ABSTRACT
Just before the war Compton had concluded that although venture capital was potentially available there was a need “for organization and technique to appraise opportunities for specific enterprises.”1 In addition to the availability of funds, the ability to analyze the commercial potential of a new technology in order to reassure investors that they may “proceed with a reasonable degree of knowledge and assurance” was required.2 A professional venture capital organization was needed to reduce the risk of investing in inherently risky new ventures. Compton felt that relatively informal groups of friends’ or family funds were inadequate for this task.
