2022: Year In Review
It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
The holidays bring such joy to the world. After a difficult year in 2022 for the world, we are looking forward to a new year and hope all of you have some peace and fun.
We're excited to virtually host our third "FinTech Year in Review" on Tuesday, January 10th, 2023, from 4:00pm - 5:00pm EST. The event will feature discussions on all things FinTech and Tech as we share our thoughts as GPs. We will be joined by several of our great founders who will update you on their journeys. Please register here.
It feels to us as if the world is making a change that will be fundamentally better based on reality. Free money from the Federal Reserve has ended, which means valuations have returned to fundamentals that are driven by top and bottom line business growth. We will have to make difficult choices politically on how to spend precious dollars. This should drive a more rational and thoughtful approach in working together. But perhaps the excitement of the season is making us optimistic! We will see, but we do know innovation and creativity drive a bright future.
- Mark & Dave
Envisions Interview
2022: Year In Review
w/ Jay Wolcott, CEO, and Parker Hill, CTO, at Knowbl
ChatGPT Mock Interview
ChatGPT, an AI chatbot that can answer questions and write essays, has gone viral! The internet sensation surpassed 1 million users in just 5 days! Given all the rave, we thought it would be interesting to ask ChatGPT to generate a mock interview. The results were super realistic! Enjoy the read and let us know if you've uncovered any cool use cases for ChatGPT.
Prompt: “Generate a mock interview between a VC and a startup founder focused on applications of AI/ML in financial services.”
Answer:
Venture Capitalist: So, can you tell me more about your startup and how it's using AI and machine learning in the financial services industry?
Startup Founder: Definitely. Our startup uses AI and machine learning to automate and optimize a number of different processes in the financial services industry. For example, we've developed algorithms that can analyze financial data and make predictions about market movements, which can be used by traders to make more informed decisions.
Venture Capitalist: That's really interesting. Can you give me some more specific examples of how your technology is being used in the financial industry?
Startup Founder: Sure. One example is our fraud detection system, which uses machine learning to identify unusual or suspicious activity in financial transactions. This can help financial institutions reduce the risk of fraud and protect their customers' assets.
Venture Capitalist: I see. And how have you been able to demonstrate the effectiveness of your technology?
Startup Founder: We've worked with several major financial institutions to pilot our technology, and the results have been very promising. In one case, our fraud detection system was able to identify over 50% more fraudulent transactions than the institution's existing system.
Venture Capitalist: That's impressive. And what kind of challenges have you faced in bringing your technology to market?
Startup Founder: One of the biggest challenges has been convincing financial institutions to trust and adopt new technology. The financial industry is highly regulated, and there's often a lot of skepticism around new technologies like AI and machine learning. But we've been able to overcome this by working closely with our partners and demonstrating the value of our technology through pilot programs and real-world results.
Venture Capitalist: Well, it sounds like you've made a lot of progress. I'm very interested in your startup and the potential of AI and machine learning in the financial industry. Let's continue the conversation and see if there's an opportunity for us to work together.
Startup Founder: That would be great. We're excited about the potential of our technology and the impact it can have on the financial industry. I look forward to discussing it further with you.
- Team Vestigo
What's Next in FinTech?
This is not written by ChatGPT, but rather by two observers of technology and businesses. It's not based on AI that has learned how to connect two thoughts. Instead, it's based on years, more than we want to admit, of reading thousands of business plans and talking to hundreds of experts and entrepreneurs. It's slower than machine learning is designed to be, but perhaps benefits from our ability to put in context decades of learning and observing. We will call it GPgpt!
We have several areas that look interesting to us to share:
- AI becomes center stage. Although we have invested in AI centered companies since 2017, the world seems to be waking up to its possibilities. While others are new to the game, we will continue to dig deeper to find the best ideas.
- ESG continues its march forward. Yes, there is controversy about ESG, but there is no doubt about the power of engaging Corporate America in better practices to drive responsible growth. Their employees demand it as do their clients. We will get through the green washing and politicalization of the issues and move to understanding how to create capitalistic models for much needed solutions in ESG.
- G counts even more. The governance in ESG is critical. We have always been part of helping our startups to build cultures that include good governance. Having regular board meetings and updates on KPIs are fundamental. Given the many issues in this over the past year for startups, especially in crypto, we see this as a necessary and intelligent push.
- CFOs need help. We see corporations moving from reporting to insights. To do this, the CFO needs to be at the center of finding intelligence in the data of their business. We see many areas to do this from reporting to creating better cash flow to financing options.
- Productivity matters in any environment. Driving down costs has been a big theme for us since we launched Vestigo Ventures. There is still a great deal to do to make financial services more affordable and open new markets. We think this will occur no matter what the economic times bring as it is fundamental. We also think it will happen using existing systems enhanced with AI or other tools.
- Talent drives productivity. Finding and keeping talent is the center of a post pandemic trend to drive productivity with engaged and talented teams that we find intriguing. Similar to the concept below of finance everywhere, we see the labor market needing a focus on startups that can help make this happen. It might be a new employee benefit or a way to engage the workforce. It might be about helping workers with more education and training.
- Finance Everywhere. From there to here. From here to there. Funny things are everywhere according to Dr. Seuss. (Full disclosure that Mark's grandson, Luke, loves the Grinch). We feel the same way about finance as he does about funny things. Imagine any process, any activity, and add a finance component to it. We have seen a great deal of this already, but we are still in the early days. It allows us to be more liberal in our definition of FinTech, which we like as it lets us find the best entrepreneurs and ideas in which to invest.
We would love to hear your feedback on these points. What others would you add? Reach out to MCasady@VestigoVentures.com with your point of view.
Here’s to a bright future!
- Dave & Mark
Art Basel's Black Founders Demo Day
To kick off what has been a joyful and productive month of December, I had the honor of serving as a judge for the inaugural Art Basel Black Founder's Demo Day hosted by Plain Sight at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami. Twelve black and brown founder-led companies showcased their startups at booths where 1k+ registered attendees and 6 judges had the opportunity to stop by the booths, engage with each founder and learn about their companies. Each founder pitched their startup on stage and received feedback from a wonderful group of judges to include Charles Hudson of Precursor Ventures, Kirby Harris of Base Ventures, Yasmine Morrison of Florida Funders, William Leonard of Valor Ventures and myself. It was so exciting to see the range of industries represented from FinTech and AI to HealthTech and Aviation. AWS Startups was a marquee sponsor of the Demo Day and two of their AWS Startups Accelerator founders were amongst the finalists.
Outside of the Demo Day, I had the opportunity to connect meaningfully with some incredible founders and VCs during Art Basel. While the official art show brings thousands of people into town, there were a ton of founder and notable VC hosted events from the likes of Andreesen Horowitz, Silicon Valley Bank and Harlem Capital, which is one of our most frequent co-investors, among others. Miami has a very close-knit founder/investor community, and they were incredibly welcoming to visitors. I look forward to staying close to the Miami community! Please enjoy a few photos from the demo day below.
- Baheejah "Bee" Crumbley
Portfolio Updates
Wagmo Announced Latest Product: VETalk
VETalk's purpose is to connect Wagmo members to vet experts 24/7 for pet-related support ranging from nutrition and behavior advice to emergency guidance instead of panic-searching or rushing to the vet. VETalk is now available for all Deluxe plan users nationwide.
ZenLedger Shares Tax Guide for Crypto Income
In this complete tax guide for cryptocurrency income, you’ll learn how cryptocurrencies work, why record keeping is essential, new tax brackets, and strategies you can use to reduce your tax liabilities.
Climate Club Releases Webinar on Operationalizing Sustainability
In this webinar, Adam Braun speaks with Chrissa Pagitsas, author of “Chief Sustainability Officers at Work” about achieving net zero carbon emissions via employee action. You'll hear how to simplify messaging to drive action, identify early wins, build momentum as well as how to collect and share data.
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