asset allocation

Jeff Clavier explains how angel investors can size their risk, set an investment budget, and build a diversified portfolio across time, sectors, stages, and companies. He emphasizes that startup investing is risky and slow, so investors should only commit money they can afford to lose and should define their strategy before deal flow picks up. Andreea Zurek discusses building a reputation through consistent behavior, integrity, clear focus, and useful support for founders. She describes how XG Ventures drew on its founders’ Google experience and developed its own identity, while both speakers share lessons from missed deals, portfolio choices, and early investing mistakes.

Geoff Ralston previews Y Combinator’s four-day Investor School, which teaches the basics of angel investing, including evaluating founders, understanding investment mechanics, and building a portfolio. He advises investors to meet many founders, seek deal flow, make thoughtful decisions, and be clear and kind when declining. Good investors respect founders, understand the limits of their own influence, and invest with conviction while accepting that a startup investment may be worth zero. The course also covers changes in early-stage funding, including accelerators, online investment platforms, and ICOs.