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Billionaire VC Doug Leone was once one of Trump s strongest supporters in Silicon Valley, donating over $100,000 to his 2020 reelection campaign.
He told Insider he no longer supports the president after his role in inciting the riots on Capitol Hill last week. After last week s horrific events, President Trump lost many of his supporters, including me, Leone wrote in a statement, adding that he believed the president was responsible for inciting the riots.
Billionaire venture capitalist Doug Leone was, until recently, one of Silicon Valley s staunchest Trump supporters. Now, the managing partner at the prestigious venture firm Sequoia has abandoned him.
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Mercedes Bent first connected with a Lightspeed partner over LinkedIn, more than a year before she interviewed for a role at the firm.
In the following months, she impressed Lightspeed s investors over coffee chats with her specific investment theses in the edtech and multicultural consumer products markets.
During her formal interview, she impressed partners by showing them how she narrowed down a list of 60 startups into three companies she wanted to invest in.
Bent, a Black woman from North Carolina, hopes to use her position to bring more minority investors into the venture world.
2020 is almost over (finally).
But before we close the book on this difficult and eventful year, it s worth reviewing some of the big developments in tech that defined 2020 and will shape the months and years to come.
Readers of the Insider Tech newsletter have followed all the industry s twists and turns in this weekly report (subscribe here to get Insider Tech in your inbox every Wednesday). Highlighted below, in this special edition of this newsletter, are some of the top stories reported by Business Insider s crew of intrepid journalists this past year.
Note: Insider Tech will be back to its regular schedule on Wednesday, January 6. Happy New Year!
The 10 stories that defined tech in 2020 - and reveal what to expect in 2021 and beyond
The 10 stories that defined tech in 2020 - and reveal what to expect in 2021 and beyond
Alexei OreskovicJan 1, 2021, 02:47 IST
Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Vanity; Olivia Reaney/Business Insider
2020 is almost over (finally).
But before we close the book on this difficult and eventful year, it s worth reviewing some of the big developments in tech that defined 2020 and will shape the months and years to come.
Readers of the Insider Tech newsletter have followed all the industry s twists and turns in this weekly report (subscribe here to get Insider Tech in your inbox every Wednesday). Highlighted below, in this special edition of this newsletter, are some of the top stories reported by Business Insider s crew of intrepid journalists this past year.
Are Texas and Florida the new California and New York? HANNIBAL HANSCHKE/Getty Images
Texas and Florida are challenging California and New York, but will they replace them?
Tech elites from Silicon Valley have been flocking to Texas, mirroring Big Apple financiers on the East Coast fleeing to Florida.
They re all seeking warm weather, affordability, and low taxes as they leave behind a higher cost of living.
Texas and Florida may never truly displace California and New York, but the rivalry is real, positioning the Southern states as true power players.
Sunnier locales, lower taxes, and a more affordable cost of living. California s tech elite and New York s financiers are in pursuit of all three, and they ve found that trifecta in Texas and Florida.