Appreciation post: My view on Austin's startup scene totally flipped last Thursday

I was at a small meetup for founders near the Domain, feeling pretty down about funding. Then I met a guy who just got a $250k angel check from a local investor he met at a coffee shop on South Congress. He said the key was showing a real, working demo, not just a slick pitch deck. That one chat made me scrap my presentation and focus on my product for a solid week. Has anyone else found that a simple demo opened more doors here than a perfect business plan?

3 comments

3 Comments

michaeltorres26d ago

Totally get this. I had the same thing happen at a tech talk on Burnet Road last month. Spent months polishing my deck for investors, got nowhere. Finally just linked a rough demo video in a cold email. Got a meeting the next day because the guy said he could actually see the thing working. Changed my whole approach. Now I lead with the product, not the plan.

susanb3426d ago

Changed my whole approach" seems like a pretty big shift from one demo.

stellaperry26d ago

My buddy had the same thing with his "rough demo video". He sent it to a VC who passed on the deck, and they ended up talking for an hour.