EP 33: Ali Byrd Has Seen All Sides of M&A. Now He’s Leveraging That Experience for Duke Alums at Towerview Ventures.

Ali Byrd | Managing Partner of Towerview Ventures

A former member of Microsoft’s Venture Integration team, Ali Byrd shares how his experience managing companies through acquisition is helping him build a winning venture capital portfolio for Duke alumni.

Disclaimer: This is not a solicitation to sell securities, which is only done through appropriate disclosure documents and only to appropriately qualified investors.

Episode Summary

In addition to onboarding companies at Microsoft, Ali spent several years as a startup CFO. In 2016, at Olapic, he managed the company’s acquisition by Monocytes. By this point, he’d truly worn all possible hats in the venture transition process.

“I think I bring a fairly healthy perspective of realism when I’m speaking with founders,” says Byrd. “I’ve walked a few miles in their shoes.”

Insider insights; a smart, diversified portfolio approach; and a large deal referral network all work to Byrd’s advantage. He expects that some founders in his portfolio will experience liquidation opportunities, benefitting Towerview investors. He’s following the strategy set by by sibling funds at Alumni Ventures Group that have already seen a number of investments be acquired, go public, or attract upround capital.

Listen to this podcast to learn more about Byrd’s experience and his big plans for Towerview Ventures. And don’t forget to subscribe to Founders & Funders on iTunes, TuneIn, Stitcher, Google Play, iHeartRADIO, and Android.