Naval Ravikant

In 2010, only rich people could invest in startups. A venture capitalist could write a million-dollar check, and a credited investor could participate in a round. But a nurse or teacher with $5,000 could not get access to early-stage companies. The venture system was closed. Start-up deals were gate-kept from ordinary investors. Naval Ravikant and Babak Navy built AngelList as a platform changing this. A lead investor selected a startup deal and put in $50,000. Hundreds of smaller investors could contribute 1,000, 2,000, 5,000. The lead investor did the work. Smaller investors followed. This created syndicates. Democratization of startup investing happened overnight.