Aleph Bets on Early-Stage, Capital‑efficient Contrarian Investing
And this is why @aleph remains focused on early stage investing and cares about capital efficiency. Today, that is 100% Contrarian and non-consensus.
Can Private Data Platforms Sustain Eka Ventures’ Pre‑Seed Edge?
Do VCs with private data platforms find the best pre-seed deals? Eka Ventures was early with proprietary tools, but can it keep its edge? https://preseednow.com/p/eka-ventures-camilla-dolan
Many Raise $10‑100M via SPVs in Top Startups
Incredible how many people I run into who are raising $10-100m each in SPVs in high flying companies.
Funding, Not Technology, Drives AI Leadership
Building AI models may be easier than many think. But according to @a16z 's Martin Casado, the real constraint is not technology, it is access to capital, especially the “cheap money” that has fueled rapid scaling. The implication is important. AI may...
Rethinking Healthcare: Julie Yoo on Infinite Growth
I really enjoyed interviewing @a16z 's @julieyoo : Rethinking the Rules: Julie Yoo on Infinite Healthcare, Compound Businesses, and the New Investor Playbook https://t.co/fdIq6NbQ7b cc @startuphealth
YC Remains Top Fintech Investor Despite Deal Decline
YC Once Again Tops Ranks Of Most Active Fintech Investors In Q1 Even As Deal Count Drops https://t.co/zmmPsTQOdx via @crunchbasenews
From Near Shutdown to $40M in Five Months
🚨 Last call 🚨 This week, I'm sitting down with @EricSimons, Co-founder & CEO of @boltdotnew, to talk about how they went from weeks away from shutdown to $40M in 5 months. If you're a founder, investor, or just trying to understand...
Emerging Funds Deliver 15%+ CAGR in Last Five Years
Dropping a list of up-and-coming funds with impeccable track records and great returns since inception. Most launched in the last 5 years, still early, but impressive work thus far. 1) Jackson Peak Capital — 40% CAGR (2023) 2) Kathmandu Capital — 29%...
Investors Demand Proven Revenue Before Funding; Bootstrapping Essential
Investors are basically telling early-stage founders to figure it out first, then come back for money. I know how that lands, but after a month of conversations with founders, investors, and accelerators - it's hard to argue with the pattern. Investors want...
VC Investing Exploits Two Core Market Inefficiencies
seems like an appropriate time to repost this: https://t.co/jl8rkqEIxy TLDR: Investing is about capitalizing on market inefficiencies. There are two inefficiencies in VC.
Allbirds Shifts to AI, Secures $50M Financing
Allbirds pivots to an AI company and raises $50M via convertible financing. Nothing surprises me anymore.
20% Seed Dilution Now Standard, Up From
Most founders will sell 20-25% in a seed round right now, up from 15-20% a few years ago. Selling 20% is reasonable 99% of the time.
VC Shifts From Moonshots to Front‑Running Deals
Venture capital is not what it was. An industry long defined by underdogs and moonshots is becoming more about front-running. https://t.co/MhVxDdp9B3
Atomico’s Data Engine Fuels One‑third of New Deals
What does it take to invest across Europe’s startup ecosystem? @atomico built an internal data engine, using Crunchbase data as its backbone, that powers 1 in 3 new opportunities to instantly review company funding history, & uncover deeper market intelligence. 🔗:...
Ignoring Insider Feedback Guarantees Fundraising Rejection
It’s rough when founders don’t listen to insiders during fundraising prep then go to raise only to find out external investors pass exactly because of the questions insiders raised. But it basically happens every single time when founders fail to do...
Founders Who Shun Investor Scr
When founder is annoying that investors are asking questions and doing due dilligence there is a very high chance this founder will not succeed. Building companies is a collaborative marathon where investors aren’t just dumb money and nuance. Best investors engage in...
VCs Re‑add Allbirds Logo Amid AI Pivot
VC's who invested in Allbirds are all quietly adding the logo back to their website today after the pivot to AI
Infinite Compute Demand Keeps Ailbirds Perpetually Undervalued
if demand for compute is basically infinite, ailbirds isn't even close to fully valued here and never will be https://t.co/QaRr1LZGs6
Personal Liquidity Becomes Valuable as Your Enterprise Grows
Founders often ask us if it's bad for them to take personal liquidity as part of a transaction. Early on in your business, it might not make as much sense for an investor to provide liquidity, but as your enterprise...
Seeking SF Connections: Teaching, Funding Dev Tools Startups
heading to SF tomorrow - teaching at Stanford on Tuesday 😳 also writing $100k checks for dev tools/infra founders + seeing new lps who should i meet?
VC Records Driven by Few Front‑Running Deals
VC investment crushes records on the back of just five deals. An industry long defined by underdogs and moonshots is becoming more about front-running. https://t.co/M0tmyoONui
Matium Seeds Efficiency in Trillion‑dollar US Plastics Market
the U.S. plastics market moves a trillion dollars a year on phone calls and spreadsheets. excited to lead Matium's seed round to bring structure, financing, managed logistics, and quality guarantees to this market. ~10% of the industry is already using...
Silicon Valley Startup Interests Still Misaligned After 15 Years
This post is 15 years old and still true as ever today. Interest Misalignments in Silicon Valley Startups https://t.co/DuSUTOvMRn
Stegra Secures Funding to Build First Major Green‑Steel Mill
Stegra lands funding to complete world’s first major green-steel mill #energysky -- via Canary Media: https://t.co/6HfQXWLlcP
Anthropic's Check Size Forces VCs to Scale up Funds
Don't see many people talking about this, but basically every venture firm of consequence has had to decide whether they should increase their fund size to meet the minimum check size on the latest Anthropic rounds. May end up as...
Anthropics Rejects Investor Funding at High Valuation
News with squad: @nmasc_ @BTLipschultz @RebeccaTorrenc5 @shiringhaffary Anthropics investors are basically very hopeful of giving them more money at very big valuation and theyre like: no we aren’t in to that right now
Crucible Backs Three College Trading Teams to Launch Startups
random fact - Crucible has backed 3 co-founding teams that bonded over trading in college - @kaledora + @contrarianmarco, Harvard -> @OstiumLabs - @bavaria_kush + @wayne_nelmz, MIT -> @OrnnExchange - @harshavramesh + @cdeshpande17, Vanderbilt -> @PillarHQ LOVE OF THE GAME
Contracted ARR Definitions Vary Wildly Across Startup Pitches
A lot of "Contracted ARR" is being thrown at me in startup pitches these days. And it seems highly inconsistent in definition among founders...
Seeing Friends Profit From Your Startup Bets Feels Amazing
Been investing in startups for ~9 years now Occasionally convinced friends to co-invest alongside me Today I helped one of them get real liquidity from one of those bets I like building & investing, but seeing someone I really care about benefit from...
Backing PillarHQ to Embed Hedging Across All Organizations
ANOTHER ONE proud to back @PillarHQ as they embed hedging into orgs of all size @harshavramesh @cdeshpande17 are the third team of founders who bonded trading together that we've backed from our Fund I (which is also how @kellyjgreer and i met) financial...
Pitch Crypto Startup at Vegas Conference for $1M
We’re heading to Las Vegas. On April 27, during Bitcoin Conference week, I’ll be filming Meet the Drapers in partnership with BitGo. This is a chance to pitch on a global stage, get in front of top investors, and compete for up...
Fluidstack Seeks $1B Raise at $18B Valuation
Fluidstack is in talks to raise about $1B at a target valuation of $18B. Jane Street and former OpenAI researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner's Situational Awareness in talks about co-leading. SCOOP with @DavidPan_1 @RebeccaTorrenc5 @KatLeighDoherty https://t.co/cNNq2DtVHM
Half of VC‑Backed Startups Deliver No Investor Returns
“Harvard University released a study in 2012 of venture-backed firms that raised at least $1 million dollars… Fifteen hundred of the businesses failed to deliver any return to the investors.” –Smarter than a #Startup (2019) https://t.co/l2EObkfURN #smallbiz https://t.co/yj75V7id8v
AI Triggers SaaS Re‑Rating, Not Collapse – Reassess Now
A lot of software founders are understandably rattled by AI right now. The headlines are loud, buyers are asking different questions, and the criteria for what makes a fundable or sellable business has shifted in a short period of time....
U.S. Lost Uranium Enrichment, Needs Domestic Revival
.@ScottNolan started his career as employee 30 at SpaceX. He left to join Founders Fund after Peter Thiel recruited him personally in 2011, and spent the next 12 years backing companies like SpaceX, Anduril, Radiant, and Crusoe Energy. The through line...
Family Wealth Fuels Speculative Startup Funding
“He just put together a small fund and went to his family… If you’re coming from a family situation where they can afford to cut you a check for a few million dollars for something speculative, then that’s absolutely going...
Wallenberg Family Backs Stegra's Massive Green‑steel Plant
Ailing startup Stegra secures funding from the influential Wallenberg family to help complete what will be the world’s biggest green-steel plant https://t.co/Ic70chW4kW
Critical Loop Secures $26M Series A for Modular Microgrids
Modular microgrid company Critical Loop announces $26 million Series A round #energysky -- via pv magazine usa: https://t.co/QdfhDyUOUP
YC Backs Stablecoins, Reshaping Finance Beyond ACH
YC will invest in any YC company in stablecoins The new financial rails of the revolution will not be over ACH or wire
Solid Linear Businesses Beat Hype‑driven 100M Targets
Apparently hot take: Investing in something that has a rock solid linear business model is still a smart move. Saying anything that doesn't reach 100M valuation in 3 years is a waste is terribly myopic. VC theses are truly hilarious most...
General Catalyst Appoints Nikesh Harora as Lead Independent Director
Thrilled to welcome @nikesharora as @generalcatalyst's first lead independent director. Nikesh brings the rare combination of investor thinking and operator execution and has led some of the most consequential tech orgs in the world. I've long admired the clarity and...
Why Anthropic Chose Coefficient Bio Over Bigger Rivals?
Reading up on the Coefficient Bio deal. I totally get the industrial logic around why Anthropic should care about drug discovery. But why this particular company? There's lots of more scaled players doing this. Can anyone educate me? https://t.co/akFVmRUaYw
Answer Cash Amount, Not Valuation, when Asked Fundraising
I had back to back convos today where I asked a founder, how much are you raising? And instead of telling me the $$ amount they’re raising, they told me the valuation they’re raising at. So if someone asks, how much are...
Chernin Group Backs Real's Rapid Social Sports Growth
Glass Break: The Chernin Group recently led a minority investment round in Real, a fast-growing social box score/PBP app with a fascinating backstory Details at @FOS https://t.co/TjfrntcK9u
Round Size Alone Tells Nothing without Financial Context
Imagine a funding announcement with actual financials… Why did we all decide to include one number: Round size Meaningless. Means zilch without knowing burn rate, profitable/not, margin, pre/ post money valuation, revenue multiple relative to peer set, growth rate.
Transparent LP Communication Builds Trust for Sustainable Funds
Transparency and communication with LPs are crucial for building trust and long-term relationships. Keep them informed and engaged, sharing both successes and challenges. Trust is the cornerstone of sustainable fund management. ✨
StepFun Dismantles Offshore Structure to Enable IPO
Chinese AI startup StepFun to unwind offshore structure to pave way for IPO, sources say https://t.co/92y5pk6rlV
Europe Defies Regulation, Adds 11 New Unicorns
"European tech is dead" is just cope at this point. Europe continues to mint world-changing startups despite being the most regulated market on Earth. Meet the 11 latest $1B+ unicorns of Europe:
Anthropic Staff Hold Shares, Betting on Higher IPO Valuation
Anthropic gave employees the option to sell up to $6B in shares at a $350B valuation but fewer sold than expected. Anthropic employees are instead waiting for the IPO where they expect the valuation to go even higher. At $30B ARR and...
Delphi Ventures Thrives, Investing in Proven Environments
We have historically made our best investments in environments like these. @Delphi_Ventures is firing on all cylinders, and actively deploying as ever.
