We are thankful to Umair Khan and Moment Ventures for a great hands-on learning session on startups and entrepreneurship. Umair Khan hosted 10 OPEN-Silicon Valley members this morning at his Moment Ventures office in Palo Alto. Umair advised attendees on finding co-founders, first customer acquisition, go-to-market strategies, (narrow down) market segment, customer feedback, business plan, and dealing with startup stress in personal life. We learned about the Desirable, the Feasible, and the Viable of solution. He later also reviewed pitch-to-VC slides of a startup team. Books and case studies recommended or mentioned by Umair: -'The Startup Playbook' by Sam Altman of Y-Combinator -Disney Guestology -Google - simple search box vs portal -quickbook - customer feedback -Pinterest - Ben Silbermann's unusual customer feedback methods -Zareen's - catering business to three bayarea restaurants -NetSuite to Oracle acquisition

We at OPEN-SV want to thank our Charter Member Raghib Hussain, EVP of Marvell, ex co-founder of Cavium Networks, for hosting an OPEN-SV Ask-Me-Anything Mentorship event early morning today in Cupertino, CA. Raghib heard from and advised eight OPENSV members during this interactive and insightful session. While outside it was misty, Raghib tried to clear up fog for many inside. He fielded questions from corporate professionals and startup entrepreneurs about the latest macro tech trends, finding co-founders, how to assess commitment to startup idea, venture vs passion vs altruism, building a startup team, the difference between core and critical-mass team of a startup, differentiating between money and “valuable money" for seed, and which VCs in the valley may take a look at their idea (depending on the sector). Raghib also shared thoughts on extending startup off-shore, but also on what to keep near VCs. We had a great time shifting thru diverse ideas with each team getting attention from the seasoned host. The next Ask-Me-Anything event with Haseeb Budhani, CEO and co-founder of Rafay Systems, and ex co-founder of Soha, will be held in Jan 2020 in the valley.

We at OPEN-SV want to thank our Charter Member Safwan Shah, for hosting Ask-Me-Anything Mentorship event. Safwan is the founder and CEO of PayActiv, a Public Benefit Corporation, Certified by B Corp. Prior to PayActiv, Safwan founded Infonox, which was acquired by TSYS (now Global Payments). It was a great learning and discussion with Safwan. His book, It's About Time, as his life philosophy, is about doing good while still doing profitable business. PayActiv is helping workers at participating factories and businesses avoid small but recurring fees and expenses that can aggregate to significant amount over period of time. Safwan discussed and advised attendee aspiring-entrepreneurs and corporate professionals on various topics related to startups, bootstrapping, funding options, small business, inner self & drive, ethics, moral compass, emerging tech trends, etc.

We thank Mahmood Panjwani and Artiman Ventures for hosting an OPEN-SV Ask-Me-Anything Mentorship event yesterday at Artiman Ventures, Palo Alto, CA. He hosted and advised OPENSV members during this valuable, deeply interactive and insightful session.   Mahmood discussed at length his six questions to entrepreneurs before fully committing to startup:

1. What is the Problem?
2. What is the Product?
3. Who is the Customer?
4. What is the UVP - Unique Value Proposition?
5. What is the Business Model?
6. What is the “Total Available Market?"

Mahmood divided the attendee’s startups mainly in product and services categories. He spent considerable time on helping the four product startups identify their Total Available Market (TAM). He identified what VCs look for in startups. He also discussed team building, CAC, patents, path to breakeven, and family issues related to the startups.   Books mentioned by Mahmood:

• 'Crossing the Chasm’ book by Geoffrey Moore

OPENSV hosted a Mentor’s Breakfast event with Omair Farooqui, Charter Member of OPENSV and an attorney with Palo Alto Legal Group. In this highly interactive session, Omair gave a brief overview of the following:

1. Intellectual Property (Patents, Trademarks, Trade Secrets, Copyrights, NDAs)
2. Business Contracts/Litigation
3. Employment Law (Wage and Hour)
4. Employment agreement

Omair fielded questions from attendees on hypothetical business situations where they may need to protect their IP with patents, Trademarks, Copyright, business contracts, NDAs and from existing employment agreements. He outlined the approximate costs, timelines, and benefits of selecting one or more of the above to safeguard against litigation and use of their IP.

Omair described what options small companies may have and how to select courts as ‘legal venue’ for business contracts with customers and suppliers. With many questions and concerns around patents, he laid out the process and purpose, how to file provisional and utility patents, and when to file state or federal patents considering the territory. He covered who needs to be identified in patent assignment to avoid future claims on IP by those who contributed to any work. One question dealt with what needs to be modified in an existing product to file and claim own new patent. Omair also highlighted several available options for own protection when disclosing IP to others.

Some attendees brought up how to proceed with personal aspirations and development esp when the domain of private work coincides with the existing employment. Omair described how an employee may have to revisit employment agreements and seek permission for outside-work activities to avoid legal issues if successful. On the other hand, to business owners, Omair gave a cautionary outlook regarding independent contractors(“gig worker”) esp due to new California’s AB5 labor laws.

There was also some discussion on programs created under the GNU software license and what may need to be shared/distributed under the GPL agreement.

Overall, this was a great learning experience on business and legal issues in such a short time. We thanked Omair Farooqui for his time, knowledge and sharing thoughts with us. He can be contacted at Palo Alto Legal Group, P.C. in Palo Alto, CA for further specific advice and counsel for personal and business matters.