Finding Business 'Idols': A New Model to Accelerate Start-Ups

Abstract

Just as Simon Cowell is revolutionizing the music business with his American Idol television series, a group of new entrepreneurs is quietly changing the face of the venture capital industry and entrepreneurship. American Idol has proved to be a major success in identifying and establishing entertainment stars. A similar Idol formula is emerging among a new wave of entrepreneurs and venture capitalists who are radically transforming the way high-tech entrepreneurs are identified, their businesses are launched, and the growth of their operations accelerated. We believe this is a highly significant development that has important implications for the way many other early stage companies may be launched and financed in the future.

Keywords: angel investor, american idol, venture capital, high-tech