Cambridge Cluster

Thanks to all who made CUTEC a great event this year as in every year; with special thanks to Anne-Catherine and Thomas.

The memorable quote I took away was by Richard Horning, Corporate Practice and Venture Technology – SNR Denton.  He said that 80% of angel backed companies in Silicon Valley fail and 50% of the companies backed by VCs.  So that gives me some hope for my dwindling portfolio of angel investments.  No wonder some of my fellow angels were looking less than happy at CUTEC.  Such a pity that we have not had a great “home-run” which we could have re-invested in the Cambridge Cluster.

It also brings to mind that Fred Wilson keeps mentioning on www.avc.com that many of his best investments take over ten years to come to fruition. I just hope that the rumour that one of my investments is seeking yet another round is unfounded or leads to a sale.

i-Teams has some great research but I gather that most of the business plans help generate more research funding to refine a product rather than bring a product to market.  At least more people are aware of the entrepreneurial challenges.

But the Cambridge Cluster is a great place to live and next week there is Ignite – much fun and enthusiasm.

Lastly I hope that the physical appearance of one of the greats of the Cambridge Cluster was caused by a late night and not by the onset of a degenerative disease.  We all wish him good health.