If Frank Underwood were a venture capitalist which D.C.-area companies would he invest in? This is the pressing question I was asked earlier today as I read the ongoing Twitter storm from loyal House of Cards binge watchers. And, while it was an obviously delirious question it got me wondering; where would a calculating, highly intelligent, self-serving, sociopath invest his cash?
More than a dozen local companies immediately came to mind, but in choosing the final list of 3 a short rubric was used to distinguish them from the pack. Namely, a startup’s potential to experience growth across multiple indicators (revenue, customer base, staff expansion, etc.), their connection to Underwood relevant policy and most importantly, a talented executive team is in place who I believe to be capable of pursuing a major market push.
Here are the 3 finalists who made the list — these are the DMV companies Frank Underwood would definitely invest in:
#1) Endgame
In 2014, the Pentagon’s cybersecurity budget was $4.7 billion, a $1 billion increase over the previous year, and 2015 is expected to follow this trend. EndGame is both one of DC’s primary contractors and a rising star nationally. The Arlington Va.-based cybersecurity firm is a private, cyber intelligence and analytics company that has raised $85.9 million over the last five years with big plans set for 2015.
“The idea is to at least double sales in 2015 by continuously exceeding our customer’s expectations,” Endgame CEO Nathaniel Fick previously told DC Inno in an interview,“we would like to expand our business in financial services … I can’t imagine a funding round in 2015, we have a couple years of growth. But yes, there are investors who are eager to put more in.”
Endgame was founded in 2008 by Chris Rouland — a first-rate hacker who first came on the Defense Department’s radar in 1990 after he hacked Pentagon computers — motivated by the belief that the landscape is rapidly changing. In 2012, Fick took over as CEO when Rouland stepped down following public disclosures of the company’s internal marketing documents by the hacker collective known as Anonymous.
#2) FiscalNote
Earlier this month, Washington, D.C.-based financial data predictor and analytics aggregation system, FiscalNote, announced a $10 million Series B funding round. The funding round came only three months after FiscalNote raised $7 million in a Series A funding round during November. Named as one of CNN’s top ten startups of 2014, FiscalNote is known for its powerful legislative searching, tracking and forecasting product, Prophecy. The company will also introduce a regulatory product, Sonar, later this year.
FiscalNote offers an entirely new and unique product that is of great interest to anyone analyzing contemporary legislation. Not only does its software intelligently aggregate policy through a search queue but it can also accurately predict a bill's chance's of passing based on realtime external influences(voting records, history of similar policy, favorable congressional partnerships, etc.).
FiscalNote is led by 22-year old CEO and Princeton graduate, Tim Hwang. Regarding the $10 million investment, “to an extent we [FiscalNote] didn’t really need the capital. It was an opportunity that popped up and we didn't want to turn away. We decided to take advantage of the massive growth we’ve been seeing and the opportunity presented to us,” Hwang told DC Inno. FiscalNote will be aggressively hiring top talent than can both develop and release new products over the coming months. For 2015, Hwang and co. will be doubling their workforce with talent-driven technical staff while bolstering main operations in Washington, D.C, and in New York.
#3) Aquicore
Aquicore develops hardware and SaaS-based software to monitor energy consumption in commercial buildings. The quickly growing startup will be doubling its staff of 23, with a focus on sales and business development teams, CEO Logan Soya told DC Inno previously. This year will also bring several major additions to Aquicore’s advisory board as part of an encompassing initiative to further growth. Revell Horsey who co-founded HelloWallet, Ben Foster who was recently the head of product management at O-Power and Dmitri Mehlhorn who was former President of Bloomberg BNA Legal, will all be new additions to Aquicore's advisory board.
The company’s vision is to revolutionize the way building information is accessed, giving owners and property managers real time insight and actionable information to cut energy costs. Founded in 2013 by Soya, Aquicore targets commercial real estate (CRE) property managers and landlords who want to take advantage of savings and be able to bill tenants for utilities more efficiently.
To date, Aquicore has raised $1.6 million and is now in active negotiations to potential pursue a further financing round. Soya said that while discussions continue, an important rubric for choosing investors will rely on their industry expertise -- especially related to CRE.
