Hambleton "Ham" Lord, Super Angel Investor & Startup Founder, "Launchpad Founder", Ep. 20

Writing software never seemed like work to young Ham Lord. In high school and then in college, coding is what got him rolling with his other courses; he loved it. This passion, and the happy coincidence of being at the right place (Brown University) at the right time (early 1980s) led to a brilliantly productive career in computing and entrepreneurship.

Ham’s early work in computer graphics would eventually lead to innovation in applying 3D imaging to the creation of new molecules. Later he helped build software with applications in medicine, oil & gas exploration and engineering analysis. He even did work that presaged today’s drone technology.

After 16 years as a software engineer and entrepreneur, Ham cashed in his chips and began a hugely consequential career as one of Boston’s super angel investors. He was the engine behind the relaunch of Launchpad, one of the country’s most respected angel groups. In a frank and accessible interview, Ham discusses the workings of this group, talks about companies that excite him and addresses current trends in the ambit of angel investing.

Topics covered include:

• Ham Lord Bio
• Ham Lord Discovers His Love of Computer Programming
• How Ham Lord Connected with His First Job After Brown
• Building a New Display for the F-14 Navy Jet
• Why Ham Lord Founded His First Startup
• AVS Rises from the Ashes of Stellar
• Ham Lord’s Transition from Software Development to Marketing
• After 16 Years Building Startups Ham Lord Takes a Sabbatical Year & Starts Investing
• Ham Lord Discovers Angel Investing
• Ham Lord Relaunches Launchpad
• Ham Lord & Christopher Mirabile Get Together
• What Does Ham Lord Look for in a Startup?
• The Ones That Got Away
• Ham Lord’s Favorite Pivot Story
• Ham Lord & Cambridge Trust
• Ham Lord Talks About Launchpads’ Early-stage Track, the Catalyst Program
• Two Companies in the Machine Learning Space – Netra.io & Smartvid.io
• Seraf-investors.com & Seraf Compass
• Trends: Professionalization of Angel Investing & the Angel Capital Association

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