Michael Houck

85,000+ founders read my free weekly newsletter. Follow me to learn about startups and venture capital.

I didn't know what a startup was until after college. I wasn't lucky with connections or mentors.

But within a few years my startup raised $23 million from a16z + other investors.

Along the way I:
· Cold emailed my way into an early role at Uber Eats
· Got laid off by Airbnb during COVID
· Built an audience of ~100K across LinkedIn and X
· Started a coliving residency for startup founders in Tulum
· Co-founded a venture fund and made over 50+ early stage investments (incl. Figure and Beehiiv)

More recently I've bootstrapped my personal holdco from $0 to $100K MRR in under 2 years. We help founders through content, connections, capital, and services:

· megaphonestudio.com → let my content agency build your newsletter or social media audience
· megaphone.network → partner with big creators in your niche

· join.foundingjourney.com → get my weekly playbooks and advice alongside 75k founders (for free)
· upgrade.foundingjourney.com → get ~100 fundraising case studies from founders I interviewed
· go.foundingjourney.com/fundraising → get connected with investors (including me)

I'm also building a new YouTube channel. Here's a recent video on the history of Silicon Valley: youtu.be/alUQxEldEMM

Founder

A weekly newsletter designed to help you build, grow, and raise capital for your startup.

Army Veteran | Venture Capital | Startup Operator | Ex-3x Capital (Web3)| SportsTech | Former Team USA Athlete 🇺🇸| Storyteller | Member at Texas Venture Alliance

Military Veteran ➡️ Venture Capital 

Driven, intuitive, and adaptable leader who is known for instilling value in others through consistency, transparency and candor. Instills concrete core values with inarguable standards. 

My Value-Add

➡️ Prior Investment Associate experience (sourcing, due diligence, analysis) in seed to Series A startups across all sectors. 

➡️ ·  A deep rolodex (LP/GP/founders/SMEs) in TX, North America, LATAM, Europe, and the Middle East

➡️ former  head of business development/startup operator, Podcast Host, Community Manager and Startup Operator for Go Global World, an Artificial Intelligence Investor to Startup Matching

➡️ Heavily involved in the FoF, SPV and Pre IPO Secondaries Market with a track record of structure deals with tier 1 san Francisco tech companies, Elon Musk and Sam Altman Led Ventures

➡️ Partner at CEP Capital Partners LLC, Raising Debt Capital all over the US up to $50MM for SMBs, lower middle market, Middle Market Companies and Real Estate 

Former Nationally ranked Powerlifter, Functional Fitness Athlete, Army Veteran, and always looking for the next adrenaline rush and to create fruitful relationships.

 Email: gonzaleschris1995@gmail.com

Chris Gonzales

Why Sports is the New "Safe Haven" for Tech & Capital 

The era of sports being just "games" is officially over. We are witnessing a massive institutional takeover of the sports and entertainment sector, with 2025 deal values projected to hit a staggering $200 Billion.

But this isn't just about big checks; it's about a fundamental shift in how we consume culture. 

Here’s why the smart money is pouring in:

Content is the Only King: In a fractured media landscape, live sports are the last remaining "appointment viewing." This is why Netflix and other tech giants are no longer just streaming—they’re buying the whole stadium.

The Private Equity Pivot: With $880B in dry powder, US private equity is moving from traditional tech into "passion assets." These are recession-resistant industries with fanbases that don’t just "subscribe"—they belong.
Vertical Integration: From betting and fantasy to AI-driven performance analytics, investors are building an ecosystem where every second of a fan's attention is monetized.

The Bottom Line: We are seeing the "Financialization of Fandom." As franchise values skyrocket (up 10x in 20 years), the barrier to entry for the average investor is rising, while the influence of institutional capital is becoming absolute.

#sports #assetmanagement #tech #startups #venturecapital #privateequity

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Michael Houck

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