South African born Adam Valkin is a general partner and Managing Director of venture capital firm General Catalyst Partners based in the United States. The firm manages US$4 billion of capital and invests in early-stage Internet and software companies such as Airbnb and Snapchat.

Prior to this, Adam was a partner in the London office of Accel Partners, the Silicon Valley venture firm behind Facebook, Dropbox and Spotify.

We chat to Adam to find out what it takes to be a venture capitalist, as well what he looks for in entrepreneurs. Adam also discusses the big trends in technology and what this means for entrepreneurs in South Africa.