Seeking Weird Consumer Startups—DM Me Your Demo
I'd love to invest in more founders building something weird in consumer. If that's you, shoot me a demo or link to the product. My DMs are open. :)
Early‑stage Funds Demand Belief in Future Exponential Growth
I like this trend line. To invest in an early-stage fund you have to believe the outcomes will be much larger in the next decade than they were in the prior. via @daveclark85 https://t.co/p6Njk2pxW0
YC Still Accepts Late Applications After Deadline
Stumbled across this snap from 2014 in my camera roll. Founders, YC’s deadline just passed but they accept late applications. https://t.co/wp6gokGBi5
Investors See AI as New Core Platform Layer
Pavel (@pavelprata) mapped predictions from 132 investors. Common themes: 1. Autonomous AI as the Next Platform Layer 2. AI Infrastructure 3. AI Meets the Real World 4. Rebuilding Payments for an AI-Native Economy 5. AI Economics & Pricing https://t.co/0jsLI8PbFk
Seeking Founders Using AI Sales Agents for Collaboration
Any founders using AI sales agents creatively? Would love to connect you with a founder we backed to trade notes. DMs open. https://t.co/oPpD4IzGfC
Find Investor Followers on X, DM, Get Funded
Introducing Fast Round. We built a tool to help founders fundraise. How it works: • Enter your X username • See which investors follow you • Send a DM • Get $$$ But seriously, I hope it's useful. If you want to give the beta a try, the...
Celebrating 12 Years of A16z Support and $12B Fund
Grateful for a16z’s support which started nearly 12 years ago when they led Product Hunt’s Series A. Congrats on the fresh $12B, team. :)
Backing a Founder-Led Fund: LP Invitation Inside
Just committed to back a fund led by a founder I admire. If you’re an LP and curious to follow along. 👇🏼 Will share next week.
Seeking Series A+ Leaders' Feedback on Cursor 2.0
A portfolio co is building Cursor 2.0. If any Series A+ founders or eng leaders are open to sharing early feedback as a favor for me, DM me. :)
Beta Tool Accelerates Startup Fundraising – Seeking Founder Feedback
Building a tool to help startups fundraise faster. If you're a founder planning to raise soon, DM me. Would love your feedback on the early beta. :) (I may delete this if I receive too many DMs)
Emerging Managers Spend 18 Months Fundraising, Not Building
According to @johnfelix123, emerging managers take an average of 18 months to raise. Wild. As an LP in several funds, I’d rather see that time spent deploying capital and supporting founders. https://t.co/8iT5zLIypS
Cold Email Investment Fuels Drone Pivot to Defense Giants
We backed @flybyrobotics via a cold inbound email. They built drone delivery for Yale campus students. Since then COVID crushed their plans and they pivoted. They’re now selling US-made drones to Palantir, US Marine Corps, and others. And now this…
From Skepticism to Success: Truemed Proves Its Worth
I was wrong about Truemed. When Justin first told me about his new co, I was skeptical brands would adopt a new payment solution. ~3 years later, it’s definitely working. Thankfully we bet on him. :)
2025 Portfolio Milestones Unveiled in Video Recap
Just sent a video-filled 2025 recap to our LPs. Here's a peek at a few slides highlighting portfolio cos and their milestones. https://t.co/VDqBus6eDe
Private Cap Tables Are Riddled with Unnecessary Inefficiency
There’s soooo much inefficiency in private company cap tables. Sometimes it’s a feature but for most stakeholders it’s not.
Catch the Hustle Fund 24‑Hour Livestream—One Hour Only
Joining the Hustle Fund crew’s 24 hour livestream (only for an hour, thank god). Here’s the schedule. Join me. :) https://t.co/hflDlAnt4y https://t.co/XBGEIpb78R
Investors Must Rethink Pattern Matching Amid Rapid Change
As an investor today, you should question pattern matching assumptions more than ever. Consumer behavior is changing. Business models are changing. The tools to build are changing. Org charts and roles are changing.
YC Demo Day Feels Like Reunion, Not Transactional Pitchfest
Someone asked me, "Why do you think YC demo day is far better than most tech events?" Me: "It feels more like a reunion, with far fewer aggressive pitches and requests to connect on LinkedIn." FWIW, I respect the hustle, but feel...
AirGarage Seeks Head of Finance for Series B Growth
Any Heads of Finance looking for a new role? AirGarage, Series B stage portfolio co building a big business in an overlooked market, is looking. DM the CEO, @jonathonbarkl, if that's you. :)
Launching Investor‑Focused Product Hunt, Seeking SF Early‑Stage Backers
Building a Product Hunt for investors. A few weeks ago we onboarded 100 beta users and sent the first digest. Opening space for a few more. If interested, DM if you're an: • Early-stage investor • Based in SF • Trust me ;) (will delete this tweet...
Early @Function User Now Part of Its Cap Table
I was an early @function customer in 2022 and still am. Stoked to be a small part of their cap table with @vedikaja_in. https://t.co/1gnKQa149t
Prime AI Segments for New Startup Success
A founder recently asked: "If you were starting or joining a startup today in AI what segments would you look at?" My reply: https://t.co/4ZOwPIEjja
YC's New Era: Younger, Elite‑Educated, Bay‑Centric Founders
Startup culture feels very different these last few years. This analysis of the 'new' Y Combinator under @garrytan's leadership highlights shifts: • YC founders are younger, averaging ~26 years old • More graduated from a top 20 university, now more than 50% • Massive...
Jaw‑dropping Founder Demos Spark My Curiosity
Occasionally I meet a founder with a demo that makes my jaw drop. Wish I could share what I just saw. Side note: If you're a founder with a truly jaw-dropping demo, DM me. :)
Product Hunt Celebrates 12 Years Empowering Indie Makers
Today is Product Hunt's 12-year anniversary. It started with a tweet and has become a global launchpad for founders and makers. Pretty cool to see so many now-household names—Notion, Deel, Loom, Ramp, Figma—launch their v1s on the platform. But we've always tried to...
New Signature Block Issue Tackles Hotly Debated Topic
We've been on an hiatus with our investor newsletter, Signature Block. Publishing a new piece on a hotly debated topic later today. Subscribe: https://t.co/HVZVBIUn4e
Seeking Small-Team Feedback for New Mainframe Product
We backed @jsngr's prev co (acq. by Figma). We also backed his second co, Mainframe. They're building something new and want to get feedback from small teams (<10 people). DM Jordan if you're keen to share. :)
From Amazon Carts to Startup Funds: Impulse Investing
Some people have a problem impulse buying on Amazon. Others impulse invest in startups (now in 15 secs).
Build Workflow Moat, Expand TAM with Viable Vertical AI
My favorite vertical AI startups: • Create a 10x workflow that feeds into a marketplace moat • Increase TAM by making something financially viable for new markets
Seeking SF Early-Stage Investors to Beta Test Platform
I'm building a Product Hunt for investors. Looking for a few SF-based, early-stage investors to beta test. DM me if interested. :) (will delete this tweet shortly)
Prioritize Operator/Founder LPs, Even Small Checks
The VC version of #8: Over-index on operator/founder LPs, even if their checks are small. It's one of the best decisions we made at Weekend Fund.
Silence Signals Trouble—Unless It Hides $50M Profit
It’s usually a bad sign when a founder stops sending investor updates. But occasionally they surface with impressive news. Just received this one: “$50M run rate and profitable” For founders (as a founder and investor): Most investors will assume the negative without updates. They’re...
Condensing 6,000‑Word LP Update for Podcast Listeners
Finalizing our next LP update with @vedikaja_in. It's nearly 6,000 words. Maybe we should ask Chat to generate a shorter version for "2x podcast people". 🤔
Biannual Mock Fundraises Sharpen Founders' Reflection
Raising can be a grind, but it’s a good forcing function to reflect. Founders (and VCs) might benefit from doing biannual mock fundraising prep.
Early Product Versions Mislead; Deel’s Massive Evolution Proves It
Deel added $300M in funding at a $17.3B valuation. When investing in early stage, it's a trap to judge v1 of a product. The co has evolved a ton since we invested. Here's @Bouazizalex's intro to Deel on Product Hunt, six years...
Seeking Early-Stage Investors to Meet 5+ Founders Weekly
New experiment: Looking for early-stage investors that meet with 5+ founders/week. Reply here if you want to try the beta and I’ll DM you. :)