Vinod Khosla?

Wow..don't know how I should feel/react to this. I am a minority (African-American) and an entrepreneur shopping my business plan around. That's pretty bad!

...and this is surprising? look at the colour of tech start up founders in the Valley vs the ethnic make up of engineers. We learnt this one early on, and now have a less talented but very white, very temporary poster boy pitching for us.

I scored one minor point when answering questions at a pitch, which unintentionally one-upped me over an associate Jr. Partner. It was over and I was on my way to the parking lot to my Zip car, amongst the Beemers, and the dude called over his car's roof, "Mouthy Jewboy, get used to the word, No!".

Arrgh.

It's sad to say but a black guy is about as likely to get real funding for a tech startup as Ron Paul is likely to win a primary.

The Valley is absolutely racist. I've seen quite a few black guys with great ideas get snubbed and joked about behind closed doors. "I bet he was going to rap the business plan to us." Ugh.

Donte, shorten your first name to Don. It will help you get more meetings.

I thought the discrimination mostly goes the other way around - Indian VCs invest only in Indian entrepreneurs. No?

@Donte Morrisette: The solution is obvious. Build a profitable business without VCs, tell them to fuck off and have the last laugh.

@Donte Morrisette: Sad, but true. In February, 1995, I had one of the first Web sites in Manhattan. As an ex-investment banker (you wouldn't believe what it was like to be black on Wall Street in the late Seventies), I could write a business plan in my sleep. Felt like a novelty act in all the meetings. Of course, that was so early, a lot of folks didn't get the Web. I had an online book catalog. Went to Barnes & Noble, it was like, leave us alone. I even had digital audio on my site. Real Networks knew the site was hot, probably should have pursued a deal with them.

Flash forward to late 2000. After being a digital media solutions architect at the hottest company in the Valley (yes, that networking company), I developed a prototype for a telephony messaging server that still doesn't exist. Again, had a great business plan. Even had friends at WebEx, etc. Got meetings in the Valley, LA, and New York. Same thing, novelty act. It's pathological. Unfortunate, because there are good people in the Valley.

@scalawag 10:49 I dont thik so. www.sherpalo.com

I have worked at well-known two venture capital firms. I've known lots of VC partners and associates. And I've never ever ever heard anyone say anything even remotely like this. On the contrary, the question was typically "how can we get access to the great deals coming out of the Chinese, Indian, Israeli, etc. communities?" So this is not only out of line, but totally at odds with my 6+ yrs of VC experience. Our portfolio companies had all kinds/colors in charge. The only color that should motivate investors is green.

Oops, that should be "two well-known venture firms."

That sucks. Hope those clowns burn in hell.

I find this a bit hard to believe. Most people dealing with money only care about one color... green. They don't give a f' who is going to make it for them.

Lots of people just want someone to blame but it's just life. Don't you think there are plenty of white people out there pitching to other white VC's and getting shot down just as much?

a lot of the VCs themselves are indian and asian. Few women, few other minorities that I've ever seen.

Discrimination will always be part of the equation in societies. However it really comes down to the self and proactive advocation of equality in a free state.

The questions that we should all ask ourseleves when this scenario arises are:

1) Why do you feel/act this way to this person(s).
2) Where does it stem from.
3) Do you dare repeat the past mistakes of others knowing what you now know.

That's a little scary...

That said, the racial makeup of tech entrepreneurs IS suspicious...

How many black people work in 'silicone' heaven in positions of authority. I don't think it is institutionalized in the Tech world but I do feel it is the glass ceiling imposed by the education system in the US coupled with people hiring their old school friends

This is uncomfortable to know that this happened if it really did.