15 years after the dot com bust, startup fever returns to Atlanta

Scorched by the dot-com bust, investors — venture capital and angel — abandoned early-stage investing with the swiftness of a fair-weather Falcons fan. Startups with no revenue — and often no product — were seen as not worth the hassle.

Fifteen years is a long time. Memories of imploding portfolio companies are being washed away by valuations frothier than Dom Perignon. Billion-dollar exits for capital-light Web startups (think Instagramand Whatsapp) have investors bellying back to the bar.