Bottom line, if you have a great idea, get folks around your idea who can help you and make it happen. Bring it to Y-Combinator, Techstars, and many of the best early stage funds like us, FRC, and USV. Or go the Super Angel route and speak to Clavier, McClure and Freestyle.

Like most VCs, we don’t sign NDAs. We see literally thousands of deal pitches per month andfrom an administrative standpoint, it would be ludicrous to manage NDAs. Secondly, and far more important, startups are about people, creativity,and energy. An idea is important but the people around the idea who lend experience, creativity,and passion to make it better are more important.

Great ideas have lots of input. Good ideas grow to great with light and oxygen from other people. Silo'd ideas rarely have the best thinking around them. Therefore, we feel that it's a really bad sign if an entrepreneur asks for a NDA because it reflects a closed state of mind and more precisely a misunderstanding about what it takes to turn a great idea into a great product and then into a great company.

Lastly, VCs are not in the business of "copying" or "stealing" ideas. It makes absolutely no sense for any aspect of our business to do so. We're not setup to do it, we'd never be good at it, and it would kill our reputation in the market instantly.