ReadWriteWeb

We recently spoke with Jean-Francois "Jeff" Clavier, founder and managing partner of SoftTech VC, one of the most active seed-stage investors in Web 2.0 startups. He invests from a $15 million fund, investing from $100K to $500K in companies, generally alongside other funds or angels, making up a total of $750K to $1.5M per venture. He invests in consumer Internet companies working in areas such as social media, communities, search, gaming, and consumer infrastructure, almost exclusively in Silicon Valley.

Pity the poor venture capitalist. Times were... well, so cushy. Money was flowing, deals were being done in record time, monetization was something one worried about later, and Silicon Valley was bursting at the seams. The sweet smell of wealth creation was everywhere. But suddenly, money got tight and the portfolio companies of many VC firms went on life support. So let's hear from a couple of well-known early-stage investors, each with close to a decade under his belt, who we learned are largely undaunted by the current melancholia.