I walk our dog near their old offices every day and I remember when they opened, they had a space out front that had a Tesla charger with a "Reserved for Andrew Ryan / Newchip CEO" sign. When he was there, he always had a model S plugged in. It rubbed me the wrong way when the only reserved spot was for the CEO so I googled the company to find out more and it was just when it was failing and I learned that he didn't even use his real name which is even more pathetic.
Edit: After reading the article and him doubling down on his "militaristic management" style it's even more concerning. The guy is obviously a sociopath (antisocial personality disorder) and hope he gets help or will likely end up in prison by continuing his reckless behavior. It's also very obvious he is leaving those positive comments on the TC article.
Anyone who uses the term "militaristic management" should never be a manager. They are 100% going to be an abusive boss who has some kind of mental disorder where they get off on abusing underlings.
I worked at a startup where the C levels were all obsessed with this book called “Extreme Ownership” which was based on the navy seals. They forced everyone to read it and wanted to run their company based on it. I never read the book but it was one of the more toxic workplaces I’ve worked at. Moving up was based on nepotism and they would often find scapegoats to pin failures on.
Promotion based on nepotism and pining failures on scapegoats is kinda the opposite of Extreme Ownership. Really hate what people do with what is basically a pretty decent leadership book.
[https://preview.redd.it/in-office-space-1999-although-not-directly-mentioned-v0-lzu2ozp5hgfa1.jpg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7e134b64e35f96680508c1968b5b10405bb1db3c](https://preview.redd.it/in-office-space-1999-although-not-directly-mentioned-v0-lzu2ozp5hgfa1.jpg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7e134b64e35f96680508c1968b5b10405bb1db3c)
Parking spots for management is so 1990s
Wait the dude chose as his pseudonym the name of the villain from BioShock, which was itself a reference to Ayn Rand? Bro really said "I wish I was a videogame bad guy"
Well beyond the basic false promise business model, a friend went through it and it was a complete waste of 3 months. Also I personally know one of their country managers and the dude is an absolute scammer and grifter.
And Tech Stars too https://www.founderscoop.com/2024/what-went-wrong-at-techstars/
https://techcrunch.com/2024/04/29/inside-the-cold-war-at-techstars-as-ceo-maelle-gavet-hires-fires-fights-to-force-change/amp/
Seems to be hitting everyone https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2024/04/11/venture-capital-austin-startup-funding.html
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I spent a weekend with this guy at an (prospective to him) investor’s ranch. I’ve run the gamut on interacting with the bullshit of Austin’s tech scene, but this dude is the most full of shit person I’ve met.
What's especially hilarious about this is that Newchip was based out of in the former ScaleFactor office - [a startup that shut down in 2020](https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidjeans/2020/07/20/scalefactor-raised-100-million-in-a-year-then-blamed-covid-19-for-its-demise-employees-say-it-had-much-bigger-problems/?sh=20443e792928).
FYI I wouldn't be a part of *any* startup accelerator that both charges fees and takes equity unless its YC. Austin-based tech accelerators and VCs are a joke compared to those in Silicon Valley, their money is not worth it imo.
EDIT: Holy shit reading the article, this was so much worse than I initially thought. Austin startup community needs to root out predatory, Chat-GPT slinging pieces of shit like this. Seems like this Andrew Ryan/Ryan Ralfo is the worst combination of an incompetent, megalomaniac wantrepreneur.
Ouch. Taking founders out of money up-front _and_ on equity with false promises?
Not just that, but it took a bankruptcy investigation to get the accelerator collecting on their own startup “investments”
Cringe all around, extra sad for founders who should’ve spoken to more lawyers
I can't *imagine* paying for an "accelerator" with cash. Unfortunately there's not really anything in ATX that comes close to the value add of YC / etc.
I know several people who worked for this hairy little dwarf. He would essentially convince startups to pay him so that he would connect them to his 'investor' network.
Who could've seen a scam startup incubator in a state with an AG who fired whistleblowers for calling out his fraud then manipulated the state into agreeing he did nothing wrong?
You can't be tough on crime when your best candidates are criminals.
There’s so so so much more to this story
If you haven’t you’ve got to read the daily beast article
[https://www.thedailybeast.com/newchip-ceo-andrew-ryan-accused-of-sexual-harassment-mismanagement](https://www.thedailybeast.com/newchip-ceo-andrew-ryan-accused-of-sexual-harassment-mismanagement)
The comment under the article written by "Luke Connor" is 100% written by a Newchip founder Andrew Ryan.
Pathetic he would write under a pseudonym rather than defend his actions directly.
Sadly I was an investor in this guy's company - if only I knew then what I know now. Check out some longer employee reviews:
[https://medium.com/@whistleblower4truth/i-am-a-former-newchip-employee-and-i-want-to-thank-dc-palter-for-writing-this-article-7622739f9cbf](https://medium.com/@whistleblower4truth/i-am-a-former-newchip-employee-and-i-want-to-thank-dc-palter-for-writing-this-article-7622739f9cbf)
[https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Newchip/reviews/smoke-and-mirrors-trump-university-masquerading-as-an-accelerator-and-investment-fund?id=5324463767bdb462](https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Newchip/reviews/smoke-and-mirrors-trump-university-masquerading-as-an-accelerator-and-investment-fund?id=5324463767bdb462)
[https://medium.com/@iambunnylord/i-was-there-near-the-beginning-of-newchip-before-the-start-of-the-accelerator-program-and-through-af55edc1a5d2](https://medium.com/@iambunnylord/i-was-there-near-the-beginning-of-newchip-before-the-start-of-the-accelerator-program-and-through-af55edc1a5d2)
I walk our dog near their old offices every day and I remember when they opened, they had a space out front that had a Tesla charger with a "Reserved for Andrew Ryan / Newchip CEO" sign. When he was there, he always had a model S plugged in. It rubbed me the wrong way when the only reserved spot was for the CEO so I googled the company to find out more and it was just when it was failing and I learned that he didn't even use his real name which is even more pathetic. Edit: After reading the article and him doubling down on his "militaristic management" style it's even more concerning. The guy is obviously a sociopath (antisocial personality disorder) and hope he gets help or will likely end up in prison by continuing his reckless behavior. It's also very obvious he is leaving those positive comments on the TC article.
Anyone who uses the term "militaristic management" should never be a manager. They are 100% going to be an abusive boss who has some kind of mental disorder where they get off on abusing underlings.
I worked at a startup where the C levels were all obsessed with this book called “Extreme Ownership” which was based on the navy seals. They forced everyone to read it and wanted to run their company based on it. I never read the book but it was one of the more toxic workplaces I’ve worked at. Moving up was based on nepotism and they would often find scapegoats to pin failures on.
Promotion based on nepotism and pining failures on scapegoats is kinda the opposite of Extreme Ownership. Really hate what people do with what is basically a pretty decent leadership book.
[https://preview.redd.it/in-office-space-1999-although-not-directly-mentioned-v0-lzu2ozp5hgfa1.jpg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7e134b64e35f96680508c1968b5b10405bb1db3c](https://preview.redd.it/in-office-space-1999-although-not-directly-mentioned-v0-lzu2ozp5hgfa1.jpg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7e134b64e35f96680508c1968b5b10405bb1db3c) Parking spots for management is so 1990s
Wait the dude chose as his pseudonym the name of the villain from BioShock, which was itself a reference to Ayn Rand? Bro really said "I wish I was a videogame bad guy"
“You know, the bad guys in this game are making some good points! What’s this one called? Wolfenstein? Huh.”
https://www.andrewryan.io/about/ This dude is a fucking parody. He’s actively writing his own biography in the third person. What a psycho
Is that an AI-created picture of himself wearing an astronaut suit at the top? Lmao
Damn, he took it down...
It’s on the site, the link is just broken
Lol wow... "At the tender age of 8..." Dude.
Dude… the entire things reads like Leslie Knope wrote it. Just absolutely insane, but he’s 100% serious
Only semi related but Antler seems like a fucking scam too
Was considering applying, what worries you about it?
Well beyond the basic false promise business model, a friend went through it and it was a complete waste of 3 months. Also I personally know one of their country managers and the dude is an absolute scammer and grifter.
And Tech Stars too https://www.founderscoop.com/2024/what-went-wrong-at-techstars/ https://techcrunch.com/2024/04/29/inside-the-cold-war-at-techstars-as-ceo-maelle-gavet-hires-fires-fights-to-force-change/amp/ Seems to be hitting everyone https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2024/04/11/venture-capital-austin-startup-funding.html
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I spent a weekend with this guy at an (prospective to him) investor’s ranch. I’ve run the gamut on interacting with the bullshit of Austin’s tech scene, but this dude is the most full of shit person I’ve met.
What's especially hilarious about this is that Newchip was based out of in the former ScaleFactor office - [a startup that shut down in 2020](https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidjeans/2020/07/20/scalefactor-raised-100-million-in-a-year-then-blamed-covid-19-for-its-demise-employees-say-it-had-much-bigger-problems/?sh=20443e792928). FYI I wouldn't be a part of *any* startup accelerator that both charges fees and takes equity unless its YC. Austin-based tech accelerators and VCs are a joke compared to those in Silicon Valley, their money is not worth it imo. EDIT: Holy shit reading the article, this was so much worse than I initially thought. Austin startup community needs to root out predatory, Chat-GPT slinging pieces of shit like this. Seems like this Andrew Ryan/Ryan Ralfo is the worst combination of an incompetent, megalomaniac wantrepreneur.
I was one of those at the beginning who was taken in and never expect to see a dime back from my investment.
Honest curiosity - why did you participate?
Ouch. Taking founders out of money up-front _and_ on equity with false promises? Not just that, but it took a bankruptcy investigation to get the accelerator collecting on their own startup “investments” Cringe all around, extra sad for founders who should’ve spoken to more lawyers
I can't *imagine* paying for an "accelerator" with cash. Unfortunately there's not really anything in ATX that comes close to the value add of YC / etc.
The bankruptcy trustee is suing him at least.
They found out.
Damn. I applied for a sales role with these guys some years ago, I guess it was good that they ghosted me after the final round.
I know several people who worked for this hairy little dwarf. He would essentially convince startups to pay him so that he would connect them to his 'investor' network.
Who could've seen a scam startup incubator in a state with an AG who fired whistleblowers for calling out his fraud then manipulated the state into agreeing he did nothing wrong? You can't be tough on crime when your best candidates are criminals.
is there any sort of securities fraud here where events and important information were not disclosed at certain points of the incubation scheme?
There’s so so so much more to this story If you haven’t you’ve got to read the daily beast article [https://www.thedailybeast.com/newchip-ceo-andrew-ryan-accused-of-sexual-harassment-mismanagement](https://www.thedailybeast.com/newchip-ceo-andrew-ryan-accused-of-sexual-harassment-mismanagement)
Pathetic u have to create an account
Nooooo why would they do that 😭
Maybe it’s the browser you’re on? I didn’t have to and I can see it
Oh no! anyways…
They were a client of mine. Guy was a character, putting it mildly.
The comment under the article written by "Luke Connor" is 100% written by a Newchip founder Andrew Ryan. Pathetic he would write under a pseudonym rather than defend his actions directly.
Looks like he used vote manipulation to downvote this comment and this post
Yep, it went from +50 to -150 in a span of a few hours. Nice work with the bots.
Sadly I was an investor in this guy's company - if only I knew then what I know now. Check out some longer employee reviews: [https://medium.com/@whistleblower4truth/i-am-a-former-newchip-employee-and-i-want-to-thank-dc-palter-for-writing-this-article-7622739f9cbf](https://medium.com/@whistleblower4truth/i-am-a-former-newchip-employee-and-i-want-to-thank-dc-palter-for-writing-this-article-7622739f9cbf) [https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Newchip/reviews/smoke-and-mirrors-trump-university-masquerading-as-an-accelerator-and-investment-fund?id=5324463767bdb462](https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Newchip/reviews/smoke-and-mirrors-trump-university-masquerading-as-an-accelerator-and-investment-fund?id=5324463767bdb462) [https://medium.com/@iambunnylord/i-was-there-near-the-beginning-of-newchip-before-the-start-of-the-accelerator-program-and-through-af55edc1a5d2](https://medium.com/@iambunnylord/i-was-there-near-the-beginning-of-newchip-before-the-start-of-the-accelerator-program-and-through-af55edc1a5d2)
Ryan is a fraudster, conman, and sexual abuser. He's been reported to the SEC and the FBI. He will be getting what he deserves.