Palomar, Brian was the Director of Business Development at Niku Corporation. Prior to Niku, Brian worked at a boutique strategy consulting firm called R.B. Webber & Company. Brian worked with numerous early-stage technology companies including CommerceOne, Inktomi, Sagent, Aurum and Broadbase.
Brian received his MBA from Stanford's Graduate School of Business and he graduated from Stanford University with a B.S. in Industrial Engineering.
Specialties:
Entrepreneurial focus: Fashion/Tech/Media/Commerce.
Investing Focus: Crosscut focuses primarily on seed-stage opportunities in consumer/digital media across Southern California.
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