Anton Commissaris

Arc of the Valley Anton Commissaris

What does it take to build an explosive startup in Silicon Valley? Arc of the Valley answers this question based on the story of personal finance startup Mint. It captures the human struggles and relationships behind the technology and dollar signs, as it explores the choices and sacrifices startup players must make in their daily quest for glory.

Mint was a posterchild for overnight success in the Valley's Web 2.0 era. Led by a driven, young founder and built on technology created in his apartment, Mint assembled a hungry, talented and diverse team as it raised millions from the biggest names in venture capital. But Mint's story is one of opportunity seized as much as of opportunity forfeited. Just as it was flying high, its founder elected to sell to Intuit, its corporate rival, only two years after launch. And Mint withered.

In Arc of the Valley, Anton Commissaris - the founding business executive at Mint - explores how the Valley operates as a startup factory and how it thinks about failure, success, and selling out. Based on his own experience, the author takes us behind the scenes of the world's leading ecosystem for global innovation and disruption as never before.