The hottest Fundraising Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Venture Capital Doesn't Exist

Investing 101 • 92 implied HN points • 14 Mar 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. 'Venture capital' is a misleading catch-all — it really splits into seed investing, classic early-stage venture, supercharged growth rounds, and private small-cap tech stocks.
  2. Each category needs a different approach and carries different risks: seed is a people game, classic venture backs risky experiments, supercharged growth buys momentum and access, and private small-cap deals are mainly a game of capital.
  3. Founders and investors should explicitly pick which game they're playing and align their partners, capital strategy, and expectations to that specific category.

A Conversation

The Trick Revealed • 660 implied HN points • 22 Mar 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Telling a real, vulnerable personal story made people finally understand what we were building.
  2. The core problem was emotional — helping people reconnect with loved ones — so solving that human need matters more than listing features.
  3. Admitting you don’t have all the answers can open doors; honest conversation and mentorship can be more valuable than chasing funding.

Another Morning, Another Private Credit Fund Seizes Up

QTR’s Fringe Finance • 23 implied HN points • 24 Mar 26
💰 Finance Fundraising
  1. Large private credit funds are imposing withdrawal limits or capping redemptions, and multiple firms are now doing the same.
  2. Those limits make private credit less attractive to wealthy investors who value liquidity, so demand from that group may fall.
  3. Analysts expect these developments will slow fundraising across the private credit industry as investors become more cautious.

OpenAI’s Latest Mega-Fundraise, Big Tech Earnings Week, Amazon Layoffs?

Big Technology • 6254 implied HN points • 26 Jan 26
🕹 Technology Fundraising
  1. OpenAI is pursuing a potentially historic $50 billion fundraise that would push its valuation into the hundreds of billions and is leaning on rapidly growing revenue and compute metrics to justify continued cash raises, but it's unclear how many more mega-rounds it can secure before an IPO forces public scrutiny.
  2. This week’s Big Tech earnings calendar is packed with major reports from companies across consumer, enterprise, and infrastructure sectors, and those results will shape market expectations for AI-driven growth and spending.
  3. Amazon is reportedly planning large-scale layoffs affecting many teams as it trims pandemic-era overhiring and bureaucracy, a move that’s raising morale concerns even though the company says the cuts aren’t simply because of AI.

SITREP - 10/13/2024

THREE SEVEN MAFIA • 919 implied HN points • 13 Oct 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. The Old Glory Club in Chicago is now officially launched, and it had a great first meeting with good support from friends.
  2. There will be a cemetery walk event on October 26, and the person will also be traveling to Portland for a visit afterward.
  3. They are seeking donations to cover some travel expenses and hope to be self-sustaining in the future to avoid appeals for funds.
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Hijacking The Huckster's Hypebook

Investing 101 • 73 implied HN points • 07 Mar 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. A repeatable "hypebook"—secrecy, fake metrics, media stunts, celebrity endorsements, and legal pressure—creates FOMO that funnels huge amounts of capital into waste or outright fraud.
  2. You can ethically borrow parts of that playbook—compelling stories, calculated urgency, and a visible chief evangelist—but only when paired with transparency, verifiable metrics, and real product progress.
  3. To steer capital toward productive ventures, practice radical candor: embrace messy reality, build meritocratic teams, publish clear north‑star metrics, and let truth, not lawsuits or smoke, earn trust.

Lessons of a First-Time Fund Manager

The Generalist • 1621 implied HN points • 05 Feb 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. If this is your first fund, resist the urge to rush deals to prove yourself; take the time and deploy at a pace that fits your strategy rather than following hot rounds or other people's urgency.
  2. Build real relationships and show conviction — first checks earn special trust, and being helpful or decisive can win you access even without a formal raise; for a small fund, fighting for every extra dollar matters.
  3. Get better at reading hard-to-explain signals and prefer simple, clear investment theses; progress is nonlinear, top investors can be wrong or uncover things you miss, and most funds will make many bad bets, so stay humble and proactive in sourcing.

SITREP - 10/7/2024

THREE SEVEN MAFIA • 479 implied HN points • 07 Oct 24
🎭️ Culture Fundraising
  1. The author is traveling to Portland for a tour starting on November 2, 2024, and is thankful for the support received so far.
  2. They are close to reaching their fundraising goal but are still $200 short and offer different ways for people to contribute.
  3. The author is working on learning video content creation for a documentary, and if not successful, will use the funds for publishing their manuscripts.

Open Thread 410

Astral Codex Ten • 5161 implied HN points • 01 Dec 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. There are fundraisers happening for both shrimp and human welfare, and they each have matching donations until the end of the month. So, you can support either cause you care about.
  2. If you prefer social gatherings, there are upcoming rationalist community meetups on the West Coast and East Coast, along with a Solstice celebration you can join.
  3. For those who like reading, there's a new post discussing the arguments around trans athletes in sports, touching on how biological advantages are treated in general sports discussions.

Pitch Me: Why Raising Equity Isn’t Enough for Hardtech Climate Startups

The Green Techpreneur • 48 implied HN points • 06 Mar 26
🌞 Climate & Environment Fundraising
  1. Design your capital formation to make the business bankable before you try to scale, so financing choices shape product and milestones rather than the reverse.
  2. Use capital stacking—mix equity, grants, and debt—and plan exactly who enters the stack, when they join, and which milestones unlock their participation.
  3. Be capital efficient and operationally disciplined. Focus on predictable revenue, cashflow, and clear uses of funds, and avoid financing too many large initiatives at once so investors and lenders can trust your plan.

Open Thread 413

Astral Codex Ten • 3372 implied HN points • 22 Dec 25
🎭️ Culture Fundraising
  1. Lightcone Infrastructure runs a lot of the community’s technical and meetup infrastructure (like LessWrong and Lighthaven), they’ve built websites for several AI/community projects, and they’re currently fundraising so you can donate or contact them about larger gifts.
  2. A bio policy group is looking for volunteers to help vaccine expert Stanley Plotkin estimate the medical consequences if the U.S. adopted Denmark’s childhood vaccine schedule; the task would take about 4–10 hours and volunteers can apply via a form.
  3. MIRI is offering an 8‑week technical governance research fellowship in early 2026 that pays $1,200/week, begins with a one‑week intro in Berkeley (travel and lodging provided) and continues remotely, though they don’t sponsor visas.

The Last Woman Standing

Steady • 18632 implied HN points • 30 Jan 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. Nikki Haley is seen as the underdog in the Republican presidential race.
  2. Haley has outlasted other challengers by raising significant funds and appealing to educated independents.
  3. Despite her strong campaign, Haley still needs to convince wealthy donors to continue supporting her.

The Startup CFO

Points And Figures • 426 implied HN points • 12 Feb 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. In the very early days founders handle finance with simple tools like QuickBooks and often hire fractional CFOs to standardize books rather than making a full-time hire.
  2. Startups should prioritize product, engineering, and sales to find product‑market fit because finance is rarely a growth engine in the early stages.
  3. Around $10M ARR you need an in‑house CFO to professionalize finance for fundraising or an IPO; seasoned CFOs bring networks and roadshow experience, and a self‑styled ‘CFO’ at Series A or earlier is a red flag.

Story Thirty-Nine

Stories From The Rail • 2336 implied HN points • 13 Jun 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Fundraising
  1. Preparing for death involves taking care of paperwork and tiny details for loved ones.
  2. In the face of death, what truly matters is that loved ones know they were cherished.
  3. Living fully in the present becomes paramount when facing the reality of limited time.

Founders - stop using AI to write your investor emails.

1517 Fund • 787 implied HN points • 15 Jan 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Investors can tell when emails are AI-generated, and that usually kills trust and makes them skip your message.
  2. How you write reveals how you think and make decisions, and polished AI copy hides those signals so investors can't judge your competence.
  3. Fundraising is about real relationships and your unique story, so outsourcing emails to AI looks lazy and flattens the personal edge that gets investors interested.

Keeping Up Against the Joneses: Balsa’s 2025 Fundraiser

Don't Worry About the Vase • 1075 implied HN points • 23 Dec 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. A very small nonprofit is dedicated to researching and pushing for Jones Act and maritime policy reform, and in 2025 it intervened in a Section 301 process, published operational analyses, ran research RFAs, and held dozens of stakeholder conversations.
  2. They’re fundraising with a $200,000 target (and a $50,000 minimum to stay viable) to hire a full-time policy analyst, fund additional studies, and complete a comprehensive Jones Act policy binder.
  3. With more funding they can scale impact by funding more academic studies (~$30k each), hire more analysts, possibly pay senior advisors, and even spin up a 501(c)(4) to enable direct political advocacy and expand into related reform areas.

2025 Annual Letter: Technology is the Cake, Geopolitics is the Icing

Interconnected • 200 implied HN points • 09 Feb 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Put technology first, then assess geopolitical tailwinds or headwinds, then evaluate the company, and only finally consider price. Geopolitics is an unavoidable layer that can make or break a tech investment.
  2. Widespread adoption of AI agents will create strong demand for deterministic guardrails like observability, data governance, DevOps, and security because probabilistic models need rules and audit trails. Agent workloads are also more heterogeneous, which could shift infrastructure demand from GPUs toward CPUs.
  3. Human surveys will likely understate agent effectiveness as people protect jobs, creating a measurement problem for adoption, and political or local backlash against AI data centers can become a bipartisan constraint. Investors should expect regulatory and supply risks and consider modest hedging and risk management.

a16z: The Power Brokers

Not Boring by Packy McCormick • 562 implied HN points • 09 Jan 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. a16z is built as a firm, not a traditional VC fund — it scales a huge platform of people and services (hiring, sales, marketing, policy and deep networks) to give startups power they couldn’t buy on their own.
  2. Their investment playbook is to find technical founders and category winners early, then double down — paying up and holding positions longer — to capture outsized outcomes.
  3. They’ve moved into a leadership role: shaping policy and building late-stage, public-company-like capabilities so companies can grow bigger in private, which can expand returns but also raises new risks as the firm scales.

How to Build a Data Room That Stands Out 📁

The VC Corner • 719 implied HN points • 22 Jul 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. A data room is a secure online space where startups keep important documents for investors. It shows you're organized and ready to share details about your business.
  2. Having a well-prepared data room can save time and build trust with investors. It helps them understand your company's operations and financial health better.
  3. When setting up a data room, choose good software, organize your documents, and control who can see what. This ensures sensitive information stays safe while sharing essential details.

Term Sheets Demystified 📄🤝

The VC Corner • 659 implied HN points • 25 Jul 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. A term sheet is a non-binding agreement that lays out the basic terms of an investment. It's like a guide for both investors and founders to understand what's being offered.
  2. Key parts of a term sheet include the investment amount, valuation, and liquidation preferences. These details help both sides know what to expect if the company is sold or liquidated.
  3. Dividends can be part of a term sheet too, specifying how much investors might earn annually. It helps clarify when and how investors would get paid.

Donate In Crypto

Points And Figures • 532 implied HN points • 16 Jan 26
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. A campaign for Nevada State Treasurer has launched with a new website. It stresses that fundraising — including personal investment — is essential to run a competitive race.
  2. The campaign added cryptocurrency as a donation option and links to accept crypto contributions. It plans to report cash versus crypto donations to show transparency and validate crypto as a funding source.
  3. Active local outreach and fundraising events are being used to build support, including visits to Republican clubs and auctioning a trading jacket for scholarships. The campaign emphasizes supporting other Republican candidates and building statewide connections.

Data-Driven Equity Splitting📊, The Path to PMF, Figma's $12.5 Bn Valuation🎨

The VC Corner • 379 implied HN points • 28 Jul 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Fundraising activity peaks between Labor Day and Christmas, so startups should prepare now to attract investors.
  2. Data-driven approaches can help startups split equity more fairly, making it easier to attract and keep talent.
  3. Figma's impressive $12.5 billion valuation shows the potential for growth in the tech industry, which should inspire other startups.

Growth Of a Startup

Points And Figures • 612 implied HN points • 10 Dec 25
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Early-stage investing is as much about people as ideas. Backing founders early can pay off even if the initial product or market fails.
  2. The founders adapted after COVID destroyed their original ride-share insurance business, pivoted successfully, and raised follow-on VC. They also built a high-quality team and grew as leaders.
  3. Seel has scaled into major partnerships with big insurers and is hiring aggressively. They are addressing a massive market and look positioned for significant growth.

Calendar of events: Spring of 2026

Respectful Leadership • 163 implied HN points • 18 Jan 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Events focus on three industries driving change: health care, green sustainability, and AI.
  2. The schedule features panels and founders sharing real-world work across health‑tech, green‑tech, and AI — including AI and law — and health‑care sessions repeat by popular demand.
  3. The series also includes practical startup workshops on pitching, selling, team management, and delegation to help founders grow.

Flow State #4 - Mastering the Meta and Your Own Personal Tutor

Superfluid • 92 implied HN points • 02 Feb 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Playing the right game matters more than playing well. Instead of just mastering the current playbook, look for ways to change the rules and zig when everyone else zags because the meta shifts fast.
  2. Massive early fundraising and soaring pay are changing incentives and making loyalty weaker. Big rounds can buy credibility and talent but also make companies fragile and leave little room for error.
  3. Turn curiosity into lasting knowledge by building a personal learning assistant tailored to your style. Tweak it over time so learning stays fun and what you read actually sticks.

How to build the perfect pitch deck: a step by step guide with examples and an analysis of my Airbnb's deck

The VC Corner • 419 implied HN points • 08 Jun 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. A pitch deck is a short presentation that startup founders use to attract investors. It's essential to communicate your business idea clearly and make it appealing.
  2. Investors often have limited time to review pitch decks, so it's important to make your slides simple and direct. Help them easily understand your business and its value.
  3. Including a strong story in your pitch deck is crucial. Outline your business's problem, solution, and unique value in a way that resonates with investors.

Demystifying Venture Capital: Realities and Challenges of the sector

The VC Corner • 299 implied HN points • 22 Jun 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. The venture capital market is very crowded, making it hard to find unique investment opportunities. To succeed, it's crucial to stand out from the competition.
  2. Many venture capitalists have never built a company themselves, which may limit their ability to help startups effectively. Practical experience is important in providing useful guidance.
  3. Successful founders are good at raising money quickly so they can spend more time on their products. They focus on building strong connections with the right investors to make fundraising easier.

The startups are thriving

Alex's Personal Blog • 262 implied HN points • 12 Dec 25
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. The federal government moved to preempt state AI laws by creating a task force and directing agencies to build a uniform national AI policy that can challenge conflicting state rules.
  2. A coalition of allied countries is coordinating to secure AI supply chains—investing in chips, rare earths, and infrastructure to reduce reliance on strategic rivals.
  3. AI-first startups are growing far faster than traditional benchmarks, posting huge ARR gains and forcing investors to expect growth well beyond the old T2D3 model.

Make The World A Little Bit Better Today

Singal-Minded • 269 implied HN points • 02 Dec 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. You can make a positive impact today by helping people in need, often by donating money. It’s simple and can make a real difference in someone's life.
  2. GiveDirectly is an organization that helps reduce poverty by giving cash directly to those who need it most. This helps improve their living conditions and supports local economies.
  3. If you donate $50 or more, there's a chance to win fun prizes like signed books or subscriptions. It's a great way to motivate people to help others!

How to Help People in LA *Right Now*

Culture Study • 2731 implied HN points • 15 Jan 25
🎭️ Culture Fundraising
  1. There are many ways to help people affected by the fires in Los Angeles, including donating to specific families or organizations in need.
  2. You don't have to donate a lot; even small amounts can help provide much-needed stability for those who have lost everything.
  3. Volunteering your time or sharing resources, like lists of GoFundMes, can make a real difference for people during tough times.

GC, a16z Capture 44% VC fundraising💰, Massive Acquisitions in Software Startups 🛒, Network Effects🕸️

The VC Corner • 379 implied HN points • 05 May 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. GC and a16z are leading the way, capturing a large portion of VC fundraising. This means they are securing a lot of money to invest in new businesses.
  2. There are many significant acquisitions happening in the software startup space. Companies are being bought up, showing growth and interest in this sector.
  3. Network effects are becoming important for these companies. This means that the more people use a service, the better it gets and the more valuable it becomes.

What to expect when you’re expecting (dilution)

The VC Corner • 339 implied HN points • 11 May 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Founders should be careful with SAFEs as they can quickly lead to dilution. Stacking too many SAFEs can reduce the ownership percentage of founders significantly.
  2. When selling equity, it's important to know how much to give up in each round of fundraising. This impacts the long-term value and control of the company.
  3. Understanding deal terms is crucial in the fundraising process. They can greatly affect the level of dilution and overall impact on the company's future.

How the Kyiv Independent used global sympathy to generate membership revenue

Simon Owens's Media Newsletter • 124 implied HN points • 17 Dec 25
📰 News Fundraising
  1. Being the main English-language outlet on the ground during Russia’s invasion brought massive global attention and traffic.
  2. They turned international sympathy into income by shifting from one-off donations to a Guardian-style membership model without using a paywall, growing recurring revenue.
  3. They’ve also started producing longform documentaries as part of their editorial and revenue strategy.

Can a Kennedy Beat New York’s Most Ambitious Democrats?

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 139 implied HN points • 18 Dec 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. Manhattan’s 12th Congressional District is extremely wealthy and influential, giving its representative big fundraising advantages and a fast track to power.
  2. The open seat after decades has drawn many long-time Democratic operatives who have built local networks and are aggressively competing.
  3. A Kennedy’s famous name would bring national attention and celebrity, but they would still face stiff competition from well-connected, careerist Democrats.

Amazon spends $2.75 billion on AI startup Anthropic💸, The Founders Guide to Optimizing Your Fundraise📘, The Pulse of SaaS☁️ & more!

The VC Corner • 459 implied HN points • 31 Mar 24
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Amazon spent $2.75 billion to buy an AI startup called Anthropic. This shows how serious they are about investing in artificial intelligence.
  2. There is a guide available for founders on how to optimize their fundraising efforts. It can help entrepreneurs improve their chances of getting financial support.
  3. The newsletter covers trends and insights in the Software as a Service (SaaS) industry. It keeps readers updated on important developments in tech businesses.

Top Gear's Original Stig & Ex Formula One racer shares his tips for showing up like a champion – 'whatever it takes'

The Green Techpreneur • 28 implied HN points • 30 Jan 26
💼 Business Fundraising
  1. Be prepared to do whatever it takes — make big sacrifices, work relentlessly, and find ways over, under, or through the barriers in front of you.
  2. Get noticed and build reputation — actively promote your results, seek opportunities, and make small wins visible so others will support you.
  3. Stay resilient and adaptable — learn from setbacks, temper raw talent into consistent performance, and keep tweaking your approach instead of giving up.

The iPhone Update That Could Wreck Political Fundraising

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 537 implied HN points • 03 Aug 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Fundraising
  1. A new iPhone feature will let users filter messages from unknown senders, making it harder for political campaigns to reach voters by text.
  2. This change could cost political campaigns a lot of money, as they rely heavily on text messages for fundraising.
  3. Political operatives are worried that this feature could drastically reduce their ability to communicate with potential donors.

EAs should probably focus on recruiting the ultra-wealthy

Something to Consider • 99 implied HN points • 11 Jul 24
📖 Philosophy Fundraising
  1. Effective Altruism should prioritize recruiting wealthy individuals because a big donation can have a much larger impact than many small ones. It's more beneficial to convince one billionaire to give a large amount than to have thousands give small amounts.
  2. The reputation issues from past events, like the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried's companies, shouldn't discourage efforts to recruit wealthy donors. The potential benefits of their donations greatly outweigh these concerns.
  3. Investing resources in programs that can attract wealthy individuals is seen as a very cost-effective strategy for Effective Altruism, as the benefits can be significantly greater.

Secondaries Rising

Net Interest • 29 implied HN points • 30 Jan 26
💰 Finance Fundraising
  1. Private equity still ties up investor capital for many years, with holding periods and distributions lengthening and some funds dating back decades.
  2. A booming secondary market has emerged to unlock that illiquid capital, reaching a record $240 billion of trades in 2025 as big firms raise dedicated funds and buy specialist platforms.
  3. Allocators and managers are leaning heavily on secondaries to manage portfolios and liquidity, making it a top priority area for capital deployment going forward.

Mt Kilimanjaro Trip Report

Splattern • 59 implied HN points • 30 Jul 24
🏝 Travel Fundraising
  1. Climbing Kilimanjaro can be a chaotic adventure filled with unexpected challenges. Embracing the unpredictability makes the journey even more real and meaningful.
  2. Experiencing poverty and instability in Africa can change your perspective on life. It highlights the importance of being present and valuing the beauty that exists despite hardships.
  3. The climb is not just about reaching the summit but about understanding deeper human connection and compassion. Helping others, especially the less fortunate, becomes a more significant goal alongside personal challenges.