Why subscribe?
I’m Ivan 👋
Startup Riders is where I try to help founders and investors see venture capital more clearly, and spot potential before it’s obvious.
A bit more on me…
My background is economics and information systems, but I fell into startups through pure curiosity and stubbornness.
I worked at Facebook and Bloomreach ($2B+) on sales and product. Later I co-founded and scaled a business to ~10K MRR, enough to get real scar tissue, but also enough to know how hard the founder grind is.
Today I’m a Partner at JME Ventures, a ~€150M AUM early-stage venture capital fund. I’ve invested in AI and SaaS startups like HappyRobot, Pensero, Rauda and many others.
I’m also an eternal tinkerer. I’ve hacked on AI side projects (like Startup Pitch Deck) and constantly test tools and frameworks I share back with readers.
Why Startup Riders?
It’s where I try to make venture capital easier to understand while it’s still unclear. I break down where capital is flowing, how investors actually make decisions, and what that means if you’re building or raising right now.
What you’ll find inside
Startup Riders has three core parts.
1. Venture capital market research: Clear, founder-first reads on VC flows, market shifts, and investor behaviour. The goal is not reporting news, but explaining what changed and why it matters.
2. Fundraising assets: Practical resources founders can actually use. Pitch deck benchmarks, fundraising process notes, investor psychology, and “here’s how it really works” explanations pulled from investing and operating.
3. Conversations with people worth thinking alongside: The podcast is not content. It’s a service vehicle. I use it to spend time with high-signal, under-distributed builders, operators, and investors, and give them a stage.
Who makes it happen
It’s mostly me behind the keyboard, researching, curating, and writing each drop.
But Startup Riders is also shaped by the founders I meet, the investors I work with, and the conversations around the newsletter.
Some content is free, some is part of Startup Riders Pro (paid tier).
Startup Riders Pro costs $100/year for full access, but if you just want to ride the free wave, that’s cool too!
Chat soon!
Cheers,
Ivan
