There is definitely a huge industry designed to funnel venture capital away from ventures into what is effectively the entourage, hangers on, groupies, leeches and skeezers.
Back in the dot com era, there were many hangers-on who cashed in on the mania as various types of leaches. They were characterized by their use of buzz words while not possessing the slightest comprehension of concepts underlying the terminology.
"Another time, I got interviewed on a startup-support radio show, only to be asked to sign a letter afterwards saying they’d given us R188000 in airtime. (I didn’t sign.)"<p>What would the implications be if they signed?