The document discusses why many startup ecosystems struggle and provides suggestions for improvement. It notes that the key factors for building successful ecosystems are markets, capital, infrastructure, talent, regulations, and culture. However, most places cannot instantly change these. Instead, the document suggests that the real problem is the high cost of failure discourages risk-taking. It proposes countries reduce the career penalties for failure to encourage more startups. Additional recommendations include promoting local successes, inviting foreign experts, reducing regulations, and globalizing operations to leverage other strong ecosystems.

1. Why (Most) Startup Ecosystems Suck
(it’s not your fault)
(and what to do about it)

2. @benjaminjoffe - ben@hax.co
Hi Poland!

3. @benjaminjoffe - ben@hax.co
#1 Early stage hardware fund

4. 173 startups
50 / year
2 stages program
35 staff
$250k for 12-15% equity
180 - 365 days mentorship / development

5. Stage 1 Shenzhen
4-8 months
Mentorship & co-development
Technology
Engineering
Design
Stage 2 San Francisco
2-3 months
Mentorship & sales
Marketing
Distribution
Fundraising

6. Investments by region

7. FLOW NEUROSCIENCE

8. INTELLIGENT IMPLANTS

9. YOUIBOT

10. WAZER

11. MINDSET

12. FLASH ROBOTICS

13. Polish Product of the Future competition (20th Edition)
Special Award by Jadwiga Emilewicz,
Minister of Entrepreneurship and Technology

15. HARDWARE LIFE SCIENCES
SOCIAL & MOBILE FOOD
40%
15%
4 DEEP THEMES
35%
10%

16. ‘How to be the next Silicon Valley’

19. 30 countries

20. @benjaminjoffe - ben@hax.co
@benjaminjoffe
ben@hax.co

21. What is Silicon Valley?

22. Ecosystem 101:
The Six Necessary Categories
To Build The Next Silicon Valley
Sep 1, 2012

23. 1. Market
2. Capital
3. Infrastructures
4. Talent
5. Regulations
6. “Culture”
Ecosystem

24. Objective metrics?

25. Metrics
• # of startups
• # of unicorns
• $ Funding
• $ Exits

27. Most can’t change overnight

28. More useful question?

29. Who’s punching above its weight?

32. Gov/Military budgets
Exits

33. Israeli Companies Sold For Whopping $23 Billion In 2017

34. Not easy to replicate

38. 2015
110 startups
2014
40 startups
2016
190 startups
2017
238 startups

39. Xavier Niel, founder of FREE

40. 1,000 startups

41. Mr. Niel invested $270mln

42. Tax breaks
Public funding
Unemployment benefits
Sabbaticals

43. U.S. don’t need that

46. 19,800+ co-op students
3 semesters
120+ programs (30-50% of time)
6,700 companies
Co-Operative Education

47. Tax breaks
High Talent / Founders Ratio

48. Again, U.S. don’t need that

49. Something else…

50. 1. Market
2. Capital
3. Infrastructures
4. Talent
5. Regulations
6. “Culture”
Ecosystem

51. Culture??

52. This is water

53. The core

54. WHY no unicorns?
because not enough startups
WHY not enough startups?
because not enough founders
WHY not enough founders?
because risk is too high

55. Risk averse?

56. The real problem
NOT potential for success
BUT real cost of failure

57. Opportunity

58. Let’s assume equal chances

62. Downside

63. Loss Aversion
Large Loss >> Large Gain

64. GainLoss
Value

65. Reduce career penalty
for failure

66. Potential

67. How France Changed
• New generation wants autonomy
• Low cost / Benefits / Subsidies
• MNCs starved for talent
• New safety net!

68. Side benefit:
‘Bi-cultural’ staff

69. What about Poland?

70. What to do? Regulations
• Hiring / Firing
• Bankruptcy laws
• Immigration
• Capital gains

71. Can you see the world
from Poland?

72. Promote & Share
• Local successes
• Overseas Poles
• ‘Train the trainers’
• Invite experts / startups (e.g. Startup Visa)

73. Get visible
• Media
• Events
• Thought leadership

74. Milestones
• Financial capital
• Intellectual capital
• Speed
• Momentum

75. Globalize Ops
• Near-shoring / Outsourcing
• Leverage key ecosystems (SV, SZ, UK, etc.)

76. Most problems
can be solved with help

77. Opportunity in Hardware

78. Company Core
• Research
• Prototyping
• Production
• Financing
• Customers

79. R&D
First funding
Prototyping
Production
Sales
Later Funding
1
2
3
World-ClassSTARTUPS
World-ClassRESOURCES

80. FLOW NEUROSCIENCE

81. MINDSET

82. It is NOT
vs vs

83. It is
+ +
+

84. If (! + " + #$%&' + ( + ))
then
*

85. Dziękuję !
@benjaminjoffe
ben@hax.co