A founder launched a product that triggered 44 lawsuits, forcing the company to raise $300 million and sell at a $150 loss per unit before going public. He later shifted from operating roles to board seats to startup investing, where he focuses on founders with intuitive, scalable ideas rather than betting on either the jockey or the horse alone.
It was a disruptive idea. Next thing we know is this lawyer sat next to me. I always cringe when I hear the word lawyer. So 44 lawsuits the day we announced the product. Ended up having to raise $300 million to fund lawsuits. And we also could only sell the product for $149. It cost almost $300 to build. So, so if you can imagine use of funds, lawsuits and subsidizing product. Yeah, but we got it done, public company. And over the years evolved from running companies, which was really hard, to being on boards of companies, which is relatively easy, to getting more enthused with startups. So, so locally, also in a couple other geographies as well. And I tend to like to spread things out, so I use the startup investments also as a learning process for myself. So some companies today I feel I know intricately and I can help, In others, I just take an observation role, but I believe in them. There was discussions earlier on what the jockey versus the horse. For me, it's not a trade-off. You don't need to choose one or the other. So the idea needs to be intuitive to me. I need to believe that the individual can make it happen, that he or she has the characteristics, and then I need to see that it's scalable.
