3 links tagged with all of: venture capital + fundraising
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TechCrunch is hosting a one-day founder conference in Boston on November 4 featuring sessions on fundraising, hiring, AI strategy, and scaling. Speakers include investors and founders like HubSpot's Brian Halligan and executives from Underscore, NEA, and Bessemer Venture Partners.
- Sessions cover concrete founder challenges: how to raise capital in today's market, evaluate investors beyond valuation, and identify when you've actually hit product-market fit
- The event emphasizes that building outside Silicon Valley is viable — one speaker scaled a company to 30+ countries from Boston without relocating
- Networking with other founders and investors happens alongside the talks, positioning the day as a way to build ongoing relationships rather than just attend sessions
This post lists 11 subtle red flags that can turn VCs off, from over-polishing your deck to being too available or not knowing your numbers. It highlights common investor pet peeves and shows how certain behaviors signal desperation or lack of prep.
- Subtle behaviors (over-polished decks, constant availability, pitching for small stage prizes) spook VCs more than actual mistakes
- Not knowing core metrics like TAM, CAC, retention, and burn rate is an instant deal-breaker
- Claiming no competition or fundraising with only two months of runway signals naivety and poor planning
- Low founder enthusiasm and being "always fundraising" instead of building are red flags since investors back people, not just ideas
a16z has announced a significant $15 billion fundraising round, bringing its total assets under management to over $90 billion. The article delves into the firm’s history, investment strategies, and its approach to venture capital, emphasizing its unique positioning and the skepticism it has faced over the years.
- a16z raised $15B, pushing total AUM past $90B, more than its closest competitors combined despite a tough fundraising market
- The firm holds stakes in ten of the fifteen most valuable private companies globally
- a16z's strategy centers on "elephant hunting" — chasing huge, transformative bets (echoing early wins like Skype and Facebook) rather than optimizing for immediate returns
- Skepticism has dogged the firm at every stage, yet its consistent narrative-building and marketing have reinforced its outsized market position