Japanese VC and social networking supernode Joi Ito made two major announcements on his blog today:
1. He will be discontinuing any additional investments from his VC group, Neoteny, and focus his attention on its current portfolio companies, in particular
I believe that Six Apart has enormous potential and most of Neoteny’s resources, including me will be focused on helping to make Six Apart a success.
2. He will also be taking on an additional role at Technorati:
I have decided to take on an additional role outside of Neoteny working with Technorati’s team heading their exploration of opportunities in the mobile and international realms.
This is a major endorsement for both of these companies and a sure sign that big things are in store for them and for blogging in general.
Ito also serves on the boards of corporate social software publisher SocialText and non-profit digital rights advocacy group Creative Commons.
As one commenter put it:
Joi gets to play with all the cool kids.
But another notes:
I’m guessing you’re a major stakeholder in Red Bull too.