Prediction certainty 3/5 debate potential 3/5

Chirls: Non-institutional VCs will win more founders over next decade

Nicholas Chirls · Nicholas Chirls: Why Big VCs Ruin Startups, VC is a Ponzi Scheme Today & Most VCs are Bankers |E1198 · 20VC with Harry Stebbings · Sep 6, 2024 · at 1:04:14

Nicholas Chirls is the founder of Asylum Ventures. He argues against the trend of venture capital firms institutionalizing, predicting founders will prefer anti-institutional investors.

0:00 / 0:27exact quote · 27.0s
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“I believe actually the less institutional and banker-like you can look to founders over the next decade, the more likely you are to win. So I think that the most of venture is deeply focused on becoming institutional. It feels more professional. I think the more you can avoid that, In the next 10 years the better.”

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Prediction Open · timeframe Sep 2029
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Assertion Not checkable as stated
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Assertion Partly supported
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Insight
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