- 500 Startups is an internet seed fund and accelerator that has invested in over 200 startups in more than 40 countries. - When deciding whether to focus locally or go global, startups should consider factors like language skills, how well their solution can be localized, the size of the local market, and availability of local investors and funding. - Reasons for startups to stay local include not speaking English well, having a large local market of 50-100 million users, and local customers being wealthy. Reasons to go global include living in a small country with conservative local investors who offer low valuations.