Andreessen-Horowitz is, without a doubt, an interesting take on the investment fund paradigm. I have a friend that really wants them to invest in his startup just because of the power network that they created around their startups and founders.
But they are, in my opinion, a really strong media and research company. I feel a lot of the value they provide is through media appearances of their GPs and not only and these reports they provide. I mean, the best book on what it means to build a startup is written by Ben Horowitz: The Hard Thing about Hard Things.
The last report I’ve seen is their report on marketplaces that you can see here. If you are interested in marketplaces, as a founder or an investor, you need to read this.
The past year has been a gut-punch for many marketplace categories. Ticketing marketplaces found their businesses drastically diminished when events were cancelled around the world. As schools were shuttered and many businesses enacted work-from-home policies, childcare marketplaces scrambled to adopt new safety precautions and stay afloat. Even the #1 marketplace last year, Airbnb, grappled with shutdowns, cancellations, and refunds.
As 2020 drew to a close, however, many marketplaces proved to be extraordinarily resilient—a testament to the flexibility of the model. In a year when in-person interactions were heavily restricted and unemployment went through the roof, marketplaces allowed people to access the products and services they needed and, in many cases, monetize their own talents, services, and resources. From food and alcohol delivery to games, online education to outdoor getaways, marketplaces like Instacart, Valve, Outschool, and Hipcamp helped us weather a difficult year.
From here: The a16z Marketplace 100: 2021.
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