If you're older than 30, you're not attractive to venture capitalists

Looks like the old Don't Trust Anyone Over 30 maxim that was popular during the rebellious 1960's has been re-mixed by Baby Boomer Silicon Valley venture capitalists to become "Don't Fund Anyone Over 30." In the New York Times, Dan Mitchell points to a recent piece by Steven Levy in Newsweek describing the renewed emphasis on providing VC backing to youthful founders:

It is “dramatically cheaper to start a company now,” he wrote, so it is substantially easier to build a business, sometimes without needing venture capital. “Software tools, which used to cost hundreds of thousands, are now largely free,” while computer equipment and bandwidth are much less expensive. All that is great, as long as you are not too old. “The old wisdom for investors in start-ups said you needed an experienced hand as a C.E.O.” Mr. Levy wrote. “The Valley’s new wisdom: don’t fund anyone over 30."

According to anecdotal evidence, the most spectacular technology start-ups over the past 30 years have been launched by founders still in their 20s. In fact, the “peak age” for entrepreneurs appears to be 26: “Within a year of that age were Google’s Sergey Brin and Larry Page, Apple’s Steve Wozniak, Yahoo’s Jerry Yang, Skype’s Janus Friis, Chad Hurley from YouTube, and Tom Anderson from MySpace.”

[image: New York Times]

Comments

[Roger Anderson]

It gets worse when you are over 50. Not many companies want you if you have been higher management. I can't remember where I saw it but I read that after 50 your earning potential decreases. You will most likely have a new career but at a lower salary.

So, why only people under 30? Because they are more likely to take the risk. To see less danger in failing and to be able to put in the hours needed for a start-up.

More reasons to run your own business. To be a Modern Magellan and have more control of your future.

[Niti Bhan]

Oh excellent! That means I've been ineligible for funding for the past 11 years, two months and two days. And counting. Maybe this is the age for high technology, but is every innovation necessarily electron based?