Ben Horowitz's $46B of Hard Truths🔥, AI Will Not Make You Rich🤖, The Great IPO Awakening📈

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Sep 21, 2025

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In-Depth Insights 🔍

The Venture Capital Method: Valuation Without Guesswork 📊
VCs back into valuations from exit targets and required returns, not gut calls. This guide breaks down the math, dilution mechanics, and gives founders an Excel model to negotiate with precision

AI Will Not Make You Rich 🤖
Generative AI is unfolding in a mature market where incumbents capture most value. Wealth accrues downstream to consumers and cost-cutters, leaving thin upside outside infrastructure and rare plays. [Colossus]
The Standard Capital Series A Framework 📑
A fixed set of Series A documents now aims to streamline venture fundraising. Standardized terms balance founder and investor interests while cutting down negotiation time. [Standard Capital]
The Great IPO Awakening: Real Comeback or False Dawn 📈
Six IPOs raised $4.4B in a week, the busiest stretch since 2021. Today’s deals lean on fundamentals and conservative pricing, with Stripe, Databricks, and Canva still in the pipeline. [SaaStr]
Bolt’s $40M ARR Pivot: Browser Becomes the Server ⚡
StackBlitz nearly folded before pivoting to Bolt, an AI app builder powered by WebContainer. Running Node.js fully in-browser turned a near-shutdown into $40M ARR within a year. [Lior Neu-ner]
OpenAI vs Anthropic: The Real Battle in Credit Card Data 📊
Ramp data shows OpenAI at 36.5% adoption and Anthropic at 12.1%, with Anthropic gaining faster. These figures only capture card-based purchases, not the massive enterprise contracts that set the market. [SaaStr]
$46B of Hard Truths: Ben Horowitz on Fear and Greatness🔥
Horowitz argues great CEOs run toward fear and win by stacking hard choices. From Adam Neumann bets to hip-hop pensions, his playbook rejects startup clichés in favor of talent and resilience. [Lenny’s Newsletter.]
$40M in 20 Days: Fyxer’s Fundraising Sprint ⚡
Fyxer closed a $40M Series B in less than 3 weeks by running fundraising like a sprint. Strict deadlines, staged data drops, and narrative control gave them leverage and speed. [Fyxer]

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Social Media Gems 💎

The Ultimate Startup Investor Database Goes Live 📊
A new database of 10,000+ VCs, angels, family offices, and accelerators is now available. Sorted by stage, geography, and sector, it provides founders direct access to investors

YouTube CEO Neal Mohan on Building a Stage for Creators 🎥
In a Stratechery interview, Mohan outlined updates like Veo 3 video creation and smarter podcast features. His vision is to empower creators with AI while expanding monetization and living room reach. [Stratechery]
Inside Oracle OpenAI’s $300B Illusionary Deal 🌀
Oracle’s stock jumped $100B on a $300B commitment tied to future infrastructure. Investors see the circular money flow but continue backing it to avoid being first out. [Abdu Khol]
Paul Graham’s Ultimate Founder Trait: Relentless Resourcefulness 🛠️
Great founders succeed by solving problems without maps, relying on grit and creativity. In chaotic startup environments, adaptability drives progress and can be developed over time. [Ruben Dominguez Ibar]
Why Startups Really Fail: Not Products but GTM ❌
90% of startups collapse, yet only 8% fail from bad products. Go-to-market mistakes, missed signals, and isolation from customers remain the biggest killers. [The VC Corner]
AI First Startup Artisan’s Decks 💵
Artisan closed $2.3M with its pitch deck, then raised $12M post-YC and $25M Series A. With 250 customers, $5M ARR, and 40+ hires, it is reshaping marketing workflows
Floot (YC S25) Races to $46K MRR with Vibecoding ⚡
The no-code platform reached 500 customers in 2 months, growing 300% MoM. Built by ex-Retool and SaaS veterans, Floot delivers production-ready AI code for serious apps.

New Funds 💰

BNVT Capital launches its debut $150M fund to back early-stage startups.
T.Rx Capital announces Fund I with $77.5M focused on healthcare innovation.
VoLo Earth closes Fund II at $135M to support climate tech and sustainability ventures.
OneWorld Alliance Airlines & Breakthrough Energy Ventures launch a joint fund to advance and commercialize sustainable aviation fuel technologies.
Summit Peak Ventures raising $150M for its fourth venture fund.
Crane Venture Partners launches its $135M APAC I fund targeting enterprise software startups.
Robinhood rolled out its first venture capital fund to back private companies, expanding beyond retail investing.
Glilot Capital closed a $500M fund to target investments in AI and cybersecurity, reinforcing its deep tech focus.
Octave Capital & Katapult Ocean launched Asia’s largest $75M ocean-focused impact fund during Impact Week 2025.
Vastpoint introduced an €18M Polish fund led by ex-entrepreneurs from ElevenLabs and Y Combinator to back early-stage startups.
Credit Saison unveiled a $50M blockchain-focused VC fund to support Web3 and decentralised finance innovation.

That’s a wrap for this week.

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