Endeavor Chile and the future of virtual fundraising for startups

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Contxto – For some startups raising funding right now is a matter of life or death. So it’s disheartening to receive emails that read along the lines of, “due to the coronavirus pandemic we will be postponing such-and-such pitch event until further notice.”

Aware of this reality, Endeavor Chile adapted its fundraising event, “Endeavor Match VC” to be held remotely last Wednesday (1) and Thursday (2). In this virtual gettogether, reps from 34 venture capital (VC) funds met with 60 startups from Chile.

Ultimately, Endeavor played wingman in connecting the startups with these VCs. And the less orthodox way in which it was carried out is irrelevant. Proof is the fact that key people from major VC funds were in digital attendance including SoftBank and Alaya Capital. 

Warm introductions, courtesy of Endeavor Chile

To imagine so many people together, yet apart, paints for a curious sight. But don’t take my word for it, check out this collage of meetings posted by Endeavor Chile:

As a result, over 230 digital meetings were held, many simultaneously, in the span of two days. 

Likewise, the next step is for the VCs to let Endeavor know who they’re interested in having follow-up conversations with.

There’s a first time for everything and, lately, there’s been a lot of that going on. As businesses and organizations adapt to the odd circumstances brought about by coronavirus (Covid-19), they’re certainly leaving their comfort zone to embrace digital solutions. 

And in the aftermath of the global pandemic, it’ll be interesting to see how live events and meetings of this nature develop. 

Major San Francisco-based accelerators Y Combinator and 500 Startups, for example, have taken up virtual demo days and interview processes due to the pandemic. In any case, I’d say this “trend” is here to stay.

And while it sounds like fiction, one day we may really hold remote meetings à la Star Wars.

The key to this (virtual) reality-type tech being unlocked is for it to be further developed and made financially accessible.

So I’d say it’s still a ways off. But it’s really cool to imagine, huh?

Related articles: Tech and startups from Chile!

-ML