“Learn the rules of the American game: money, talent, and markets.”
Localization strategies from the founders of Sandbird, Constellation, and MarqVision
“Impact over money… Answer the question ‘What is the benefit?’ to investors, employees, and customers”
“Korean founders come to investors with 60-page presentations, but in Silicon Valley, you have to be able to tell your company story in 10 minutes.”
On the 10th, successful Korean entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley gathered together at the UKF 2025 Startup Summit. Dongshin Kim, CEO of Sandbird, a communication API company with 320 million users exchanging over 7 billion messages every month, Diana Lee, CEO of Constellation, which provides AI solutions for the automotive and pharmaceutical industries, and Mark Lee, CEO of MarqVision, an AI-based brand protection platform, shared their vivid experiences on the scene.
The Art of Fundraising, Silicon Valley Style
“Operate processes, not relationships.”
Sandbird CEO Kim Dong-shin summarized the key to attracting investment as follows: “You need to quickly conduct meetings with 20 to 30 VCs, like speed dating. Don’t be fooled by the brand names of famous VCs, but find the right partner who has investment experience in our field.”
Kim Dong-shin, who has raised more than $220 million so far, also pointed out mistakes that Korean entrepreneurs commonly make.
“Investors are not interested in long presentations filled with company history or technical IP. Sometimes, investments are made through conversation without presentations. The key is to clearly communicate the company’s vision and growth potential.”
Mark Lee, CEO of MarkVision, shared lessons learned from raising $41 million in investment. “At first, we insisted on only American investors, but we grew with the help of Korean VCs. It is important to find partners who understand the American market and share our vision.”
Diversity is competitiveness
Diana Lee, CEO of Constellation, describes a unique experiment: “One day, we gathered 15 women in a conference room. There were 15 men outside. Over the course of two years, 60 percent of the men asked for a promotion or a raise, but only one woman asked for a raise.”
“Even in the US, only 2% of female founders receive VC investment,” he said. “But diversity is not charity, it’s competitiveness.” “Studies show that diverse teams perform 30% better. This isn’t just a slogan; it’s a fact proven by data.”
Diana Lee also emphasized the importance of intentional efforts. “Diversity doesn’t happen on its own. We need to actively recruit female talent and encourage them to ask for more. Especially in Korean culture, many women are raised as ‘obedient children,’ but now they need to be able to speak up.”
Team Building Strategies for Early-Stage Startups
Lee In-seop redefined the role of the founder in the early stages. “Don’t delegate everything to the executives too early. The founder should be directly responsible for one or two key areas. When we started to see customer defections, I took on the role of customer success officer and solved the problem myself. As a result, we were able to discover a fundamental mismatch between our product and customer needs.”
Kim Dong-shin, CEO, explained the characteristics of American organizational culture. “In the US, teams are organized like sports teams. Each level of the company needs a suitable leader. Statistically, sales leaders change frequently, and CTOs change less frequently. This reflects the characteristics of each job. Unlike Korea, leaders are not determined by loyalty or years of service.”
There was also practical advice on recruiting talent. “It’s hard for early-stage startups to hire talent at market prices. But you can compensate them with other incentives, such as stock, stock options, and decision-making authority. One of our key talents started out at a lower salary than market, but he was highly regarded for his teamwork and decision-making authority.”
Practical Advice for Success
The panelists offered some final practical advice. First, focus on one problem at a time. “If you try to solve multiple problems at once, you’ll end up solving only the easiest ones. Find the biggest problem in your company and focus on that.”
Second, manage your time and energy thoroughly. CEO Kim Dong-shin emphasized, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with,” and “It is important to spend time with people you can learn from.” He listed ‘where you spend your time,’ ‘people you spend with,’ and ‘physical location’ as the three key points of time management.
Third, provide value to all stakeholders. “Always think, ‘How does this benefit the other party?’ You need to provide clear value to investors, employees, and customers. By providing sufficient compensation to secondary shareholders, you can increase the momentum of the entire team.”
“This journey is a marathon, not a sprint,” said Diana Lee. “Maintaining mental and physical health is also a non-negotiable part of your time.”
“Many entrepreneurs sacrifice their health to focus on their business, but ultimately, staying in good shape is the way to go for the company.”
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