TechCrunch+ roundup: South Korea investor survey, 1-hour board meetings, venture leasing basics

After sales software startup TigerEye closed its Series A and established a board of directors, its co-founders put them on notice:One thing we'd like to never do is the three-hour, too-in-the-weeds, non-strategic board meeting."Every board deck I've made and seen is more than 80 pages long," says Tracy Young, co-founder and CEO of TigerEye. "I am not exaggerating."Full TechCrunch+ articles are only available to members
Use discount code TCPLUSROUNDUP to save 20% off a one- or two-year subscriptionIn this TC+ article, she explains how to structure a one-hour board meeting that creates real value for founders and investors. Step one: replace your enormous deck with a three-page memo.We're taking Monday, May 29 off to celebrate Memorial Day, so I'll be back with another TC+ roundup a week from today.Have a fantastic weekend!Walter Thompson
Editorial Manager, TechCrunch+
@yourprotagonistEarly-stage board decks are dead: How to run a meeting in 60 minutes

Why aren't venture capitalists flocking to fund cybersecurity startups?

[photo1]Image Credits: RobertAx (opens in a new window) / Getty ImagesImage Credits: RobertAx (opens in a new window) / Getty ImagesThe accelerated shift to digital has been great for mature cybersecurity companies: Palo Alto Networks, Sca


ler and CrowdStrike are showing strong revenue multiples, reports Alex Wilhelm.But there doesn't appear to be a halo effect for venture-backed cybersecurity startups. According to Crunchbase, funding for companies in this sector fell 58% in Q1 2023 compared to Q1 2022."Given that valuations are down across the board, today's cybersecurity equity prices have been dramatically depressed, even if they remain more expensive than other tech subcategories," writes Alex.Why aren't venture capitalists flocking to fund cybersecurity startups?

Profitability over growth: 5 investors explain their mantra for South Korean startups

[photo2]Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunchImage Credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunchSouth Korea saw a unicorn boom in recent years, but like the rest of the world, it's feeling the impacts of a global market correction."Venture funding in Asia in the first quarter of 2023 declined 33% from Q4 2023 and 57% from Q1 2022," reports Kate Park, who surveyed five investors to get their predictions for 2023 and find out how they're advising their portfolio companies:Han Kim, general partner, Altos VenturesTim Chae, managing partner, 500 GlobalJP Lee, CEO and managing partner, SoftBank Ventures AsiaYeemin Chung, managing director, BRV Capital ManagementEunse Lee, founder and managing partner, 541 VenturesProfitability over growth: 5 investors explain their mantra for South Korean startups

Ask Sophie: What are my options if a company rescinds my OPT job offer?

[photo3]Image Credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunchImage Credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunchDear Sophie,I'm an international student graduating this month, but the company I was supposed to start working for on OPT has rescinded my job offer.What are my options?-- Grappling GradAsk Sophie: What are my options if a company rescinds my OPT job offer?

3 things businesses must do to secure their applications in the AI era

[photo4]Image Credits: Henrik Sorensen (opens in a new window) / Getty ImagesImage Credits: Henrik Sorensen (opens in a new window) / Getty ImagesCompanies with AI-enabled applications give bad actors a broader attack surface when it comes to phishing, bots and other attempts to access customer accounts."We're already seeing examples of reverse engineering AI-powered sites to get free AI computing," says Reed McGinley-Stempel, co-founder and CEO of Stych, a customer identification and access management (CIAM) platform.3 things businesses must do to secure applications in the AI era

Venture leasing: The unsung hero for hardware startups struggling to raise capital

[photo5]Image Credits: bagi1998 (opens in a new window) / Getty ImagesImage Credits: bagi1998 (opens in a new window) / Getty ImagesHardware startups have always been challenged when it comes to high initial capital expenditures and open-ended R&D timelines.Fortunately, venture leasing creates "a happy medium between costly debt loans and VC funding that works particularly well," says Felipe Chavez Cortes, CEO and co-founder of robotic food delivery firm Kiwibot.To bring products to market faster while avoiding dilution, his company closed a $10M venture leasing deal."Hardware companies shouldn't feel limited to VC funds to finance their high-risk, high-growth operations," according to Cortes.Venture leasing: The unsung hero for hardware startups struggling to raise capital

Pitch Deck Teardown: Faye's $10M Series A deck

[photo6]Image Credits: FayeImage Credits: FayeInsurtech startup Faye shared a redacted version of the 19-slide deck its founders used to land a $10M Series A round."Let's get this out of the way right off the bat," says Haje Jan Kamps. "This is a truly excellent pitch deck."Cover slideSummary slideTeam slideProblem slideMarket-size slideInsurance market overview slideProduct overview slideProduct features slide 1Product features slide 2Product features slide 3Product features slide 4Go-to-market slideFinancial growth metrics slideCustomer growth metrics slideCustomer validation slide 1Competitive landscape slideThe Ask slideCustomer validation slide 2Closing slide with mission statementPitch Deck Teardown: Faye's $10M Series A deck