The hottest Venture Capital Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Letter #154: Josh Kushner and Kareem Zaki (2023)

A Letter a Day • 98 implied HN points • 10 Feb 24
💼 Business Venture Capital Investing Startups Technology Entrepreneurship
  1. When starting a venture capital firm, consider going against conventional wisdom and focus on a unique approach. Josh Kushner and Kareem Zaki emphasize the importance of building a firm that is hands-on and sector-agnostic, going beyond traditional boundaries in investment strategies.
  2. In consumer investments, look at trends like the rise of creators and the power of brands. Thrive Capital highlights the significance of coupling an extraordinary product with strong brand presence across different industries, not just limited to direct-to-consumer businesses.
  3. Consider major life decisions beyond a specific industry. The intersection of software and hardware, growth in healthcare technology, and trends like brain-machine interfaces offer promising investment opportunities. Keeping a flexible mindset and being able to adapt to fast-paced changes is crucial in today's evolving landscape.

The Archive

A Letter a Day • 550 implied HN points • 13 Apr 23
💼 Business Investors Venture Capital Private Equity Founders
  1. The project involves sharing letters from influential investors, founders, and operators.
  2. The bottom-up approach helps to understand industries and people by reading their published works and listening to their talks.
  3. The newsletter provides a diverse range of insights from various individuals across different sectors such as public markets, venture capital, private equity, founders, operators, and talent hubs.

Thinking about Writing Down your Investment?

SaaS Engineering • 137 implied HN points • 07 Jan 24
💰 Finance Investments Venture Capital Startups Valuation Capital Markets
  1. Understanding the difference between preferred and common stock is crucial for calculating holding values.
  2. Writing down investments only makes sense if a company's value decreases below the size of its liquidation preference relative to the investment.
  3. High valuations may not always benefit investors due to misaligned incentives, especially in scenarios where the company's valuation is higher than its true worth.

TabaPay Working On A Deal To Acquire Synapse, Sources Say

Fintech Business Weekly • 59 implied HN points • 10 Mar 24
💼 Business Fintech Venture Capital Startup Regulation
  1. TabaPay is in talks to acquire Synapse, a banking-as-a-service platform, to potentially mitigate damage caused by a past financial incident.
  2. Oxygen, a neobank, is pivoting to focus on 'health solutions' temporarily, suspending its banking services.
  3. Trade groups are suing to block a new CFPB rule that limits credit card late fees, arguing it restricts choices and responsible credit card use.
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Dire Les Choses

Venture Prose • 738 implied HN points • 15 Jan 23
💼 Business Venture Capital Entrepreneurs Investors Communication Feedback
  1. Investors in venture capital should not shy away from addressing sensitive topics with the founders they support, to avoid miscommunication and potential issues.
  2. Communication is key in maintaining productive relationships between investors and entrepreneurs. Creating an environment where feedback is welcomed and honest conversations can take place is crucial.
  3. Investors need to share observations directly with entrepreneurs, rather than gossiping or keeping concerns to themselves. Open dialogue and constructive conflict can lead to better outcomes for all parties involved.

Long Term

Venture Prose • 479 implied HN points • 04 Jun 23
💼 Business Entrepreneurship Venture Capital Ethics Company Building
  1. Success often requires effort, dedication, and patience over immediate gratification.
  2. In the world of entrepreneurship and investing, it's important to have a long-term perspective and not get caught up in instant success narratives.
  3. Building meaningful companies requires ethics, rhythm, and alignment, along with cultivating long-term relationships with founders.

The Ultimate Startup Quest: Building Something Special (in VC)

Equal Ventures • 99 implied HN points • 25 Jan 24
💼 Business Venture Capital Startups Investing Entrepreneurship Industry insights
  1. Equal Ventures focuses on proactive research and industry connectivity to have a point of view on markets and build thoughtful partnerships with founders.
  2. Equal Ventures supports founders with continuous learning, frameworks, and best practices to help them navigate challenges and succeed in their industries.
  3. Equal Ventures' slow investment pace allows for deep alignment and meaningful support for portfolio companies, building long-term relationships beyond current roles.

What I'm preparing for in 2024

next big thing • 120 implied HN points • 01 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Startups Venture Capital Artificial Intelligence Cryptocurrency Consumer Tech
  1. 2024 might see a fundraising frenzy in the venture capital world with many companies trying to raise capital.
  2. Many late-stage companies are working on becoming IPO-ready, focusing on strong financial performance and management teams.
  3. AI will be a major focus in 2024, with advancements in AI-enabled products, but also facing challenges like lawsuits and safety concerns.

Deep Tech For Deep Minds? Or Deep Pockets?

Investing 101 • 59 implied HN points • 24 Feb 24
💼 Business Venture Capital Manufacturing Investing Technology Hardware
  1. The history of venture capital reveals a significant role played by hardware companies in the tech industry's early days, tracing back to the 1950s and even earlier.
  2. The decline in hardware investment by VCs in favor of software has had implications on manufacturing and American industrial capabilities, with a recent resurgence in manufacturing employment in the US.
  3. The recent interest in hard tech and manufacturing by VCs has led to a new wave of investment, sparked by success stories like SpaceX and Nvidia, raising concerns about hype cycles and the need for a deeper understanding of the complexities of hard tech startups.

👊🏽 Special Edition: Ganas and I invested in Avify!

Lolita's Newsletter • 78 implied HN points • 28 Jan 24
💼 Business Venture Capital Startups Investing SaaS Latin America
  1. Ganas Ventures and Lolita Taub invested in Avify, and you can too!
  2. Avify is addressing a $1.8 trillion inventory distortion challenge with strong traction and community support.
  3. Avify's team has a strong background, the market opportunity is significant in Latin America, and they are focused on revolutionizing SMB inventory management.

Soft landings in venture

The Down Round • 78 implied HN points • 18 Jan 24
💼 Business Venture Capital Investing Startups Funding Financial planning
  1. Startups need to focus on building sustainable business models for long-term growth and survival.
  2. Companies with high valuations must navigate carefully to achieve a 'soft landing' without damaging their cap tables.
  3. Entrepreneurs should consider various strategic and financial options, including debt and unconventional fundraising, to ensure business continuity.

💎 Lab-grown diamonds, +$10M in funding opportunities, fundraising in 2024, BHM and more

Lolita's Newsletter • 58 implied HN points • 11 Feb 24
💼 Business Startups Investing Funding Entrepreneurship Venture Capital
  1. Lab-grown diamonds are trending, attracting over $10M in funding opportunities.
  2. In startup investment, there's a shift towards valuing business durability over growth obsession, with a focus on sectors like AI and defense.
  3. Founders have access to various funding opportunities ranging from grants for underrepresented groups to equity crowdfunding up to $5 million.

China’s evolving global tech expansion – a lens from the Middle East

Christopher’s Newsletter • 196 implied HN points • 28 Sep 23
💼 Business Global expansion Tech startups Venture Capital Innovation
  1. Conversations in the world of tech startups are often bottom-up, driven by new generations and their enterprises.
  2. Chinese tech companies serve as models for innovation globally, navigating challenges not typically seen in the West.
  3. Global expansion of tech will be driven by opportunity costs, market accessibility, and localization efforts in different regions.

Breaking orthodoxies in venture capital

SarHaribhakti's Newsletter • 355 implied HN points • 25 Feb 23
💼 Business Venture Capital Software Engineering
  1. Root Ventures breaks traditional VC norms by focusing on hard tech, staying close to seed roots, and having all engineer partners.
  2. It's important for investors to avoid overfitting their models and to keep building new projects to stay relevant.
  3. Technical founders should focus on hiring employees who fit the startup environment and prioritize results over corporate measures.

What Went Wrong with the OpenAI Board?

Build To Scale • 118 implied HN points • 20 Nov 23
💼 Business Venture Capital
  1. The board's primary role is to ensure proper governance, not run the organization. Their responsibility includes hiring and firing the CEO.
  2. For startups, having a balanced board with diverse views is crucial. Consider adding independent board members with operational experience.
  3. Operational issues and management conflicts should be addressed before they escalate to the board level. Keep the board updated and maintain high trust.

VC Market: 3 takeaways from ‘23 and 4 predictions for ‘24

Inverted J Curves • 78 implied HN points • 04 Jan 24
💼 Business Venture Capital Startups Predictions Funding Investments
  1. Global VC investments decreased in 2023, especially in European tech.
  2. Funding for European early-stage companies remained steady, with higher valuations at pre-Series A companies.
  3. In the New Nordics, climate tech attracted the most funding, with predictions for a fundraising frenzy in 2024 and higher bar for early-stage funding.

Lemons Ripen Early: Playing the Long Game

The Hard Fork by Marvin Liao • 235 implied HN points • 05 Aug 23
💼 Business Venture Capital Investments Entrepreneurship Startup Growth
  1. In venture capital, bad investments tend to fail early, making way for successful ones later on.
  2. It's important to play the long game, especially in the early stages of investing, to allow winners to emerge.
  3. Success usually takes time and persistence, with at least 2 years needed to see a project through and achieve product-market fit.

Artisan

Venture Prose • 299 implied HN points • 26 Mar 23
💼 Business Investing Venture Capital Startups Entrepreneurship Relationships
  1. To survive as a generalist seed investor, understand founders' emotions and engage with genuine care and support.
  2. When interacting with founders, focus on understanding, asking thought-provoking questions, and articulating key issues to help them progress.
  3. In the world of seed investing, competitiveness matters, but it's crucial to prioritize meaningful connections over unnecessary competition.

Real Estate, Business, & Life... Where do I find Inspiration?

PropTech Future • 176 implied HN points • 05 Sep 23
💼 Business Real Estate Venture Capital Commercial Real Estate Business strategy
  1. Engage with thought leaders and content creators from various industries to find inspiration and insights.
  2. Follow key figures and newsletters in the Real Estate industry to stay updated on trends and analysis.
  3. Explore resources in areas like Venture Capital, RevOps, Business Strategy, and Product/Growth to learn and grow in your professional journey.

Was Fintech's Biggest Lending "Innovation" A Willingness To Serve Riskier Borrowers By Charging Higher Rates?

Fintech Business Weekly • 237 implied HN points • 09 Jul 23
💰 Finance Fintech Lending Venture Capital Banking
  1. Fintech lenders rely heavily on conventional credit scores like FICO and possibly overcharge riskier borrowers.
  2. Fintech's main 'innovation' is serving borrowers banks reject by charging higher interest rates.
  3. Goldman Sachs is looking to offload its Apple partnership, showcasing the shifting landscape of fintech engagements.

Competitive Specialization in Founder Support

Equal Ventures • 79 implied HN points • 05 Dec 23
💼 Business Venture Capital Specialization Private Equity Consulting
  1. Venture firms often lack competitive specialization, unlike private equity which frequently employs this strategy to allow various team members with complementary specialties to work together on deals.
  2. Competitive specialization within firms, like having dedicated industry leads, can empower teams to perform at their best, focus on their strengths, and deliver exceptional value to founders.
  3. Empowering team members to specialize in their unique skill sets and roles can lead to innovative approaches, better outcomes in deals, and overall team growth and satisfaction.