EverythingStartups Weekly

For funds, founders, and startup & VC enthusiasts.

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EverythingStartups
March 07, 2025

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VC & Startup Favorites + News 🟣

Latest tidbits, resources, and social gems from the ecosystem.

 
The Narrative Around VC Lately: VC Firms Are Operating in Different Lanes, But Not All Fit the Market 🟣

Angular Ventures recently wrote on something interesting happening in the venture landscape: many firms are either too small to support founders effectively or too big to truly engage in early-stage company-building.

Essentially, the venture market is evolving into 5 distinct swimlanes, which we break down below to help you better understand the situation and where you might fit in as a founder looking to raise capital.

Here’s how the market is shifting, and why founders need to pay attention.

The Five VC Swimlanes

1. Dedicated Pre-Seed Funds (Sub-$50M)
- Typically indexers with large portfolios of small bets.
- Struggling as larger rounds make their economics unsustainable.
- Many are too small to meet founder needs today.

2. Inception Funds ($100M-$250M)
- First-check investors that actively build companies.
- Highly concentrated portfolios with deep founder involvement.

Some firms in this category include Boldstart, Work-Bench, Root Ventures, IA Ventures, Floodgate, PointNine, and Compound.

3. New Series A Funds ($250M-$500M)
- The next-generation Series A firms, acting as successors to VC legends.
- Company builders with concentrated portfolios, deep engagement, and strong board presence.

Some of our favorite firms in this category include Benchmark, USV, Theory, Chemistry, Decibel, Footwork, Conviction, Shine, and Zeev Ventures.

4. Too Big But Not Big Enough ($500M-$1B)
- Stuck between early-stage and super-platforms.
- Require massive outcomes but lack the scale of $1B+ giants.
- Facing an identity crisis, many will shrink or grow to escape this category.

5. Superscale Platforms ($1B+)
- Venture, growth, and PE-style asset aggregators.
- Don’t rely on massive outcomes, 2x returns per investment are fine.
- Too large for early-stage investing to materially impact firm performance.

Why This Matters for Founders

Many VCs aren’t playing the same game they were a few years ago, fund sizes have shifted, and with them, investment strategies. AI-first startups might now go straight to Series A with just $500K in pre-seed funding, while tech-heavy startups require significantly more capital to reach the same milestone than they did in 2019.

At the same time, some firms have outgrown early-stage investing, making them less engaged company-building partners, while others remain too small to provide meaningful long-term support. These shifts mean that founders must be more strategic than ever in selecting the right investors for their stage and trajectory.

Yet, many investors will try to blur these lines to maintain access to top deals.

How to Navigate VC Swimlanes as a Founder

Their fund size is your fundraising strategy. 
Pick the wrong partner, and you may find they can’t support you when you need them most.

Avoid firms that have outgrown early-stage investing. 
They may no longer be true company builders.

Be wary of funds that are too small. 
They might not have the reserves to help you bridge to Series A.

 
Startup & VC Slang 101 🟣

You crash course on VC & startup slang:

Sharp elbows – Aggressive investors who push hard to get into deals or squeeze others out.

Table stakes – The minimum required investment or reputation to get into a competitive deal.

Party round – A funding round with many small investors but no lead investor taking charge.

Hype round – A funding round driven more by FOMO and buzz than actual traction.

Soft circle – When an investor verbally commits to a deal but hasn’t wired the money yet.

Tourist investor – A VC or angel who sporadically invests in startups but isn’t deeply committed to the industry.

Spray and pray – A strategy where an investor makes many small bets, hoping a few succeed.

Signaling risk – When an existing investor doesn’t follow on in the next round, raising doubts about the startup.

Deep pockets – An investor with a massive fund who can write big follow-on checks.

Conviction investor – A VC who makes high-conviction bets instead of waiting for consensus.

Dry powder – Cash reserves that VCs haven’t deployed yet but are ready to invest.

Walking dead / Zombie startup – A company that isn’t growing fast enough to justify another round but isn’t dead yet.

Bridge to nowhere – A bridge round that doesn’t lead to a successful Series A/B but delays the inevitable failure.

Handcuffs – When a VC puts terms in a deal that make it hard for a founder to leave or pivot.

Riding winners – Doubling down on portfolio companies that show strong growth instead of spreading bets.

Marking up – When a VC increases the paper value of a portfolio company (even if there’s no real liquidity event).

Founder mode - a leadership style where a company founder or CEO takes a very hands-on approach to running the business, made popular by YC's Paul Graham's essay

Vaporware – A startup that promises big things but has no real product yet.

Tech mafia – A group of founders and execs from a successful startup who go on to launch or fund new ventures (e.g., PayPal Mafia).

Default alive vs. Default dead – A Paul Graham concept about whether a startup, based on current cash flow, is on track to survive or will eventually run out of money.

Cockroach mode – When a startup ruthlessly cuts costs and fights to survive instead of chasing growth at all costs.

Acquihire – When a company is bought mainly for its talent, not its product or revenue.

Soft landing – A struggling startup that gets acquired under not-so-great terms but avoids total failure.

Bagholder – Someone (often late-stage investors or employees) stuck holding stock in a failing or stagnating company.

Big pop – A huge first-day stock price jump when a startup IPOs.

Liquidity event – Any event where investors and founders can finally cash out (IPO, acquisition, secondary sale).

 
Linkedin Post Analysis: Why They Went Viral 🟣

Insider thoughts from our team on why certain posts go viral. Use these tips for your own posts!

Here’s our expert breakdown:

Why It Works:

👍 It provides immediate value with a structured market map.
The post delivers a neatly categorized list of essential tools VCs use, making it an easy reference point for industry professionals. People love posts that save them time by curating resources.

👍 It taps into a niche but highly engaged audience.
VCs, startup operators, and ecosystem players are always looking for better tools to optimize their workflows. By compiling a tech stack tailored to them, the post speaks directly to their needs.

👍 It builds curiosity and engagement with a “what’s missing?” prompt.
The CTA at the end, “Which other tools are we missing? Comment below 👇” encourages readers to contribute, sparking discussion and increasing visibility through comments.

👍 It uses simple, scannable formatting.
Numbers make the list easy to skim, and short, direct descriptions keep the post digestible.

The Template: How to Write a Post Like This

1. Introduce a high-value resource with a clear hook.
“We just mapped out the best [X] tools for [target audience]: here’s the breakdown.”

2. Structure the post into clear, digestible categories.
Use numbered lists (and if you want to also bolded sections) to make it easy to scan.

3. Include a strong CTA to boost engagement.
“What are we missing? Drop your go-to tools in the comments.”

Now try out this formula for your own posts 😉 


VC Internships Galore 🟣

🚨 We’ll soon be adding VC jobs in the USA & Europe.

VC Internship - Applied Ventures
Location: Santa Clara
Apply here

VC Internship - Flybridge
Location: Remote
Apply here

VC Internship - M13
Location: New York
Apply here

2026 Investment Associate Internship - Dodge & Cox
Location: San Francisco
Apply here


For the Founders: 15 Ways to Find the Right Angel Investors 🟣

Most founders waste months chasing the wrong investors.

They pitch VCs too soon. Send cold emails that go nowhere. Follow bad advice.

Here’s 15 ways to find the right angel investors:

1. Your network
→ The obvious first one to mention since it is the easiest place to start. Friends, family, ex-colleagues, people who already trust you.

2. Secondary connections
→ Ask for warm intros from your network. A referral from an existing investor is gold.

3. Boring Business Nerd
→ Has a free investor database to find angels by industry, skillset, and location.

4. AngelList
→ A major hub for early-stage investors and syndicates.

5. Signal by NFX
→ A free tool with 31,000+ investors to filter by stage and industry.

6. Angel Investor Groups
→ 250+ registered groups in the U.S. (Angel Investor Association has a full list).

7. Angel Investor Communities
→ Like First Round Angel Track, The Council, Hustle Fund Angel Squad, and VITALIZE Angels.

8. Mercury Raise
→ Submit your pitch and get investor introductions.

9. Mercury Investor Database
→ A curated list of top angels and VCs.

10. Seed Checks
→ A group of angels investing $100K–$3M, with a focus on SaaS, fintech, AI, and deep tech.

11. Focal
→ A bi-annual demo day that attracts top angels and VCs.

12. FundersClub
→ A highly selective angel platform for startups.

13. Twitter/X
→ Many angels publicly share their investments.

14. Startup Accelerators
→ Join an accelerator like YC or Techstars to get direct investor access.

15. Investment Crowdfunding
→ Platforms like Wefunder, Republic, and StartEngine let you raise from thousands of small investors.

Want to reach out but don’t know what to say?

Here’s a simple cold outreach format:

1-2 sentences: Why them?
1 sentence: Your intent.
1-2 sentences: Why you?


Top Pre-Seed to Series A funding rounds of the week 🟣

Top 10 pre-seed to Series A funding rounds of the week:

⚫ AI ⚫

1. Copley, an AI-driven platform enabling brands to create, test, and distribute marketing content across various channels, raised a $4.8 million round.

→ Investors: Asymmetric Capital Partners, Underscore VC
→ Founded by: David Henriquez, Mike Torra, and Sean Marshall

2. MaxIQ, a startup using AI to help B2B SaaS companies track and predict customer behavior, raised a $7.8 million seed round.

→ Investors: Dell Technologies Capital, Intel Capital
→ Founded by: Sonny Aulakh

3. Needle, an AI-powered platform enabling businesses to access and manage information stored across various internal systems, raised a $2.2 million seed round.

→ Investors: 468 Capital, Presight Capital
→ Founded by: Onur Eken and Jan Heimes

4. Kleio, a startup using AI to interact with potential buyers and guide them through purchasing decisions, raised a $3.15 million seed round.

→ Investors: Serena Capital, Daphni
→ Founded by: Philippe Wellens, Adrien Mathieu, and Louis Poirier

5. Firsthand, an AI-powered platform for brands and publishers to engage consumers through custom AI agents, raised a $26 million Series A round.

→ Investors: Radical Ventures, FirstMark Capital, and others
→ Founded by: Michael Rubenstein and Jonathan Heller

⚫ Healthtech ⚫

6. Gem Specialty Health, a startup providing virtual services focused on diagnosing and treating sleep disorders, raised a $7 million Series A round.

→ Investors: HealthTrend Capital, LFE Capital, and others
→ Founded by: Brian Sauer

⚫ Security ⚫

7. Aryon Security, a platform designed to prevent cloud security risks, raised a $9 million seed round.

→ Investors: Viola Ventures, Blumberg Capital
→ Founded by: Ron Arbel, Ariel Litmanovich, and Yair Ladizhensky

⚫ Sustainability ⚫

8. Telescope, a startup helping real estate companies identify and manage sustainability risks, raised a $4 million seed round.

→ Investors: Scale Capital, Dreamcraft Ventures, and others
→ Founded by: Gustav Haaland, Marit Bjerkreim, and Mathias Wahl

⚫ Fintech ⚫

9. Auxia, a startup offering an AI-driven marketing platform for personalized customer journeys, raised a total of $23.5 million in seed and Series A funds.

→ Investors: VMG Technology Partners, MUFG Innovation Partners, and others
→ Founded by: Sandeep Menon and Luv Misra

⚫ Gaming ⚫

10. VRAI, a startup specializing in simulation training for defense and security sectors using VR, raised a $5.2 million Series A round.

→ Investors: Beringea
→ Founded by: Pat O’Connor

Huge congrats to all these startups on their successful funding rounds!

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