Start a company now, says Max Levchin — so he can buy it
Slide founder Max Levchin believes Web 2.0 is about to bust. Funding will evaporate and revenues won't materialize; companies will fold and employees will lose their jobs. The lucky few that can will sellout to larger companies. All of which means "this is the perfect time to start a company," Levchin told the Financial Times. Why does Levchin believe this? You know, other than the fact that he's a well-documented masochist who works 15 to 18 hour days and, despite a fear of the water, forced himself through a triathlon?
Because Levchin believes that right now, companies that get it right — get funding, revenues or both — will be able to vacuum up developer talent and smaller, failing companies with useful assets. For example, Slide, which recently raised $50 million, and whose most successful application, SuperPoke, was an acquisition from three Seattle based kids, not an internal development. How convenient if Levchin's theory made it even easier to perform more such maneuvers. And does anyone wonder why he wasn't predicting an impending apocalypse before his company's latest round? All of this seems like it would have been useful information for his new investors. (Photo by flawedartist)