Social•Feb 14, 2026
Unrealized Gains Tax Threatens New Investments Globally
Unrealized gains tax is a mega-drag on new investments. The same reason why the California Asset Seizure Tax by SEIU-UHW is going to destroy startups is happening in the Netherlands. https://t.co/jMgP3ieI2G
By Garry Tan
Social•Feb 14, 2026
Burn Rate Equals Risk; VC Burn Rates at Historic Highs
Burn rate = risk. So of course, this is true. These are the highest burn rates in history of VC. Simple fact. https://t.co/IrsIBd0qDC
By Bill Gurley
Social•Feb 14, 2026
AI Adoption Will Drive Multi‑Billion Dollar Subscription and Corporate Spend
AI market/TAM in midterm 1. Most employees will have a free LLM on their desktop; we are moving top team memebrs to two daisy chained Mac studios ($25k total) — easy investment 2. All major models will free for...
By Jason Calacanis
Social•Feb 14, 2026
Curated Tech Stack Powers Modern Venture Firms
Optimal venture firm tech stack: -Fund Admin: @hanoverpark -Bank/Cards: @FlexSuperApp -CRM: @NotionHQ -Sales tax for port co’s: @numeral -Ski passes: @VailResorts -Travel: @NetJets / @FourSeasons -Everything else: @claudeai
By Turner Novak
Social•Feb 14, 2026
Key Signals Founders Need Before Raising Next Round
$40M raised. Series A ready. Episode 232 dives into the real signals founders should look for before raising more capital 👇 https://t.co/0CcjGEIVb9 #SaaS #AI https://t.co/S1vxKwuxiB
By Ben Murray
Social•Feb 14, 2026
ISL Replaces ETL: Intelligence Beats Raw Data Ingestion
Ingest Structure Learn (ISL) is the new ETL. It used to be the case that a company would try to license this kind of data as an “edge”. I’ve seen many companies in SV try to make this claim. That...
By Chamath Palihapitiya
Social•Feb 14, 2026
Bootstrapping Beats VC Hype for Lasting Wealth
Worst ways to build wealth - thinking a $100M valuation means you have $100M - raising money. period - adding features for 5 years instead of admitting your product sucks - telling yourself "we just need more time" at year 7 - calling yourself a...
By Adam Robinson
Social•Feb 14, 2026
Fintech Beats AI in European VC Valuations
While AI dominates headlines with mega-rounds, fintech is quietly leading European VC valuations. Median pre-money for fintech reached €12.4m — 29% higher than AI, and well ahead of SaaS and life sciences. In a hype-driven cycle, investors are rewarding revenue, regulation-ready models...
By Spiros Margaris
Social•Feb 14, 2026
Pre‑PMF Funding Demands Clear Traction Over Resume
Big splashy pre-PMF rounds happen on big legible ideas and teams with social proof Don’t hate the player hate the game It doesn’t mean you can’t build a big co if you don’t have the right resume but it does mean you...
By Garry Tan
Social•Feb 14, 2026
SF's VC Boom Faces Tax Hike and Lab Bans
SF is the ONLY VC hub with positive company formation growth (+24%) while every other city declines—but an 800% gross receipts tax hike and lab bans threaten to destroy what makes the city special. https://t.co/gVxAtL7zDC
By Garry Tan
Social•Feb 13, 2026
AI Founders & VCs Lack Corporate Experience, Hiring Suffers
you got ai founders who have never worked at a company before getting funding from VCs who have never worked in a company before the new hires are dog shit big problem to be on the lookout for
By Paul Yacoubian
Social•Feb 13, 2026
8-Step Checklist to Nail Any VC Interview
I just put together an 8-step VC interview prep checklist to help you nail any interview... Knowing where to start can be HARD. There are many resources online that will tell you different things. My simple checklist will help you get prepared...
By Nicole DeTommaso
Social•Feb 13, 2026
A16z Hiring Leaders to Shape Tech Narrative
This is the part of my job at @a16z that most gets me up in the morning: building an incredible team. We’re hiring for a lot of roles at the moment: Chief of Staff: help me run all our initiatives at...
By Erik Torenberg
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Investing in Teams to Tackle Food & Nutrition Crisis
Food and nutrition is one of humanities biggest problems right now IMO Would love to invest in more teams working on solving this
By Turner Novak
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Early-Stage Startups Don’t Need Costly Big‑4 Audits
Startups ($25M ARR? Get bids from multiple firms. You do NOT need a Big 4 audit. It does not me you are a legit company before the Big 4 did the audit. No one cares. 2nd tier firm is fine 3...
By OnlyCFO
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Ramp and Rippling Are Less Overlapping Than Assumed
Ramp and Rippling don't have as much overlap as people think. So says @rabois 👀 @eglyman @parkerconrad https://t.co/6Xh1bcpnjw
By Eric Newcomer
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Rabois Predicts Trump May Block China's Nvidia Chip Access
Here's @rabois saying he thinks the Trump administration may ultimately reverse course on letting China get access to Nvidia's best chips https://t.co/XImO09oRyf
By Eric Newcomer
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Spot the #1 Sign Management Lacks Business Command
What’s the #1 tell that a management team doesn’t actually have command of their business? I spoke with Paul Stansik , an operating partner at ParkerGale Capital , about the relationship between boards and their portfolio companies. Paul works on scaling profitable,...
By CJ Gustafson
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Mid‑Size SaaS Growth Re‑Accelerates, Rule‑40 Slips, NDR Returns
The latest Private Company SaaS Benchmarks are here. How did 2025 finish? TL;DR: 1) Growth is (somewhat) re-accelerating between $5M–$50M ARR 2) Rule of 40 is sad between $5M–$25M ARR 3) NDR is making a quiet comeback For the full 33 page deck: https://lnkd.in/e7yBAXku
By CJ Gustafson
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Decode the LP‑GP Language Gap: Survival vs Longevity
LPs & GPs are often having the same conversation, but not speaking the same language. In my convo w/ @chudson & @miafarnham, we talked about the LP/GP “language gap.” As Charles put it: “Once you learn to decode it, it’s actually quite...
By Beezer Clarkson
Social•Feb 13, 2026
Incentives Keep Frontier AI Labs Private, Excluding Public Investors
it's deeply unfortunate that incentives have aligned such that all these frontier AI labs and other tech companies are way better off staying private and the general public cannot invest in them despite desperately wishing they could.
By Harrison Kinsley
Social•Feb 13, 2026
From Board Exit to AI‑Powered Gun Detection Revolution
After 13 years, I stepped down from the Board of $EVLV today. In 2011, Mike Ellenbogen and Anil Chitkara became Entrepreneurs-in-Residence at General Catalyst in Boston. We spent nearly two years exploring incubation ideas together. Then the world shifted. 2012 - Sandy Hook. 2013...
By Bilal Zuberi
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Biotech IPOs Deliver Median -15% Return, Outperforming Losses
Humbling 30 year Biotech stats shared by @verdadcap in a recent report: Just over 1,000 biotechs hit $200M mkt cap at some point. Of those, 67% have lost value (had cumulative negative returns), vs 48% for all other US companies....
By Bruce Booth
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Sourcing and Securing Cap Tables: Venture’s Toughest Challenges
Sourcing is the single hardest part about venture. Equally followed by actually getting on the cap table of the best companies.
By Nicole DeTommaso
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Student-Built Livestorm Scales to $20M ARR
Gilles Bertaux built Livestorm for a university final exam in 2016. Nearly $20M ARR. 3,500 customers. $35M raised. Last round was 2020. https://t.co/DXieBIwtcs
By Omer Khan
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Feisty Insights From My Talk with Keith Rabois
Just dropped my conversation with Keith Rabois . Things got feisty. https://lnkd.in/ei2xD9_X
By Eric Newcomer
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Founder Friends & Rivian Host LA Networking Night Feb 26
Founder Friends is coming to LA on Feb 26! Join us and @Rivian for an evening of networking, learning, and connection with fellow founders and investors. More >> https://t.co/1bltGWHwcQ
By Elizabeth Yin
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Venture Splits: Platform Funds vs Early‑Stage Specialists
“I don’t understand why we call both things venture capital.” — Dan G. on multi-stage mega funds (or the “big banks” as Nicholas Chirls calls them) vs smaller managers dedicated to the craft of early-stage venture. We had a super interesting...
By Beezer Clarkson
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Investors Need Massive User Base, Causing Game Sector Exit
You would need like 100 Mewgenics to satisfy the returns these types of investors in games are looking for which is why they are abandoning the sector.
By Ethan Gach
Social•Feb 12, 2026
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
By Ryan Hoover
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Stash Sold for $425M, Far Below $747M Raised
Ouch. Stash selling for $425MM after raising $747MM As a founder who has met a liquidation preference once in a while, this is PTSD. It is a tough hurdle to raise so much and then return the capital. Am sure the team...
By Lex Sokolin
Social•Feb 12, 2026
Exclusive Investor Mixer at Vegas Hangar, Feb 26
I’m hosting an exclusive investor mixer at this private hangar in Vegas on Thurs 2/26 👀 DM if interested. https://t.co/65LxbH2BJO
By Darren Marble
Social•Feb 11, 2026
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
By Ryan Hoover
Social•Feb 11, 2026
45 New Billion‑Dollar Tech Exits Signal Accelerating Pace
since @behind_genius's last study of the 100 most recent billion-dollar-plus tech exits study in April 2025, there have been 45 new exits added...things are heating up! https://t.co/W4I8gsyiDu
By Paige Finn Doherty
Social•Feb 11, 2026
Engineers: Build Real-World Companies Now with 5050
Enough AI slop. Enough gambling apps. There’s never been a better time for engineers to build companies that reshape the physical world. Start one with 5050. Apply now. Early bird deadline Feb 15. https://t.co/giXwZLE8uX
By Seth Bannon
Social•Feb 11, 2026
Spot Tiny Trends Early for Explosive Startup Returns
I like to think of startup investing like surfing 🏄♀️ You don't want to paddle out too early (market doesn't exist yet). You don't want to be too late (already crowded with competitors). And sometimes the wave you're betting on just... fizzles out. At...
By Elizabeth Yin
Social•Feb 11, 2026
Orbex Bankruptcy Highlights UK Launch Policy Uncertainty
UK launcher startup @orbexspace starts bankruptcy procedure after merger/acquisition/funding talks fail. @spacegovuk launch policy looks to be a puzzle. Remaining @nyxcapsule interest uncertain. @esa @defis_eu @SaxaVord_Space. https://t.co/h0Gu8UB0cx https://t.co/RsfCNjTv3u
By Peter B. de Selding
Social•Feb 11, 2026
Funds Fail Early Without Real Business Foundations
Most private investment funds fail before the second raise, not because of the market, but because they were never built as real businesses. In this solo episode of Raise the Bar, Seth Bradley breaks down why a fund is more than...
By Seth Bradley, Esq.
Social•Feb 11, 2026
Founders Should Prioritize Real Risks Over Competition
Why I avoid competitive markets (usually) We see 1,000+ pitches/month at @HustleFundVC. Many founders obsess over competition for the wrong reasons. Here's what they should actually worry about: 👇 https://t.co/b0BOgdWtRe
By Elizabeth Yin
Social•Feb 11, 2026
Valuation Blends SaaS Metrics with Deal Structuring
Valuation is understandably one of the most top-of-mind topics founders want to cover in our conversations. Something we often emphasize is that there are two sides of valuation: the objective side based on core SaaS metrics, and the subjective side influenced...
By Michael Lyon
Social•Feb 11, 2026
UncorkCap Secures Investment Led by Inertia’s Jeffiel
We at @uncorkcap couldn't be more excited to share this news about a recent investment of ours: Inertia led by my old friend @jeffiel. https://t.co/DgUzgdgvhM
By Jeff Clavier
Social•Feb 10, 2026
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
By Ryan Hoover
Social•Feb 10, 2026
AI Dominates Startups, yet “Why Now?” Still Matters
Thanks for resurfacing this, Dimitry Gershenson 🙏 ❤️ So much has changed since we put this together in 2023 (i.e. AI dominating the startup ecosystem) but also, not much has changed (i.e. the importance of asking "why now?").
By Angela Tran Kingyens
Social•Feb 10, 2026
Screen‑time App Earns $40K Profit by Stopping Scrolling
$40K profit for helping people stop scrolling. Live on @acquiredotcom: screen time app that automatically boots users out when their timer runs out. > $48K TTM revenue > $40K TTM profit > 500+ paying users Full listing: https://t.co/iTEIt81XrI https://t.co/vb6LdS8811
By Andrew Gazdecki
Social•Feb 10, 2026
Startups Can Grow Tenfold, YC Fuels the Boom
What do I believe that few other people believe yet? Startups can and will be 10x bigger YC’s role to make that happen. We're the tree of prosperity: minting more great founders so that both the mega-platforms and the boutiques have...
By Garry Tan
Social•Feb 10, 2026
Future Teams: PMs Code, Architect Manages Infrastructure
anyone with theories on how software teams will evolve? today: 1 eng, 1 PM, 1 designer (EPD) tomorrow: 10 PMs who vibe code all day + 1 eng architect (the architect creates the scaffolding and writes adversarial agents to manage tech debt, security, scalability issues) Thoughts?
By Andrew Chen
Social•Feb 10, 2026
Learn With Me: $2M Insight, Fractional Cost
In 2020, I hired McKinsey to teach me about the global energy transition. I learned a lot, but it cost me more than $2M. After that experience, I decided to build my own internal research project at Social Capital called Learn...
By Chamath Palihapitiya
Social•Feb 10, 2026
Pre‑AI SaaS Loses Appeal as Costs Rise
When was the last time you were excited to buy a pre-AI SaaS tool? When was the last time you felt like you were overpaying on a renewal for a pre-AI SaaS tool, and thought about cancelling? Hence, the markets
By Jason Lemkin
Social•Feb 10, 2026
Airwallex Hits $1B Run Rate, Finally Gets Noticed
Airwallex just crossed a $1B rev run rate and feels like no one talked about them until late last year. Crazy.
By Turner Novak
Social•Feb 10, 2026
Prepare Detailed Financials to Impress Acquisition Buyers
I talk with a lot of founders who want to go to market on @acquiredotcom unprepared to save some time and see if it's worth it. The problem with this is how buyers evaluate startup acquisition opportunities. Most will require and expect,...
By Andrew Gazdecki