10/9/19 edit: VMware has acquired Carbon Black for $2.1 billion. So, we will increase the number of startups we will back. After Carbon Black went public, Mrs. T. and I had some discussions. What should we do with my personal winnings (I co-led the first institutional round when it was called Bit9; details here and
Bridges 2024 and Section F
Today, I was very fortunate to be part of a goodbye discussion with some of my students at Harvard Business School. They are about to graduate and for three days they go through a program called “Bridges.” Ideally, it is a way for students to process what they have learned over two years and gather
Spring Thaw and Section B
Here in New England, spring has finally sprung. The weather has turned warmer, and the trees are starting to pop. I love spring: the earth renews itself, and everything starts to come back to life. For me, that means fly fishing (outings this past weekend here and here). Spring also brings with it the end
The Role of University Trustees
The much-discussed debate on free speech vs. hate speech has spilled over from the digital world to the off-line world. And, it’s not going to end any time soon. In a way, the debate about Twitter/X and Facebook is quite simple: they’re businesses that Elon owns and that Zuck controls. They can do whatever they
My Students
It is one thing to read the news. It is an entirely other thing to know people directly affected by the news. For example: a former student of mine is Palestinian. One of his friends from Gaza has lost 47 relatives, and others have each lost 10 to 50. A friend’s two relatives (a mother
Angel Investment: Embrace.AI
We’re happy to announce that our family angel program (back 80+ entrepreneurs over eight years and donate all gains to charity; details here) has invested in Embrace.AI. It’s our 29th investment (portfolio here), and we’re really excited to be part of what Derek Butts and Seth Halpern are doing. Derek and Seth were early employees
Gen Z, Israel, Gaza, and Polls
For “fun,” I follow politics, listen to podcasts, and read about current events. With the current conflagration in the Middle East, I’ve continued to do that. Two polls recently came out, and I’m honestly at a loss for words. There has been a dramatic shift. I’ve tried to summarize them below with screen shots from