There's a well-known expression in venture capital:
"Only a handful of companies per year actually matter"
I thought it would be interesting to go back and find the Series A deals that actually "mattered" each year with the benefit of hindsight: 👇
Cole Rotman
1,842 posts
- Just 9 funds led the Series A of >50% of startups that are worth $5bn+ today. Interesting to see the market concentration/consistency at A. *only counting Series A rounds from 2012-2025, excluded some China and blockchain cos
- Mazel tov to OpenAI Fund for turning ~$8m into >$600m of paper returns from 2 deals in a $175m fund 🤯 (based on my math) 👨🏻⚖️ Harvey: Led $5m seed (2022) → Series D (2025) @ $3bn val 👨🏼💻 Cursor: Led $8m seed (2023) → Series B (2025) @ $2.6bn val
- “Who’s the best Series A investor?” The answer is usually vibes based driven by recency bias, relationships, domain, or hype… So I cut the data to see who’s actually in the Hall of Fame 🏆 → Just 4 investors have led 3 Series A rounds that became $5B+ companies since 2012*
- Never understood VCs obsession with Unit 8200, but after the Wiz acquisition, our attention on Talpiot is warranted. Rather than being trained to fight, the few soldiers selected for Talpiot are taught how to think. Since the knowledge alpha is gone 😂 I'll explain what it is:
- Between 2013-2018 — 25-33% of the Series A rounds Benchmark led eventually became $5bn+ outcomes 👀
- A $1bn fund will make more in management fees alone than a $100m fund that 5xs! $1B fund → Mgmt fees (2%×10yrs) = $200M vs. $100M fund → Mgmt fees: $20M + Carry (20% of $400M) = $100MPeople underestimate just how much money large venture capital funds make A billion dollar fund that returns 2x in 12 years will make $400M in fees No shortage of people in Silicon Valley that have gotten very wealthy by stacking multiple large funds with subpar returns
- Updated $5bn+ cos Series A list: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d… Added Island (2022), Whatnot (2021), and Shield AI (2017). New count of lead VCs in these deals - a16z (9), Sequoia (7), Benchmark (6), Index (5), Accel (5), Matrix (4), LSVP (4), KV (3)There's a well-known expression in venture capital: "Only a handful of companies per year actually matter" I thought it would be interesting to go back and find the Series A deals that actually "mattered" each year with the benefit of hindsight: 👇docs.google.comSeries A Rounds of $5bn+ cos [Cole Rotman]
- Starting a new series called Waiting Rooms™️ — I will be judging the waiting areas of VC offices. @AbstractVC nails the “quiet luxury” aesthetic. I like the pattern in the concrete floors and the walnut cabinetry. Furniture/art feels curated. Offered a beverage immediately.
- Remember when revenue expectation of a startup raising a Series A was ~$1m ARR? It’s changed a bit now. Usually falls between $0.00 and $100m ARR.
- It cannot be stated enough that in venture capital, the only thing that matters is 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆. This is what I look for, which generally can be deduced from a few meetings: — 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝘆𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗵: ability to discuss every aspect of the
- Was just talking to a legendary VC and he told me his favorite signal — how fast a founder replies to emails on weekends. It’s a nice objective measurement of the fuzzy/qualitative trait VCs love to tout — “I invest in problem-obsessed founders building their life’s work”.
- .@shaunmmaguire had a great breakdown on @tbpn of why Israeli startups have such a strong hiring foundation: (1) physical density of talent (i.e. 50%+ of founders/employees work within a 0.003 square mile radius in an area called Sarona - this doesn't exist even in SF) (2)
- Re: Windsurf At pre-seed, the founder’s vision / idea is just a window into how they think. You can’t take it literally and evaluate the specificities. This is all team, team, team.











