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Editor's note: Brian Singerman is a partner at Founders Fund and previously worked at Google and There.  This is the first in a series of articles I am writing to bring more transparency and honesty to the field of venture capital. While many of the themes may be contrarian or controversial, I have two primary goals: First, I want to help entrepreneurs and startup enthusiasts understand what motivates investors. Second, I hope to draw attention to some of the fallacies venture capitalists use in their negotiations with entrepreneurs. Aligning the incentives of entrepreneurs and VCs will lead to much stronger relationships and innovation. Entrepreneurs regularly come to Founders Fund asking us to lead or participate in their seed/angel round. They are often confused or shocked when I try to convince them that with very few exceptions, it is not in entrepreneurs’ best interest to raise seed capital from large venture firms and neither is it beneficial for large firms to invest in seed stage companies. Among the reasons: the structure of VC economics and unavoidable perception issues. Since this conversation happens frequently, I’d like to share my honest thoughts on why large funds should avoid angel investing -­‐ and also why Founders Fund nevertheless does so through its wholly owned FF Angel funds.

The annual Defcon hacking meetup produces its share of unique creations. You know you're in for something special when even your entrance badge is an adventure. Defcon 20 might be winding to a close, but about 650 guests may just have the fondest mem...

Editor’s Note: Nir Eyal is a Lecturer in Marketing at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He is the founder of two startups and blogs about the intersection of psychology, technology, and business at NirAndFar.com. Follow him on Twitter @nireyal. Before you can change the world, before your company can IPO, before getting millions of loyal users to wonder how they ever lived without your service, people need to on-board. Building the on-ramp to using your product is critical in every industry, but few more so than in the ADD world of web and mobile apps. Distractions are everywhere, vying for user mindshare and threatening to pull them off the road to using your products like the donut shops and strip clubs at a trucker's rest stop.

Ready for another supposed look at the next-gen Apple iPhone? Matching up with previous leaks we've reported on, the elongated iPhone body with a miniaturized docking port and brushed metal back has appeared again, this time courtesy of iLab Factory....

Editor’s note: Derek Andersen is the founder of Startup Grind, a 15-city event series hosted around the world to help educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs. He’s also ex-Electronic Arts, the founder of Commonred and Vaporware Labs.< A few weeks ago a founder called me to commiserate. He told me about how his product had taken longer than expected to build, how his co-founder was gone, and how he was almost out of money. There was desperation, but more than anything he longed for pity and a shoulder to cry on. My response? “Please shut up and get back to work.”

Welcome to IRL, an ongoing feature where we talk about the gadgets, apps and toys we're using in real life and take a second look at products that already got the formal review treatment. After some camera-heavy IRLs lately, this week's edition is mo...

Finally, no more renders or mockups, as Japanese website iLab.cc has posted the first images of an assembled iPhone 5. We see the relocated headphone jack, 19-pin dock connector, two-tone back casing, larger front display, and more. Continue read...

The ReVIVE Series ReStore BST External Battery Pack is currently being offered for just $29.99 shipped, originally priced at $64.99. It's "equipped with a universal USB charging port and a powerful 1500mAh Lithium battery that stores solar power ...

Ever since I/O and the unveiling of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, the blogosphere has been measuring Google's new Nexus 7 tablet. The verdict in almost every case is good, including our very own iPad lover's take. John and I thus found it only fitting to bring the little 7-inch tablet into the studio for Fly or Die. The tablet, with a 7-inch IPS 1280x800 display, a Tegra 3 quad-core processor, and the latest version of Android, didn't fail to impress.

Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. The Olympic flame completed its tour through the UK this week as the 2012 Summer Games officially kicked off...