Venture capitalist Michael Arrington says he decided to pass on what was almost a done deal because of an ill-mannered CEO. Without naming the CEO or disclosing too many details about the incident, Arrington tweeted that he decided to pull out of a business deal because the CEO of the company he was in talks with spoke rudely to their waiter.
Arrington is the founder of technology blog TechCrunch, which he exited in 2011. The same year, he founded a venture capital firm called CrunchFund (now known as Tuesday Capital) along with two others. The firm has invested in companies like Uber, Pinterest and Tumblr.
Around five years after starting CrunchFund, the Silicon Valley venture capitalist also started Arrington XRP Capital, a $100 million hedge fund which has invested in more than 50 crypto startups.
Arrington tweeted about his experience with the unnamed CEO on February 6. “Just passed on a deal I was almost to yes on because the CEO was rude to our waiter,” he wrote.
Just passed on a deal I was almost to yes on because the CEO was rude to our waiter.— Michael Arrington (@arrington) February 6, 2023
“Good call! There is no excuse to behave like that ever,” wrote one person in the comments section. Another wondered whether billionaires are rude to wait staff.
As a kid, I worked at a golf course where Gates played occasionally…he was always incredibly kind and gracious to staff— Graham Thompson (@grahamthompson) February 6, 2023
“I’m sure it was a good call and I’d do the same. I’ve ignored these signals a few times being blinded by growth rate but I paid a big price for it, some times with my own reputation/relationships,” venture capitalist Nick Davidov said.
“Rude to service workers + not returning the shopping cart is one of the best character litmus tests that are the easiest to see,” a Twitter user said.
