(1/4) There seems to be a lot of frustration about the lack of a European FAANG and the underlying reason, but most people seem to miss the fundamental driving factor - that it takes an incredibly long time to build meaningful companies.

The perseverance of Berliners in keeping this joke going is nothing but astonishing. #nevergiveup

The “EU regulation” narrative has become the go-to excuse for underperforming founders, judging from the replies below.

Mostly from VCs projecting

Wayve is likely the new world leader in autonomous driving. Made in Europe.

Smart move, Ryan. Always ahead of the curve 🎉

Sora ist the first impressive gen video tech. Apple, Google, Samsung etc need to urgently add digital watermarks to their camera outputs. Otherwise trust in video authenticity will be gone.

Come on, Christian. This cannot be your third act.

IMO blame lies squarely with founders. UK is a world-class environment to start innovative companies.

Yes.

Spot the point in time when social media hit critical mass.

Plural is the type of VC Europe needs. Congratulations to Ian Hogarth Khaled Helioui and team. Shows it’s possible to attract LPs with a relentless focus on integrity and companies that matter.

Long on Europe.

In new defence, procurement is the problem, not funding. Great thread from Nathan Benaich

2024 is the year for founders to get serious. Too much founder talent is wasted on things that ultimately don't matter. We need the best founders to focus on energy, medicine, environment, defence, robotics, elderly care etc.

If you're considering starting yet another SaaS,…

Cost-effective cUAS will need to be a key focus for 2024

It’s the other way round. Problem in defence tech is not lack of growth funding but lack of fundable companies (ie those with traction).

Scalable defence against cheap drones is a pressing, unsolved problem. Solution will have to be kinetic and AI-based. politico.com/news/2023/12/1…