Menlo Ventures partner Deedy Das compiles historic roster of founders leaving rocketship startups to build new companies

@deedydas It’s true, I left D. E. Shaw Group and RenTech to start VC Brags. Happens more than you think 🚀

@deedydas Bezos left DE Shaw to start Amazon

@deedydas I bet vesting Facebook stock was worth way more than Asana and Quora... no?

@deedydas Dario left openai to start Anthropic

@deedydas yes agreed good dataset

@deedydas I mean I think in Ilya's case it's obvious why he had to leave.

@VCBrags @deedydas Some left their wives as well.

@deedydas SSI has done nothing lmao naming them is ridiculous

@deedydas For a couple of these examples the leaver would’ve had a higher net worth by just staying

@deedydas that "x left y to start z" format conveniently skips the hundreds of founders who cratered hard

@deedydas this is just a list of people who couldnt sit still on a moving train

bro saw 'all aboard' and immediately started digging an exit hatch

@deedydas Leaving a rocketship works best when you take the unfair lesson, not the logo.

The win is knowing which pain is real before everyone else does.

@BoringBiz_ @deedydas To be fair, DE Shaw wasn't a rocketship.... just a money printer

@deedydas Means they're delusional or missionary (or both)

@deedydas I'd wager most left once they were set or had a financial cushion. We need to fight the spread of the idea that one should jump out of one ship before they have another one lined up next to it. Backing oneself into a corner for motivation to take a risk is unnecessary for most.

@deedydas All of these examples would have done better by just staying where they were

@deedydas survivorship bias but with very good logos on the resume

@deedydas leaving a sure thing for an unproven idea only looks obvious in the retrospective, in the moment it just looks like giving up a good paycheck for a coin flip

@deedydas should i leave my collage to start my own?

@deedydas Facebook/Youtube