I didn't go to an Ivy League school, so breaking into VC felt impossible.

Instead, I found my way through the side door. I started at Lyft during the pink mustache days, co-founded their employee syndicate, and helped 300+ employees deploy $30M into startups.

That led me to help other tech companies (Airbnb, Square, Pinterest, Stripe) build their own alumni investing communities.

Eventually, I realized my real passion was making angel investing accessible to people who aren't in the traditional VC club.

That's how Angel Squad was born.

Today, I run Angel Squad at Hustle Fund. It's a community of 2,000+ professionals learning how to angel invest. TechCrunch called us the "YC of Angel Investing."

We've deployed $30M+ together, and our members include everyone from Google PMs to airline pilots to physical therapists. Basically, anyone who wants to learn how to write $1k checks into startups.

I also write Small Bets, a weekly newsletter where I share lessons on startups and angel investing - the wins, the losses, and everything in between.

If you're curious about angel investing or just want to learn more about the startup world, let's connect.

Brian Nichols

Last week my 7-year-old and I built a math app together. No code. Done in an afternoon. Genuinely better than the games I've paid for on the App Store.

That same week, one of our GPs cut her email workload by 50% using a personal AI agent she built herself. I got the bug bad enough that I splurged on a Mac Mini.

Something has crossed a threshold. Tools like Claude Cowork and Claude Code aren't "AI helps you write emails" territory anymore. We're talking agents that take over your browser, triage your inbox, draft responses, and run tasks on a schedule while you sleep. 

I say this as someone who is decidedly not a software engineer: the theoretical just became very, very tangible.

Every major platform shift creates a new generation of massive companies - and founders are right now building the infrastructure for how AI agents browse the web, make purchases, and communicate with each other. 

Think the internet in 1995, except the entire web needs to be rebuilt for machines, not humans.

That's a lot of companies that need to get built fast.

Which, makes this one of the best windows in history to be an early-stage investor. 

When kicking around the idea for this event, I realized that this is the first generational platform shift where $1k checks are a legitimate entry point. 

You don't need to be a GP or a big-shot angel writing $100k minimums to participate. The best angels in our network started small, stacked reps, and built real networks along the way.

Those days of "you can't play unless you're already in" - they're over. So for the first time ever, I’m taking my Small Bets newsletter LIVE for an Angel Investing 101 Bootcamp. 

45 minutes. 

You’ll hear my thoughts on why now is an incredible time to be an angel, and get to watch a fundraising founder pitch Hustle Fund GP Eric Bahn live. 
 
🦞 RSVP while we have space. This one’s gonna be big: https://luma.com/t6n3x6kl

Founder of Angel Squad | I write about startups, investing, and hard-earned lessons | Small Bets newsletter

Open article: 🎥 Small Bets LIVE: Angel Investing 101 Bootcamp · Zoom · Luma by luma.com

🎥 Small Bets LIVE: Angel Investing 101 Bootcamp · Zoom · Luma

Almost 2.5x more people joined Angel Squad so far to start this year vs. last year.

That number surprised me a little.

But what surprised me more was who joined.

+ A former Major League Baseball player. 
+ A pharma professional investing on the side. 
+ A private funds lawyer whose VC clients finally convinced her to write her own checks. 
+ A robotics engineer. 
+ A Stanford sophomore. 
+ A Harvard Law-trained AI strategy consultant. 

The professions are all over the place too:

+ ML scientists and senior engineers at big tech companies
+ Fintech operators, fractional CFOs, startup lawyers
+ Product managers, UX designers, enterprise sales reps
+ Ex-Goldman analysts, ex-McKinsey consultants
+ Founders who've exited and are ready to back others

Members joined from Europe, Southeast Asia, East Asia, LATAM, MENA, Australia, Kenya, Taiwan - and nearly every region of the US.

This is what I kept hoping Angel Squad would become.

Not another room full of Sand Hill insiders passing deals to each other. 

A place where the robotics engineer and the startup lawyer and the ex-baseball player can all learn this asset class together - and actually invest alongside each other.

Oh, and don't forget the best part...they all meet our strict "no a-holes allowed" policy.

AI captured nearly 50% of all global venture funding last year. Over $200 billion.
Most people have no way to access these companies before they IPO.

Every major tech wave creates a new generation of massive companies. The internet gave us Google and Amazon. Social gave us Meta. Mobile gave us Uber and Airbnb.

We're in the middle of the next one. 

Founders are building new infrastructure for how AI agents browse the web, make purchases, and talk to each other. It's like 1995 for the internet, except the web is being rebuilt for machines, not humans.

A lot of companies need to get built. 

A lot of opportunities for early investors to get in.

The best news is that this wave is different because you don't need to be a full-time VC or write $100K checks to participate.

Most of the best investors in our Angel Squad community start with $1K-$5K checks. Learned from the reps. Built real networks along the way.

We're taking our Small Bets newsletter (55K+ subscribers) live for the first time ever. 45-minute bootcamp. 

We already have 300+ RSVPs.

I'll break down how angel investing actually works and why the timing is so good right now.

Then a real founder is going to pitch Eric Bahn, GP at Hustle Fund, on the spot. 

Shark Tank style (except Eric is super nice).

You'll watch Eric evaluate the deal in real time, and he might invest on the spot. 

Whether you're an experienced investor or you're just getting curious about the space, come hang.

RSVP below. We'll send the recording to everyone who signs up.

👉 https://luma.com/t6n3x6kl

Michael Gaizutis

Founder, RNO1 • Founder, R3: Venture Design Studio • Co-CEO, 4Waves Media • Angel & Early-VC Investor • VC-Startup Advisor • Expert Featured In: Entrepreneur, Forbes, MarketWatch, Yahoo!

I'm Michael, Founder at RNO1. I've always believed that the most radical ideas deserve the most radical digital experiences.

That belief led me to create RNO1 in 2010: a San Francisco-born agency built for modern tech brands ready to disrupt, scale, and thrive.

We partner with brands that think differently and move fast. From VC-backed startups to Fortune 500/100s like Airbnb, Microsoft, BMW, Dentsu, Ericsson, and Cox Media Group...we craft Radical Digital Experiences™ that aren't just beautiful, but deliver actual business impact.

Our journey has been as radical as the results:

󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2 clients secured $100M+ in funding, now scaling at $1B+ valuations
• Client featured—and funded—on Shark Tank by billionaire Mark Cuban
• Partnered with a $9B global media brand to launch 3 digital platforms worldwide
• 4 Unicorn partnerships (and counting)
• 6 clients acquired in 6 years
• $10B+ in client market growth generated

What we do: Brand strategy, identity design, UX/UI, web and app development, digital product design, marketing campaigns, AI-SEO strategies. We support major launches that scale.

How we work: Fast-moving, remote-first team with offices in San Francisco, LA, Seattle, Canada, Vilnius, and across Europe. We operate as a flexible extension of Marketing, Product, UX, and Founding teams.

If you're ready to take that next radical leap...let's connect.
→ rno1.com | letschat@rno1.com | 1-833-473-0086

Founder & CXO

We're RNO1. We guide game-changing companies, across platforms & places, through agile design & digital experience. The traditional agency world is broken: As a uniquely positioned (Subscription-Based) Experience Design Agency, we'll become a true team extension and move to scale your brand into the future. Our Client Partners include: Airbnb, Microsoft, Interos, Hedonova, Highline, Spring Labs, Amount, EOS Network Foundation (ENF), Ourglass, Shift Markets, Highline, Cloud Apartments, CoVenture - alongside other VC-backed Tech & Commerce Companies working to drive change in their market, through Experience Design.

www.rno1.com
RNO1 | We Make Waves™

The latest issue of RVL Newsletter is out!

This week we covered:
• OpenAI raising $110B.
• Waymo pulling in $16B.
• Jack Dorsey cutting half of Block 's workforce, and predicting that this is just the start.
• Google's VP warning that two AI startup models are heading for extinction.
• And where PE is quietly placing its biggest bets right now.

A lot moved this week...We broke it all down.

📩 Read the full issue → https://lnkd.in/diDNNA6d

Subscribe to make sure you don't miss the next one at → https://lnkd.in/gHV6HfqP

Founder @ RNO1 | Driven $10B+ In Market Growth For Tech Brands Through Branding & UX/UI Design | Founder, RVL | Tech Newsletter

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