The Feedback Loop

Startups age in dog years. Startups at the idea stage look and feel very different just 3 or 6 months later. And so too do the dynamics of how VCs think about those startups. Are they investing in a founder, a vision, traction, early evidence, or an engine of experiments?On Episode 040 of The Feedback Loop, you'll see 2 investors wrestle with this dynamic - and with each other - as 3 ambitious startup founders take the stage to pitch their business.If you're interested in startups and founders building the future, and the venture capitalists funding them, this is a must watch. And today, we hear from founders across healthtech (can AI and LLMs solve insurance coverage issues?), fashion and commerce (an omnichannel AI personal stylist?), and Jarvis for account executives (is AI for sales already oversaturated?).It's Episode 040 of The Feedback Loop, and it's a fun one!Be sure to leave a comment talking about your favorite pitch down below! And leave your own feedback for these founders and judges, because feedback is a gift, after all.As always, hosted by Sherveen Mashayekhi, Founder & CEO of Free Agency. ​Today's guest investor, returning to the show for the FIFTH time, was Mike Ma of Sidecut Ventures.The Feedback Loop is all about getting ambitious founders on stage to pitch and get unfiltered feedback from experienced, honest investors.Because the thing that can hold even the best founders back from reaching their ambition? Their pitch. Whether a startup founder is raising money, recruiting a team, or selling their product, it's the pitch at the start of any given conversation that starts them on a journey to success.For those founders on stage and in the audience, it's an answer to the essential query: how to pitch your startup.More on our guest investor for the episode:​​Mike is a tech CMO turned venture investor — he runs Sidecut Ventures, backing mission-driven pre-seed founders, and is an Operating Partner at Sway Ventures. He was previously MD at Nex Cubed, a pre-seed accelerator for underrepresented founders. In other words, he knows startup storytelling!Follow Sherveen: https://x.com/SherveenFollow Mike: https://www.instagram.com/michaelwmaTo attend The Feedback Loop in-person or apply to pitch as a founder, head to afterfeedback.com.Thank you to all of the brave founders who participated in this episode. The Feedback Loop is dedicated to creating an engine of support for startup founders attempting to change the way the earth spins. We're on your side.Curious as to this episode's takeaways? You'll hear about a lot, including about how in the weeds to get re: your user experience, whether to cater your pitch to specific investors, how to talk about a long-term vision without confusing the short-term product roadmap, competing in a heavily crowded space, and so much more.This is purpose-built for startup nerds, tech industry fanatics, future founders, and everyone in between. Venture capitalist? You should get in the comments below and let us know whether you'd take a meeting with the founders on stage.