GO Ventures

We’re pleased to announce our latest investment into Bleach Cyber | Techstars ‘23. Read on to learn about why we invested… Founders Craig Goodwin and Steve Daniels are on a mission to create a safer digital environment and protect us from online threats. Bleach provides cybersecurity solutions that safeguard businesses from digital threats, keeping your data and systems protected. The initial focus for Bleach is on Cloud platforms and SMEs. Cyber security is more important than ever before, with a market size of over $215B. An estimated 144% year-over-year increase in investments has been seen from 2023 to 2024, the industry is seeing exponential growth. Bleach also secures against Cloud attacks which is relevant in today’s work environments where many Cloud applications are used such as Salesforce, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Microsoft Office 365 and many others. 79% of companies have had at least one cloud breach. Cybersecurity is of growing importance to SMEs given the high risks of digital threats and growing compliance and legal requirements surrounding privacy. The majority of cyber attacks are aimed at small and medium businesses and less than 15% are prepared against them. Another factor that sets Bleach apart is their software can be used by Managed Security Services Providers (MSSPs), or even by SMEs and Enterprises directly. We're also happy to join a number of experienced investors in this space on the cap table. If you're an MSSP or business that uses Cloud services, get in touch with them now on https://lnkd.in/eDmWfHzQ #GOVentures #Bleach #VentureCapital #VC #Cybersecurity #investments #startups #mssp #msp

What counts as a customer? Out of all the confusing metrics out there, you’d think “customer count” would be one of the simplest. Think again… Some considerations that can make customer count trickier: 🔵Free trial periods 🔵Active, but free, users 🔵Prosumer customers (who act more like individuals, rather than companies) 🔵Method of payment (personal credit card vs business credit card vs ACH) 🔵Sales channel (self serve vs sales team) Companies are becoming more liberal in the way they define what a customer is. Part of the change is due to the rapid adoption of Product Led Growth strategies, which allow customers to self serve and sometimes buy before they try, as well as usage based pricing, which tends to start customers at a lower level than they would be on a typical seat based subscription plan. And the elephant is the room is that many companies move the goal posts, to put it simply, it makes them look better. There are some perverse incentives to not report certain cohorts as customers. Things companies potentially improve by excluding certain groups of users: 🟠Decreasing total churn 🟠Increasing net dollar retention rate 🟠Increasing average deal size As a tip, whenever you analyze a company, you should start from the position of “anyone who paid you within the last 12 months is a customer” and then work backwards from there. How do you calculate how many customers you have? Add your thoughts in the comments! Thanks to CJ Gustafson from Mostly Metrics for the article #GOVentures #startup #metrics

Well deserved win from our portfolio company ToumAI Analytics #GOVentures #startup #investment #venturecapital #vc

Our team supported a startup conference attended by 40K people last week!

You may think you have product-market-fit but... Many startups claim to have found their niche with their product and customers and are ready to scale However some primary characteristics of PMF are 🌭 High customer retention and product usage 📈 A rapidly increasing sales trajectory 📣 Customers vocally supporting your product online (because they love it), leading to even more sales Jess Lee from Sequoia Capital suggests the following framework: ⭐ Place your startup into one of these archetypes to understand the growth expectations of each category: 🔥 “Hair on Fire”  roughly means that your startup addresses an urgent problem. A security startup, for example, might fit here, especially if it can win initial business on the back of parachuting in to fix a breach or other problem already in progress. Or, think of the wave of companies that offered services to businesses and users when they were suddenly sheltering in place and working from home during the peak of COVID-19. 👷♀️ “Hard Fact”  translates as a startup that solves an existing problem better than what’s already out there. Square, which emerged as a new point of sale product in a seemingly old and saturated market, is a good example of this. 🤖 “Future Vision” relates to deep tech, moonshots and products out of left field. These would include quantum startups, but also those building flying cars or even autonomous vehicles that would ply our roads (or any of the tech that will be needed to make such vehicles). Each of these archetypes will have its own customer mindset, competitive market status, opportunity/general product goals, challenges, examples of those who got it right and those that did not and so on. Sequoia is confident enough of the structure that it uses the framework in its Arc program to help early-stage founders focus on how they are building. It also helps the firm evaluate potential startup investments. Beyond that, and just as importantly, founders can lean on an archetype to better anticipate and articulate the challenges and opportunities in their space. That can be helpful for decision-making internally, of course, as well as for fundraising or pitching partnerships or customers. Thanks to TechCrunch for the inspo #GOVentures #PMF #startups #investment #vc #venturecapital #growth #sequoia https://lnkd.in/d8At2B-R

We're proud to see Malta continue to grow as an ecosystem Our #startup #ecosystem has seen a 5x increase since 2021, according to Startup Genome Various initiatives including those coming from PEVCA Malta, Malta Enterprise and StartinMalta have helped stir interest. Startup Festival — which attracted over 1,800 attendees in 2023 — and the launch of a national $10.7 million venture capital fund demonstrate Malta’s dedication to spurring innovation. These efforts are complemented by non-dilutive financial aid packages of up to $1.6 million that are available to innovative business ventures. #GOVentures is an example of the corporate environment embracing innovation and tech. At GO plc we strive to find new services to add value to our customers while also helping our operations to be more efficient. A recent example of this is our investment in ToumAI Analytics, we're integrating their product to let our contact centres serve our customers better. A place where ideas and cultures mingle against a backdrop of beautiful beaches and breathtaking historic vistas, #Malta is the idyllic island that is poised to become the next startup hotspot in the #EU. Malta’s geographic location offers unparalleled access to key markets and international talent. Positioned between three continents, the island serves as both a geographic and economic hub. “Our connectedness to Africa, the Middle East, and Europe enables us to attract talent that’s just a short, direct flight away,” says Malta Enterprise CEO Kurt Farrugia. Read the full feature here: https://lnkd.in/g3VS7GPi

Keep your founders on for the long haul to create a unicorn! #GOVentures #malta #startups #unicorn

Here’s the team energy we carry at GO plc Check out open roles at www.go.com.mt/careers #GO #malta #teamwork

The Magnificent Seven – The Venture Capital frontier & the new AI Wild West * Started from humble beginnings, they’re now on top of the world. A powerful vision, relentlessly executed, combined with early venture capital investments evolved into massive wealth and economic growth. Today, they invest nearly $400 billion annually into frontier tech (comparable to the GDP of Norway), of which $20–30 billion in VC rounds (comparable to UK’s total VC investment). * With a combined value at an all-time high of $14 trillion and a record share of corporate net earnings, they account for 32% of the S&P 500. Even this number understates their true underlying earnings power. * Now, as the biggest-ever platform shift in tech unfolds, occurring only every ~20 years, everything is up for grabs again. This time, acquisitions are off the table due to regulatory scrutiny. They dominate era-defining VC deals instead, for now. * Mega opportunities are arising in applied AI. The Magnificent 7 are on the hunt for these opportunities, and AI is bringing them closer within reach. At the same time their home markets feel less defensible than before. * This report provides an opportunity to see the world through the eyes of the Magnificent 7. Their perspective compels you to think very big. Apple Google Tesla SpaceX Meta Amazon NVIDIA #GOVentures #ai #vc #investment #startup Read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/g6tU5teH