Vator
Encyclopedia
Vator is a community-based website focused on the business of funding and building emerging technologies for startups. Vator operates a database of dynamic, private-company profiles and a newsroom, covering technology and Internet trends through analysis and interviews. It combines social networking, industry news
, and video
to organize presentations about business opportunities within a diverse online audience of entrepreneurs and investors. Vator is headquartered in San Francisco, California
, with a bureau in Silicon Valley
.
Journalists and presenters include technology industry veterans such as Bambi Francisco
and managing editor John Shinal from Business Week and MarketWatch
.
The name Vator is a reference to the term "elevator pitch
", used in the technology industry to describe a brief corporate or investment presentation that can be delivered in the time span of an elevator
ride (thirty seconds to two minutes).
Vator.tv was launched in June 2007 by technology industry journalist and former MarketWatch personality Bambi Francisco, and Roland Vogl and Cyril Brignone.
According to Francisco, who serves as CEO, Vator.tv started out as an experiment to help vet startups' pitches and to give exposure to those she might overlook as a columnist. After mentioning the idea to Peter Thiel
, co-founder of PayPal
and manager of the $2 billion hedge fund Clarium Capital
, Thiel saw value in such a vetting mechanism, and asked if he could invest. After the Vator community reached 50 videos, Thiel joined other high profile angel investor
s: Matthew Hill, an early investor in Shopping.com
(which was acquired by eBay
in June 2005 for $635 million), Georges Harik, a developer of Google AdSense
, and Richard Rosenblatt, current CEO of Demand Media
and former CEO and Chairman of Myspace
, together provided Vator's first round of funding in May 2007.
After launching in June 2007, Vator ran competitions with Demand Media to rank startup business plans with user-generated ratings. Redpoint Ventures
launched a "wine 2.0" competition with Vator. The venture capital firm was looking for wine-related businesses to fund.
platform for entrepreneurs to submit a company profile and videotaped two-minute "elevator pitches," or a requests for funding, where they are ranked by the Vator community for quality. By submitting their video to an online community of investors, an entrepreneur makes one pitch instead of having to repeat the same presentation dozens of times to different investors and venture capitalists throughout the funding process. By viewing the highest rated pitches, venture capitalists save the time of having to sort through numerous business presentations.
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
, and video
Video
Video is the technology of electronically capturing, recording, processing, storing, transmitting, and reconstructing a sequence of still images representing scenes in motion.- History :...
to organize presentations about business opportunities within a diverse online audience of entrepreneurs and investors. Vator is headquartered in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, with a bureau in Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
.
Journalists and presenters include technology industry veterans such as Bambi Francisco
Bambi Francisco
Bambi Francisco is founder and CEO of Vator.tv - one of the largest social networks dedicated to high-tech entrepreneurs, and VatorNews - the largest video network focused on entrepreneurship and innovation....
and managing editor John Shinal from Business Week and MarketWatch
MarketWatch
MarketWatch operates a financial information website that provides business news, analysis and stock market data to some 6 million people. MarketWatch offers personal finance news and advice, tools for investors and access to industry research. Along with its flagship website, the company operates...
.
The name Vator is a reference to the term "elevator pitch
Elevator pitch
An elevator pitch is a short summary used to quickly and simply define a product, service, or organization and its value proposition...
", used in the technology industry to describe a brief corporate or investment presentation that can be delivered in the time span of an elevator
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
ride (thirty seconds to two minutes).
History
According to Francisco, who serves as CEO, Vator.tv started out as an experiment to help vet startups' pitches and to give exposure to those she might overlook as a columnist. After mentioning the idea to Peter Thiel
Peter Thiel
Peter Andreas Thiel is an American business magnate, venture capitalist, and hedge fund manager. With Elon Musk and Max Levchin, Thiel co-founded PayPal and was its CEO...
, co-founder of PayPal
PayPal
PayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
and manager of the $2 billion hedge fund Clarium Capital
Clarium Capital
Clarium Capital Management LLC is an American investment management and hedge fund company that pursues a global macro strategy, that Peter Thiel founded in San Francisco in 2002...
, Thiel saw value in such a vetting mechanism, and asked if he could invest. After the Vator community reached 50 videos, Thiel joined other high profile angel investor
Angel investor
An angel investor or angel is an affluent individual who provides capital for a business start-up, usually in exchange for convertible debt or ownership equity...
s: Matthew Hill, an early investor in Shopping.com
Shopping.com
Shopping.com is a price comparison service owned by eBay and operates websites in USA, United Kingdom, France, Germany and Australia. Shopping.com started out with the name DealTime.com which still operates as a related, but otherwise separate website....
(which was acquired by eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
in June 2005 for $635 million), Georges Harik, a developer of Google AdSense
AdSense
Google AdSense which is a program run by Google Inc. allows publishers in the Google Network of content sites to automatically serve text, image, video, and rich media adverts that are targeted to site content and audience. These adverts are administered, sorted, and maintained by Google, and they...
, and Richard Rosenblatt, current CEO of Demand Media
Demand Media
Demand Media, Inc. is an online media company and content farm that operates online brands such as eHow, and Cracked, and is known for creating online content through its Demand Media Studios division based on a combination of measured consumer demand and predicted ROI...
and former CEO and Chairman of Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
, together provided Vator's first round of funding in May 2007.
After launching in June 2007, Vator ran competitions with Demand Media to rank startup business plans with user-generated ratings. Redpoint Ventures
Redpoint Ventures
Redpoint Ventures is a prominent venture capital firm focused on investments in early stage technology companies. The firm's partners include Allen Beasley, Jeff Brody, Satish Dharmaraj, Tom Dyal, Tim Haley, Brad Jones, Nety Krishna, Chris Moore, Lars Pedersen, Scott Raney, John Walecka, Geoff...
launched a "wine 2.0" competition with Vator. The venture capital firm was looking for wine-related businesses to fund.
Functionality
Vator implements a web 2.0Web 2.0
The term Web 2.0 is associated with web applications that facilitate participatory information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web...
platform for entrepreneurs to submit a company profile and videotaped two-minute "elevator pitches," or a requests for funding, where they are ranked by the Vator community for quality. By submitting their video to an online community of investors, an entrepreneur makes one pitch instead of having to repeat the same presentation dozens of times to different investors and venture capitalists throughout the funding process. By viewing the highest rated pitches, venture capitalists save the time of having to sort through numerous business presentations.