Mercedes Bent Profile Banner
Mercedes Bent Profile
Mercedes Bent

@mercebent

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Followers
720
Following
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Consumer + SMB Fintech VC @Lightspeedvp 💁🏾‍♀️ @Stori_MX @MagicEden @Beek_io @Fidu_La @getHoneylove Co-Lead LATAM. Investing in products building wealth

San Francisco, CA
Joined January 2011
Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
11 months
Consumer fintech is in transition. Consolidation is taking place. Value accruing to larger players. We’ve hit peak fragmentation. Where does consumer fintech go from here?
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
the longer i am in VC the more i realize so few people actually know what they are talking about
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
VCs have so much dry powder. In 2022 funds didn’t deploy at expected rates at all. Pressure to invest will increase in 2023. So founders - sounds crazy, but now is a very smart time to start a company.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
Shoutout to Mercedes-Benz SF for holding it down. I appreciate you!
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
the most important management skill is emotional intelligence
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
cohort-based learning was a great rebrand for school
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
web3, crypto & blockchain are making waves in art, music, and fintech today How will web3, crypto, and blockchain affect edtech & learning? Here's what I'm seeing so far 🧵
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
remembering that time a founder sent a investor update (email merge) but instead of the name field, they inserted their CRM notes. Mine: “Hi Has deck. Seems kinda stuck up. Didn’t accept my LI request but boss did. Stanford grad. Paints a picture, Updating you on a few.…”
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
i don’t know who needs to hear this but....we can see the screens you’re shifting between in your glasses reflection 🤓
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
Was on a call w/a 16-yr old talking career advice. The best advice i shared (& have not 100% followed) was: Don't email someone asking for a job. Start doing the job and email asking for feedback on what you built. (more👇🏾)
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
11 months
I turn 35 today! What do you wish you knew when you entered your late 30s? (🥲)
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Benz has driven off the lot!!! Here’s to I do & forever with my love 💍🥰
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
9 crypto native consumer products of today + tomorrow
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
You've heard a ton about web3/crypto + wonder where to get started. Or like us, you've spent days, weekends, nights diving down the rabbithole Here's what we've been reading + how we're immersing ourselves in this incredibly vibrant ecosystem
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
Venture capital has been trapped in a prisoners dilema game where investors don’t like how expensive later stage rounds have become so they go earlier, with less sensitivity to check size, valuation. Rinse and repeat
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
My first time on CNBC ☺️
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
Happy 3 yrs in VC to me🥳 i’m corny as hell but yr3 really showed I’m living my purpose had my 1st early co Stori go unicorn🦄 & Marlene became 1st Mexican woman tech unicorn founder grateful Lightspeed gave newbie a shot🥺 more underinvested founders/geos will return big $$
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
the most important founder skill is speed of learning
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
VC is really a job of self-exploration & introspection. With so many great startups, you have to ask: what do i care about? how do i gain conviction? how am i different / unique? what's my purpose? When answers are clear, VC is straight forward. Just execute.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
@nikillinit 😂 this was too good. we feel you in education. same story. shameless copies:
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 months
Best way to fundraise? Tell investors what you’re going to do in 3 months. Do it. Set up another call. And then do it again.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
1 year
there is product market fit, and then there is recession-proof product market fit
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
creators was a great rebrand for many freelancers
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Reputations are like six-pack abs: hard to build, easy to lose
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
One of my absolute favorite topics is how people learn Improving your speed of learning is also a top professional skill in a world that ain't changing any slower Here's how to improve your speed of learning:✌️🏾
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
1/ New post! Investing in the #ExperienceEconomy A new gen of companies are: - Discovered via Instagram 📸 - Designed as anticipated, sharable memories, documenting your best life ✨ - Creating a sense of belonging - Benefiting from cheap real estate 🏨
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
11am so finishing daily check: WhatsApp: LATAM Telegram: Crypto Discord: DAOz Twitter: VC BS Insta: real frendz Groupme that 1 college chat LinkedIn: profesh wins Slack: team/scout Gmail work: inbox 0😭 Gmail personal: 25k unread✅ iMessage: ppl who care🙏🏾 Zillow: fake relief 🥵
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
Conclusion: Women are the most absent group in all of Crypto. We need more women in this space. And we need them now. Let's get more #WomenInWeb3 Female founders, enthusiasts and Web 3 dreamers please feel free to reach out to me directly. TG and email DMs open. [6/6]
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
I did a quick review of founders the 2020 scout fund have invested in (5 mos in, 30 deals) & was OVER the 🌙 to see... >50% of founders appear to be from underrepresented (in tech) racial/ethnic backgrounds 😄 Multiplier effect works. diverse investors = diverse founders
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Your brand is what you promote. Your reputation is what others promote about you.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Men are leaving college at highest rates ever: 1.5M less students went to college in 2021 than 5 yrs prior & 70% of those were men The trend started in 1970s & today 60% of college goers are women Where are all the men going? 🧵
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
you want disagreeableness in your culture. we drive to better decisions when employees can voice dissent.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
people ask me who invests in learning/edtech a lot so i did like any good vc and made an airtable list 🙃 enjoy i'm sure i've missed many people so my apologies 🙏🏾 pls message if want to be added
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
i'm seeing more web3 startups raise very large seeds & As on back of a successful NFT collection sale, but are still pre-product. new form of funding or very 1999?
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
We can all agree that the metaverse is having its hottest year yet I used to work in VR and thought that was the path to the metaverse Here's why I was wrong and why this time is different 🧵
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
the year is 2023. And people are still sending intros without double opt in
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
As an investor in multiple LATAM startups, all i have to say to this is YES YES YES YESSSS!!!
@Techmeme
Techmeme
3 years
Latin America now has at least 23 unicorns, which collectively have raised $15B+, 15 have raised money this year; 40% of all VC money in 2020 went into fintech ( @jglasner / Crunchbase News)
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
back to the office szn time to dust off those 👠.🥲💃🏽👩🏾‍💻📈
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
1 year
Yesterday was my 4 year anniversary @lightspeedvp ! 🥳 It's been a wild ride. To quote @jmj who said it perfectly: "Wild vintage to [invest]. Cycles since starting in Q3 2019: 1. Pre Covid (2019) 2. Covid Depression Scenario (Q1 2020) 3. Covid Bull (Q2 2020) 4. Megafund Mania
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
the future of income is driven by the skills you use to earn $$ and the platforms you earn it on the future of income = edtech + fintech
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
The one good thing about being mansplained Web3 at these crypto conferences is it gives me more time to eat those fried macaroni balls. If I toss in an "ok, but obviously none of that can happen for 50 years" I can squeeze in a mini dulce de lece & gaspacho shooter as well.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
great quote I heard today: "Why does every kid love recess? It’s one of the only times they can make tons of choices for themselves all school day" I continue to believe children crave self-direction and the love of learning stops when they stop feeling agency
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
Most of "getting into venture" is luck & networks. That aside, a few other tips: - i had no $ to angel invest. practice anyway - everything is a funnel: recruitment & startup sourcing - be fearless w/cold outreach
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
1/ One of the things I look for in founders is whether they’re “learning animals”: Do they constantly pursue learning? Do they effectively scale themselves? A few years ago @Stanford I set out to unearth how founders learn Here’s what I learned (thread)
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
today i'm celebrating that the new majority is building wealth on crypto: 30% of black & 27% latino investors own cryptocurrency ✨🤑 (compared with 17% of white investors in the US - recent Harris Poll survey and 10% of the overall population)
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
1/5 When #Covid forced everyone schools to close, it accelerated #edtech trends & the future of #education . Some habits will stick. Others will revert. Knowing the difference will be crucial for founders, educators and parents. What might we see? 🤔
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
As a consumer VC i stay on the swivel for consumer cultural carriers. Consumer cultural carriers are the tastemakers, entertainers, celebs, artists, tiktok/youtube creators. They're often young, female, POCs. They know where world is moving b/c they're moving it. Watch them.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
Announcing Beek's $13M Series A led by Lightspeed Beek is building the Latin American Dream @PameVls @gsequeira_ @beek_io @lightspeedvp
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
Love seeing so many of my friends, LSVP scouts, and generally terrific humans in this 51 VCs list 👏🏾 @VPinVC @MacConwell @hadiyahdotme @lolitataub @hpierrejacques @chudson @DelJohnsonVC @mallun @bradleyml Seed/Pre-Seed founders - they’re the real deal
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
I made a #marketmap for the #ExperienceEconomy based on Pine & Gilmore's framework (they coined the term). What other startups are serving the #ExperienceEconomy ? #BoutiqueFitness #Popups #LocalAdventures #ThemeParks #IRLtoURL
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
for international women's day I went on @cnbc today to talk about the gender investing gap the gap is very real: women make up 35% or less of users at many retail investment products, and women save less on avg for retirement (also due to wage gap) what's going on?
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
First time visiting the office in almost 13 months!!
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
i just have to say. founders in LATAM are realllly prepared for fundraise processes. nearly 100% are *extremely* prepared w/datarooms, models, cohorts, customer files, unit economics, charts. even at the seed sometimes! i'm not sure how so many are so ready, but love to see it!
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
One glimmer of hope ✨that kickstarted my 2021 is 2 new black-led unicorns Congrats to @Calendly @TopeAwotona & @Cityblockhealth @Toyinajayidoc on becoming unicorns!!🦄 They join @Compass @RobReffkin & @Zumeinc @JuliaCollins who've hit the milestone am i missing any?
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
my Twitter is mostly all business but y’all….my wedding is in less than one month…i’m geeking fr!!
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
tweeps i am OOO…wedding weekend is finally here!!!! what’s your best advice for me, hubs, or guests on our wedding weekend?
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Big news alert! I have a new weekly column with @BusinessInsider that will be running for the next few weeks 🗳️ 1st topic: how top startups are using behavioral science to win 👇🏾
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
Nearly all my investments have an immigrant, woman or other underrepresented founder on the team Why? Because - if you didnt know - Marginalized. Folks. Are. Really. REALLY. Good. At. Making. Money.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
1 year
Lightspeed consumer team 🤗 Consumer investing is high risk, high reward. Not for the feint of heart. Not for the culturally unaware. Not for the brand oblivious. Not for everyone.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
I believe it's critical for founders to lead every board meeting, every townhall, w/ the mission & vision Vision is the world you want to see 🌍 Mission is how you there 📈☝️🏾 Your north star metric derives from them. It's often a product kpi & drives a corresponding sales kpi
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
7 years
Here's a summary of the full 39-page guide to VR/AR Education Companies I published on @VRScout #vr #ar #vreducation
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
1 year
positive people are really the best to work with
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
Work calls, zoom walls, city walk, tik tok, cook din, Netflix in. Repeat
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
1 year
very determined to do venture well. do it my way. and leave no crumbs.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Founders used to time their fundraises based on burn rate. Now I see founders timing raises based on achieving milestones. IMHO this a better model: from cost-based to valued-based fundraising.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 months
startups focus on the future. But the way to a VC’s heart is to really know your market’s history.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
the simultaneous surge of the creator economy & retail investing isn't a coincidence they both reflect consumers' desire to join the ownership economy & declare independence
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
if you’re not uncomfortable you’re not trying hard enough
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
the next gen of consumer entertainment experiences are being built on web3 in web3, consumers become co-creators Here’s some of the most exciting Entertainment X Web3 I’m seeing and where there's opportunity 🧵
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
we have a new job board! i stayed on lists like these when I was looking for startup roles 🙏
@lightspeedvp
Lightspeed
4 years
. @lightspeedvp recently launched a new job board to help talent discover over 3,000 open positions at our portfolio companies. We hope this is a helpful resource, especially for those impacted in light of COVID. Check it out here:
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Lightspeed consumer investors ✨ ☺️ @ataussig @Nik_Quinn @JeremysLiew
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
edsurge says Zoom has >100k schools using their platform in 25 countries 😲 and it's their "largest vertical"
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
The three most important things investors can give new founders: 1. Space & capital to execute 2. Freedom to change their mind = scale yourself attitude 3. Hard truths and empathy
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
US edtech is having a blockbuster year. there are so many billion$ companies, many on the cusp of exit I threw together these edtech/higherEd multiples for my founders recently so wanted to share With Duolingo, Instructure up next I can’t help but wonder what they’ll trade at!
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
@StuartBlitz same happened to me, founder said "you're all the same i don't need your intro" after i suggested an intro 😂 first 3-5 min of every call i just assess does this person want this to be a relationship call or a transactional call. the rest flies by smoothly
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
Crypto-native, wallet to wallet messaging is broken. and yet, messaging is the highest daily use consumer product. it's a huge opportunity. Crypto's "You've Got Mail" moment is coming. Let me explain ⬇️
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
you know you did the damn thing when there’s a cultural war about how to use your product hats off @TopeAwotona
@lessin
sam lessin 🏴‍☠️
3 years
‘Calendly’ Etiquette is The Most Raw / Naked Display of Social Capital Dynamics in Business.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
i think about this chart, netflix launching in 1997, and gas fees alllllll the time
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
whirlwind few days in London. Launched our office. Interviewed Multiverse about edtech 🙌🏾 Laid awake in bed all night 😫 Met some amazing founders. Witnessed history. Broke bread with the BEST team. @lightspeedvp 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇫🇷🇩🇪
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
Startups die when founders lose their confidence & mojo Startups are a mental game of survivorship. Ideas die if they're allowed to.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 months
My sister just got her PhD and my brother just spoke at Google Marketing Keynote on ai + search!! Big week for the fam. So dang proud!!
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
Creators are building longevity by turning platforms into marketing channels. But not all platforms support success equally. My 2-cents on how creators are the new, leaner generation of startups, and why traditional corps are even more on watch to retain employees👇🏾
@TechInsider
Insider Tech
3 years
The creator economy is booming and the majority of the US workforce will be freelance by 2027. A VC says current creators must think about the future and these 3 next steps. ( via @mercebent )
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
5 years
Incredibly excited to join such an amazing team! More about what I’m initially focusing on soon.
@lightspeedvp
Lightspeed
5 years
Excited to officially welcome @justbaga @mercebent @RytisVit @anoushkavaswani #jamesephrati to Lightspeed. Read more about them and their focus areas here:
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
yesterday was my 2 yr anniversary @Lightspeedvp ! i wrote my VC plan👇🏾 & lived it next 21 mos. i guess that's "building in public :) no VR/mobility, but Grateful to invest & empower #edtech @theForage_ @Outschool #latam #fintech @Stori_MX #Frubana & #multiccultural s/o Scouts!!
@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
5 years
Investing and Empowering: What I’m Focusing On at Lightspeed My current investing focus @lightspeedvp 🙌🏾📈🙋🏾‍♀️📊🔑 #edtech #futureofwork #multicultural #women #VR #LATAM #fintech #mobility
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
my first Juneteenth work holiday 😊 🙌🏾 Happy Juneteenth y’all!! 🙌🏾
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
1 year
1/ Excited to share how our fintech team views the intersection of AI + finance…. First off, AI is not exactly new in finance…it’s been used since the 90s. But something big has changed with the newest generation. Generative AI is distinct compared to conventional or
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
i didn't think i tweeted anything interesting enough for @ShrugCap cal but look ma 🙌🏾
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
plot twist: reddit is the largest social investing platform
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
One of the strangest transitions from Operator to VC was hearing investors say they were interested in business models (marketplaces, saas, subscription) instead of missions (problems, sectors, customers, product)
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
15k people at ETH Denver. i just returned from the largest year EVER as crypto goes mainstream people still ask, why all the hype? what does blockchain actually solve? 7 problems that blockchains actually solve 👇🏾
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
it’s me, speaking at NFT NYC next week 💁🏾‍♀️ holla at ya girl
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
5 years
New post on the #FutureofWork 🤓 While we’re geeking out about the latest developments in AI, ML & VR (I’m guilty 🙋🏾‍♀️), we can’t forget how these changes affect workers 👷🏾‍♀️👨🏼‍🏭🧕🏼👨🏻‍💼👩🏼‍🔧 The #CareerJourney is evolving. Let’s talk groom & bloom not doom & gloom
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
3 years
new record! "Women controlled 28% of board seats among S&P 500 companies" only up 1% point from last year, up 8% since 2009 another glimmer of hope, lets do this ladies 💪🏾
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
Social “armies” are creating David v Goliath scenes & driving pop culture moments across multiple industries: - Reddit wsb takes on hedge funds - BTS fans take on racial injustice - TikTok teens take on Trump rally where else are social armies making their mark?
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
4 years
The real question is average net price & signal value 70% of Harvard students get fin aid, most pay ~$12k 30% pay ~full price $23k weighted avg net price Is Harvard worth $23k / year in signal? imho, many 30% full pricers would pay more than $49k/year to maintain signal
@darrenrovell
Darren Rovell
4 years
JUST IN: Harvard announces all course instruction will be taught online for the 2020-21 academic year. Undergraduate tuition of $49,653 remains the same.
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@mercebent
Mercedes Bent
2 years
doing my first on air with Bloomberg @business today to talk crypto! wish me luck 😬
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