IoT Startups & Exits: CEOs & Investors Share Wins, Trade Scars

On Wednesday May 31st, the Boston Foley & Lardner office hosted the third installment of the Boston/New England IoT Meetup series. The Internet of Things (IoT) focuses on the vast network of devices connected to the internet, which collect and exchange data. The event was widely attended by both entrepreneurs and investors from various parts of New England, with Dave Kantaros and Chris McKenna, co-chairs of the firm’s Technology Industry Team, moderating the two panels: The first focusing on the investor side including angels, VCs, and individuals with real IoT deal experience, and the second highlighting leading entrepreneurs and their companies within the greater Boston area.

The investor panel was comprised of four individuals, including Per Suneby of Sternhill Associates, Duane Sword of the Launchpad Venture Group, Sanjay Manandhar of Aerva, and David Vogel of Kayon Partners. They each discussed various ways in which entrepreneurs can make a difference when pitching to investors, and how to ensure your company stands out from others when searching for funding. When pitching an idea to investors, the panelists focused on making sure a presentation was more “than just a PowerPoint,” as well as showing investors that the entrepreneur is “all-in” and fully committed to developing their company. The panelists also described the different types of funding available to start-up companies, and discovered why it is important to understand that some funds may be a better fit for one’s company than other types of funds.

On the second panel, Duane Sword shared his personal experiences on the entrepreneurial side, and was joined by Marc Held of Armada and Andrew Livingston of Urban Mobile Sensors. The entrepreneurs discussed various ways they were able to raise funds for their companies, and shared their opinions regarding how to penetrate certain customer markets. Duane emphasized the balance that must be struck between feeling confident when speaking about your company, while still realizing that input from investors can make the difference in ensuring your company can evolve for success at the next level. All three entrepreneurs noted the importance of always having an end goal in mind, while remaining flexible and being prepared to morph your company into different areas, depending on the needs and demands of the market.

Please note Foley Summer Associate, Mike Donadio was a contributing author of this post. The Emerging Company Exchange team thanks him for his contributions.

This blog is made available by Foley & Lardner LLP (“Foley” or “the Firm”) for informational purposes only. It is not meant to convey the Firm’s legal position on behalf of any client, nor is it intended to convey specific legal advice. Any opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of Foley & Lardner LLP, its partners, or its clients. Accordingly, do not act upon this information without seeking counsel from a licensed attorney. This blog is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. Communicating with Foley through this website by email, blog post, or otherwise, does not create an attorney-client relationship for any legal matter. Therefore, any communication or material you transmit to Foley through this blog, whether by email, blog post or any other manner, will not be treated as confidential or proprietary. The information on this blog is published “AS IS” and is not guaranteed to be complete, accurate, and or up-to-date. Foley makes no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, as to the operation or content of the site. Foley expressly disclaims all other guarantees, warranties, conditions and representations of any kind, either express or implied, whether arising under any statute, law, commercial use or otherwise, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title and non-infringement. In no event shall Foley or any of its partners, officers, employees, agents or affiliates be liable, directly or indirectly, under any theory of law (contract, tort, negligence or otherwise), to you or anyone else, for any claims, losses or damages, direct, indirect special, incidental, punitive or consequential, resulting from or occasioned by the creation, use of or reliance on this site (including information and other content) or any third party websites or the information, resources or material accessed through any such websites. In some jurisdictions, the contents of this blog may be considered Attorney Advertising. If applicable, please note that prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Photographs are for dramatization purposes only and may include models. Likenesses do not necessarily imply current client, partnership or employee status.