Jason Calacanis

I recently sat down with a group of Forum Ventures founders about to go out to fundraise and the topic of SAFE rounds came up. The context focused on the pros/cons of raising a priced vs a SAFE round and the conversation notably shifted toward the dilution implications of a SAFE round. Founders are keenly aware of the top line dilution of any funding round - ie selling 20% of their startup for $3M at a $15M cap - but very few fully grasp the implications of doing a SAFE round vs a priced round. The universal standard for institutional VC investors is a post money SAFE. This document essentially outlines ownership that an investor will have in a startup just prior to the execution of a priced round. Most importantly though, it is structured so that an investor in that SAFE will not be diluted by subsequent SAFE's that are issued. This is where founder education around the implications of this structure are not fully appreciated. In a situation where a founder continues to stack subsequent SAFEs, they don't actually convert until the first priced round and the net dilution they are taking is actually more than they realize. Here is a practical example - take a situation where a founder has already sold 15% of their business on a post money SAFE in a pre-seed round, and is now choosing to sell another 20% in a seed round. If the founder opts to raise this money on SAFEs, the dilution of that additional 20% will come entirely from common equity holders- meaning they will now own 65%. If SAFE holders were also diluted by that round, as they would be in a priced round, the founder would own 68%. This dynamic becomes more dramatic the more capital a founder raises on SAFEs. Note - this is a high level example and does not include an option pool carve out or other round nuances. Almost universally, when a founder raises their first priced round, there is some degree of sticker shock at the outright dilution on their cap table, particularly when options pools are factored in. This pain is even more acute when a founder has raised a fair amount of capital on SAFEs along the way. There are certainly benefits to raising SAFE round, mainly cash in hand 6-8 weeks faster and not having to decide on board seats too early, but I encourage all of our founders to run through cap table modeling and correctly account for the implications of SAFE rounds before they make fundraising decisions.

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Create Health Ventures Launches Inaugural $21M Fund for Early-Stage Digital Health Startups  Create Health Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on early-stage digital health companies, has closed its debut fund, raising $21 million, surpassing its initial target. Launched in 2024, Create Health Ventures is based in Austin, TX, and Chicago, IL. The firm focuses on technologies that enhance healthcare access, improve patient experiences, and deliver value across payers, providers, and pharmaceutical companies. *Its primary focus includes:   1. Payer-Facing Technologies: Solutions that improve member experiences, enable seamless data and workflow integration, and scale technology across geographies.   2. Clinical Trial Enablement: Tools to help pharmaceutical companies recruit and retain participants for late-stage clinical trials as demand increases. *Founders and Approach:   Create Health Ventures was co-founded by Emma Cartmell and Amit Aysola, healthcare veterans with over 45 years of combined experience. They bring operational expertise, regulatory insight, and an extensive network to portfolio companies. The firm exclusively invests in startups led by healthcare industry founders, leveraging its unique value-added platform for scaling businesses.  *The platform includes: - Business development support   - Access to executive coaches   - Connections to healthcare leaders   - Cross-selling opportunities among portfolio companies  *Key Quotes by GPs:  - Emma Cartmell: “Founders from the healthcare industry understand the challenges and opportunities to improve patient outcomes. Supporting them is the most impactful way we can positively transform healthcare.”   - Amit Aysola: “Payers and pharmaceutical companies are driving demand for connected, scalable solutions, and we are investing in companies to meet these needs.”  *Investments and Impact:  The firm has made five investments so far and partners with foundations, impact investors, and strategic healthcare veterans to mentor portfolio companies.  *Portfolio CEO Feedback:   - Dr. Chip Grant (Watershed Health): “Create Health Ventures has been invaluable in scaling operations and fundraising.”   - Shara Cohen (Carallel): “They are the most collaborative and active investor team I’ve worked with.”   - Neil Batlivala (Pair Team): “They’ve helped us manage growth and reach underserved communities.” If you are experiencing difficulties in raising fresh capital and would require warm introductions to new LPs, contact G+QUANT     ▶ Please use G+QUANT's link for inquiries and fund decks, or send your inquiry directly to [email protected] #VentureCapital #DigitalHealth #HealthcareInnovation #Startups #ClinicalTrials #PatientCare #HealthTech #HealthEquity #CreateHealthVentures

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Did you know that YC founders get a secret weapon… and it’s not what you think. “Bookface” is YC’s internal social network. It was needed because YC had funded larger batches and the hardest part of a community is knowing who is in it and who you can trust and ask for help. On the platform, founders share real methods and advice that would break if it were shared widely It’s secret knowledge shared with a trust-first community - answering 80% of the questions a founder can have about building and selling a product, be it to clients, candidates or investors. Before the platform, if you had a B2B startup, you had to reach out cold to potential customers. Now there are over 1000 YC companies you can sell your service to and all of their contact information is in Bookface. As a result, YC alumni companies are often over 50% of your new sales during YC. It’s superpowers like this that make YC deals so attractive compared to the norm. You are investing in a founder with a 10x network already!

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Huge opportunity

VENTURE STUDIO MYTH:  “Cofounders have less of a stake in the game.” Let’s fact-check. … I look forward to hearing your insights and comments. 😀 False Industry Perception… 🔻 Cofounders get diluted too much and may leave  🔻 Cofounders are not incentivized to remain dedicated 🔻 Cofounders don’t receive a fair reward Venture Studio Facts ✅ Studios grind it out to exit, including fundraising ✅ Studios carry the most risk - investing, building, and launching ✅ Cofounders invest no capital, they are rewarded for growth ✅ Studios are established, experienced startup experts ✅ Founders are 30% more likely to succeed (compared to traditional startups*) - Global Startup Studio Network #venturestudio #startup #myth Nobody Studios

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📣 Announcing Velocity, our new program built specifically for pre-seed founders. 👇 We back you with checks up to $1M, a peer cohort, AI resources, and the flexibility of being fully remote. We’re also teaming up with Microsoft and OpenAI for an AI specific track. Who is right for Velocity? 🌉 Exceptional founders seeking greater Silicon Valley connectivity, whether in SF or  elsewhere 🏗️ Experienced operators starting a company for the first time and seek a strong community  🤖 AI founders who want to learn from brilliant AI luminaries 💸Founders who want an edge when raising an epic seed round What do you get? 💰Capital – Up to a $1M investment from us and our close network of angels and funds 🤝Peer Community – Join like minded founders in masterminds for accountability and peer support 🌐The Village Network – Find customers, experts, and your next investors 💽Microsoft and OpenAI Credits and Resources – Up to $350k in credits from Microsoft for Startups, $10k from OpenAI, and more Ready to build the future? Apply now. 💡 https://lnkd.in/gQn7kP4S

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From documentaries to selling his first SaaS company - here’s how he did it. Jordan started DropFunnels out of frustration.  He was promoting a new documentary–and it became a full-time job. He learned:  ↳ Launching a small business is hard.  ↳ It takes 5 different software tools  ↳ Those tools don’t work well together He decided to streamline the process with 1 platform: DropFunnels Jordan’s strategy? Sell the product before building it. Here’s what he did: 1/ Launched a Facebook group of founders with similar problems  2/ Gave that community free sales funnel templates  3/ Got feedback from users in real-time  4/ Recruited developers from the group  5/ Sold DropFunnels to his community (at a locked rate for life)  6/ Used that profit to build out the company COVID struck, everyone was selling things online and DropFunnels snowballed. Jordan’s business was thriving, but he was itching to build the next thing—so he decided to pursue an acquisition with us. After a competitive process, we found the right buyer who had a plan to keep the company growing without Jordan needing to stick around. Now, Jordan is building Revatto, a tool that’s already reducing churn by 50-70% for his clients & growing 70-90% month-over-month. Jordan’s new goal? A 9-figure exit for Revatto.  Our new goal? Help him achieve that exit. Thanks again for trusting our team Jordan Mederich – cannot wait to see what you build 💪

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"Platform" in VCs often feels undefined, and different at every firm. But one thing is clear: firms with dedicated platform teams are seeing higher investment returns. What is 'Platform' in VC? Think of it as a support engine for portfolio companies. Platform teams accelerate growth by providing: 1) Strategy & Growth 2) Talent Partner 3) Marketing & Brand Partner 4) Business Development & Partnerships Lead 5) Community Manager 6) Operations & Scaling Partner 7) Fundraising & Capital Advisor Platform in Venture Studios vs. VC Funds: The big difference? Timeframe. Venture Studio Platform: Involved from concept to exit, guiding startups from the very first spark of an idea. VC Platform: Steps in after the startup is funded, focusing on scaling and growth but not the initial concept phase. Both play critical roles—but understanding these distinctions helps founders and investors make the most of their platform relationships.

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New ideas are always exciting, the key is to validate that it’s not just an idea but a real problem. You can only do that by talking to customers.

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The best founders can turn off emotions when making complex decisions. If you can hone this skill, you should.

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How can founders better prep themselves for early stage VC meetings? 🤔 Bill Georges partner at AlleyCorp tells me how founders need to PREP PREP PREP ✨ Address the top button early stage: 1️⃣ What's your founder story? 2️⃣ What's your go to market strategy? 3️⃣ What your product development strategy? 4️⃣ How big do you think this can get AND over what period of time? *Understand what your VC is looking for, and really try to understand their culture* ▶ https://lnkd.in/dZvciK2w Check out the entire episode of Digital Health Heavyweights Podcast and SUBSCRIBE ON YOUTUBE 🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️💨💨

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Bold prediction for 2025: Investors will pay founders to access their venture data. Founders own their data and grant access to investors for a fee. This shift promotes transparency, trust, and efficiency in fundraising, while giving startups a new revenue stream.

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Fundraising founders, don’t be too hard on yourself—it’s a tough fundraising environment, and that’s no secret. But remember to keep raising your standards because the bar for VC funding is getting higher, and you’ve got to meet it. As the venture capital landscape tightens, competition for dollars is fiercer than ever. At Startup Ignition Ventures, we’re seeing this shift firsthand, every day more and more apparent. In 2021 and 2022, many startups could secure VC checks despite being loosely thrown together and rough around the edges. Fast forward to 2024, and those same startups wouldn’t make the cut. That's not a knock on yesterday's startups as much as it is a contrast to today’s fundraising environment being completely different. Today, the founders getting funded are buttoned-up, detail-oriented, and operating at a much higher level. Everything has to be top-notch to catch a VC’s attention. Why the change? The number of active investors has dropped by 38% from 2022 to 2024 (PitchBook), meaning fewer deals are being made. VC funding is also down over 30% year-over-year (GlobalData). This means the standard has tightened, and startups must rise well above the average “2022 or 2023 fundability status” to secure 2024 investment. Startups now need to show exceptional business models, traction, products, and teams to stand out in a shrinking pool of opportunities. The landscape may be tough, but it’s also ripe for startups that prove they’re exceptional. Now is the time to build, to gear up, and then be ready for further opportunity as the market begins to turn. Which I personally think is around the corner in 2025.

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Founders, you're losing deals by not having a clear discovery call plan. I've seen this a lot where founders looking to scale up their early sales efforts are going into it thinking the product will get them through the sale In most cases, this isn't the truth You need to have some sort of framework to make the selling motion more repeatable Instead of demo'ing the product, try learning more about them and their challenges first. Your goal should be to know enough to build a customized demo for them. This will help in building solid relationships, build value throughout the process and likely speed up deals on the back end of it. If you don't know where to start, hit me up and I'm happy to lay out some early sales structure for founders! Go crush it out there 🤙

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What is cap table debt & how does it hurt startup founders? Cap tables need to reflect all current and potential shareholders (which includes investors who signed a SAFE or convertible note). Because of the complexity of vesting schedules, repurchase rights, options vs. shares, the variable nature of ownership calculations with convertible instruments, etc., the simple spreadsheets used by most founders are woefully inadequate. We dive deep into the topic of cap table debt and show why founders need to stop using spreadsheets to track your startup cap table in our webinar on "Best Practices with Founder Equity and Cap Tables". You can watch a replay of this webinar here: https://lnkd.in/giHWZkWS

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💡 Buy vs. Build: The Tech Dilemma Every Founder Faces In my latest episode with Phillip McGlade, the CEO of Thérapie Clinic & Thérapie Fertility, we dove into a lesson every entrepreneur needs to hear: Phillip once decided to build a custom tech system for his business. The result? It didn’t work. His takeaway? 👉 Sometimes, it’s better (and cheaper) to buy proven solutions than to reinvent the wheel. "Stick to your zone of genius. Focus on what you do best and let the experts handle the rest." This one decision can save you time, money, and a whole lot of headaches. 🎧 Hear Phillip’s full story and learn why he now chooses to buy tech, not build - linked in comments below. #Founders #Entrepreneurship #TechStrategy #LessonsLearned

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