The article is an interview with Andy McLoughlin, the co-founder of Uncork Capital, a venture capital firm that invests in startups. The conversation covers various topics related to the startup ecosystem and the current state of venture capital.
Here are some key points from the article:
- Insight into the company’s investment strategy: McLoughlin talks about how Uncork Capital focuses on investing in B2B software companies, with a particular emphasis on those that have a strong understanding of their market and can scale quickly.
- Shifts in the startup ecosystem: McLoughlin predicts a "bloodbath" in 2024 due to a surplus of startups trying to raise capital while there is less cash available. He also notes that many smaller seed funds will struggle to find new investors as they have burned through their initial capital too quickly.
- Operator VCs facing pressure: McLoughlin believes that operator VCs, who are venture capitalists with industry experience, will face increasing pressure from their companies and board members to focus on their own businesses rather than investing in startups.
- Series A firms moving downmarket: He predicts that Series A funds will continue to move downmarket, with many launching seed programs to invest in earlier-stage companies.
Some notable quotes from the article include:
- "I think a lot of operator VCs are probably going to get pressure from their companies and their board members to be focused on their [own] businesses."
- "Every Series A fund now has a seed program. But for us, that’s where the opportunities lie because we know we can beat them when we move quickly."
- "Companies that probably should have been fundraising this year are going to try to go out in 2024 or 2025 [to avoid a down round], but there’s going to be more businesses raising than there is cash to go around."
