The DotCom Boom And Bust with guests Marc Andreessen and Tim Draper

The media is filled with experts comparing today’s market with the dot-com crash of 2000. But few, if any, of these experts actually lived and worked through the dot-com boom and bust. Marc Andreessen is Founder and General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, and Tim Draper is Founder and Managing Director at Draper VC. And both Marc and Tim were either running or investing in tech startups at the time. So, what was it like to experience the dot-com crash? What did Marc and Tim learn that might give us clarity around how to navigate an uncertain economic future? On this episode of Boost VC, Marc and Tim join us to explore the likelihood that we’re headed into a recession and explain what they’re encouraging founders to do right now. Marc and Tim discuss the mistakes they made in the early 2000s and describe why a downturn can be good for the best companies. Listen in for insight on retaining employees in a remote or hybrid setting and get Marc and Tim’s advice on contingency planning to survive an economic crisis—without losing your business.  Topics Covered Where Marc and Tim go for their mediaTimeless source of info = books prior to 1960Direct conversations with foundersScience fiction to predict future What Marc was doing in the early 2000sLaunch Netscape in 1999 at high point in marketLifting weights to burn off stress What Tim was doing in the early 2000sJust raised $1.4B to bring VC to worldHosted party ‘2001 Cyberspace Odyssey’ What it takes to be a successful entrepreneurSmart, open to new ideas and determinedSocial skills to build team, raise money, etc.Disagreeable (think against the grain) The likelihood that we’re headed into a recessionGood people laid off start own businessesEconomy too complex to predict future  What a16z is encouraging founders to do right nowThink in terms of scenarios and contingenciesConsider specific circumstances of your companyCut deep enough that only do layoffs once  Tim's experience as an investor in the dot-com crashReactive approach, scrambled to raise moneyLost 4 businesses with $100M in revenues The difference between the dot-com crash and 20082000 was equity-driven, credit crisis in 2008Tech companies don’t run on debt What Marc did right and wrong in the dot-com crashUnderestimated how bad things could getIPO saved company from bankruptcy Why a downturn can be good for the best companiesEliminates competitionEasier to recruit, gain market share How to retain employees in a hybrid/remote settingCreate intense social bonding experiencesManagement training, employee development How tech innovation is flowing out of the Bay AreaCOVID as catalyst, other cities rise in importanceTexas and Florida are attracting entrepreneurs How governments are in competition for entrepreneursRegulations push businesses outUS can remain #1 if allow startups to innovate Marc and Tim’s greatest qualities + accomplishmentsTim fearless in engaging with boldest ideasMarc transformed the VC business Connect with Marc Andreessen Horowitz https://a16z.com/Andreessen Horowitz on Twitter https://twitter.com/a16z  Marc on Twitter https://twitter.com/pmarca Connect with Tim Draper Associates https://www.draper.vc/   Tim on Twitter https://twitter.com/TimDraper   Draper University https://www.draperuniversity.com/Meet the Drapers https://www.meetthedrapers.com/ Resources Tom Swift Books https://tomswift.net  The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205My Years with General Motors by Alfred Sloan https://www.amazon.com/Years-General-Motors-Alfred-Sloan/dp/0385042353  The a16z Podcast https://future.com/a16z-podcast/  Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/sarbanes-oxley_actDraper Innovation Index https://index.draperhero.org/ Connect with Boost VC Boost VC Website https://www.boost.vc/Boost VC on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/boostvc/Boost VC on Twitter https://twitter.com/BoostVCBoost VC on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/boost_vc/