Mac The VC

Managing Partner @RareBreedVC | underrepresented founders | Hacker turned Hustler | Entrepreneur | Vampire | Former Gamer | @inside | @KauffmanFellows class #26

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

I decided to turn my thread into a medium article

I just published How Desperation Drove Me to Use Twitter to take 1,128 Meetings to Raise the First $3M of RareBreed… https://t.co/hiXdE3znLK

[Jenny Fielding @jefielding]

Big day, we just launched Jelly, the first product incubated inside of @EverywhereVC. It’s a company discovery + research tool that pulls millions of data points on private companies. We built this for ourselves after years of over paying for this data and now we are opening it up to our peers…Sign up on the waitlist: https://t.co/ppKrZDVbbT

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

1/ 🧵 one of my top ten secrets for managing a large portfolio of companies. Aspiring VCs, new VCs, Emerging managers, and even Established managers I hope this can be helpful to you.

One of my secrets to managing a large portfolio is Random Text messages (RTM) - read more below

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

Hey, I'm currently in Toronto for Elevate Festival. If anyone would like to connect, catch up , or have a 1:1 with me then send me a DM.

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

@cauvee I might be at LA's

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

Hey, I'm currently in Toronto for Elevate Festival. If anyone would like to connect, catch up , or have a 1:1 with me then send me a DM.

[Dave McClure @davemcclure]

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Learn how to donate #startup stock or #VC funds to your own DAF (Donor Advised Fund), and save $25K-100K or more on your taxes every year💰

This can be *very* useful if you’ve had a big #secondary sale or #IPO in 2026, a large #capital gain, or just ordinary #income to offset🧾

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DAF education webinars are hosted by @PracticalVC + @UI_Charitable

[Liam Gill @realLiamGill]

If Canada's innovation industry kept pace with the US the last 15 years our GDP would be $1T higher.

That's $25,000 more per person or an effective 40% raise for each Canadians.

Technology is an enabler, it makes us more productive, lowers costs and raises salaries.

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

@margentambi But in this world of AI where companies are growing faster then ever will real revenue and less then 5 employees, do you find that the amount of traction to get real attention has changed significantly?

[Marge Ntambi @margentambi]

I invest in startups, but I also spend a lot of time helping founders across the Africa tech ecosystem raise capital. That means sitting with them for hours, dissecting their businesses, understanding where things are working, and where they’re not.

One thing I believe in most: customer satisfaction has to be a primary focus.

At the earliest stages, it’s easy to get pulled in many directions (fundraising, sales, hiring, partnerships). But if customer satisfaction slips, retention weakens. And without retention, it becomes much harder to build a durable business.

Keep your head down and phase growth carefully. Focus on onboarding customers at a pace you can support, until your earliest users can genuinely vouch for the value you’re delivering.

That focus can change the trajectory of a company. With enough runway, it gives you the chance to iterate, strengthen the product, and build real proof points. In some cases, it can move you from depending on the next fundraise to building a profitable business. In others, it gives you the foundation to raise again from a much stronger position.

At the earliest stage, the work is simple, even if it isn’t easy:
listen closely, iterate based on feedback, and fix what matters most.

And especially in fintech, don’t wait too long to think about compliance. Prioritize it early enough to avoid regulatory bottlenecks that can slow growth later.

Many of us are working toward the same goal: building stronger companies that can strengthen Africa’s economic future.

Let’s keep doing the work.

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

@margentambi This is so true

[Marge Ntambi @margentambi]

Investors can tell when a founder is winging their pitch.

Not because the slides are wrong
but because the founder hasn’t internalized the story behind the numbers.

Practice until the KPIs and narrative are second nature.

The real exercise is understanding why your company is uniquely positioned to win: what you know about the market, product, and customer that others don’t.

When you truly understand that, the room can feel it.

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

@sreyalafayette Hi @sreyalafayette, Thank you so much for the kind words.

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

I decided to turn my thread into a medium article

I just published How Desperation Drove Me to Use Twitter to take 1,128 Meetings to Raise the First $3M of RareBreed… https://t.co/hiXdE3znLK

[sreyalafayette @sreyalafayette]

@MacConwell I recently read another Medium article about you and I must say your personal story is so impressive! I imagine it's quite rare that such altruism aligns with VC work. You are a diamond in the rough!

This was it, btw: https://t.co/YXdNFYdyk9

[Marge Ntambi @margentambi]

Storytelling matters when raising capital.
Investors want not only a good story... but also a coherent one.

The strongest narratives are backed by facts, figures, and evidence that hold up under diligence.

A good story gets attention.
A durable story survives scrutiny.

That’s the difference between interest and conviction.

[Charles Hudson @chudson]

I’ve read so many thoughtful critiques of the current state of venture written by GPs and many of them are so good and so well written. And almost none of them map in any way to the conversations I have with LPs or their concerns about how the VC industry works or doesn’t work from an LP perspective. It feels right but very disconnected from how allocators see things.

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

@kevnsn Really cool product

[Kevin Sun @kevnsn]

What if AI could make you more thoughtful?

At Dex, we’re building the best-in-class AI assistant for your personal and professional relationships. Built for you to be more present, keep context, and show up consistently.

[Mac The VC @MacConwell]

@joshk Hilarious but sooooo true

[Josh Kopelman @joshk]

I miss when pitch emails were bad in a human way.
Now so many are just prompts with a send button.
At this point, just send me the prompt. It’d be more honest.

[Marge Ntambi @margentambi]

Venture capital involves the daily practice of envisioning the future
And supporting the ideas that can bring it to life