

6 Months, $90,000 and (Maybe) a Great Idea - shoesfullofdust
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/technology/start-ups/28eir.html?ref=technology

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callmeed
It seems a bit odd that an EIR can sit in on other founders' pitches. I'm the
last person to get paranoid about NDAs or stolen ideas but this guy is getting
paid to sit around and think of _something_.

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ahk
I think it's unlikely that a VC would want to compete with an existing
startup. If they had an idea relevant to one of the startups it's more likely
that they would just give it to the startup and/or start funding them for it.

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chris123
VCs are all about competing with existing startups. That's the #1 most used
play in their playbook (same with YC and angels). See the paragraph of most
TechCrunch posts about any new startup and you will see a list of similar ones
that came before. For example: [http://techcrunch.com/2010/02/18/cardpool-
wants-to-buy-and-s...](http://techcrunch.com/2010/02/18/cardpool-wants-to-buy-
and-sell-your-unused-gift-cards)

~~~
pedalpete
Yes, there is a herd-mentality where VC's will fund start-ups to enter a newly
found market, but I believe what ahk is referring to, is that a VC would not
create a company to compete with a company they've been pitched.

There are many reasons that most responsible VC's would not do this. #1 being
that if they are pitched effectively, they have somebody right there with the
knowledge, passion and initiative to get going on the company. Additionally,
it could be detrimental to the VC's reputation to be seen as taking ideas from
pitches.

At the same time, I've heard from a few VC's that they are constantly hearing
VERY similar pitches for the same ideas again and again. The chance that you
are bringing something completely unique is small. This is often why VC's will
talk about investing in the people, rather than the idea. Along with the fact
that start-ups will often completely change their product before it sees the
light of day.

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richcollins
Anyone else sick of drawn out human interest stories at the beginning of news
articles?

WRT to the article:

 _Most E.I.R.’s receive a monthly stipend of up to $15,000 to sit and think
for about six months._

That is a horrible way to create successful products. Good entrepreneurs take
action as much as they deeply ponder ideas.

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akadien
Maybe that gives them time to develop an idea into homerun for the VC firm,
whereas bootstrap entrepreneurs have to hit singles and doubles at first to
survive.

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richcollins
Any anecdotal evidence of this? Most home runs that I know about are from
scrappy, resourceful founders that discovered something simple through
experimentation that scaled into a huge company.

~~~
pedalpete
Doesn't the article give the anecdotal evidence? Data domain and Zimbra are
some big number acquisitions. Also, consider the number of companies that VC's
are pitched via non-EIR's vs pitched by EIR's, and I would say the numbers are
favorable if not equal that an EIR is as good as a scrappy and resourceful
founder.

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messel
EIR sounds like the Disneyland of startups.

Would I take the money as an EIR? Sure. Building something of real value is
tough work and every possible advantage must be considered.

Would I take the best deal? Yup. There's no obligation for a firm to invest in
an EIRs idea, so take the color of money that leaves you with the most
ownership.

