The Data Minute

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Rex Salisbury (Founding GP, Cambrian Ventures) to discuss what’s developing in the fintech space, GPs calling more capital, and Rex’s idea on how to get into the tech industry.

This conversation also covers Rex’s personal cheat sheet explaining why someone shouldn’t be a VC, and should instead start a career in tech or become a founder.

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk: https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:

00:00 Intro
01:07 State of pre-seed and seed markets
03:16 Comparing SaSS and fintech valuations
06:34 The value of specialized funds
08:52 Best places for early-stage fintech founders
13:13 How are founders thinking about hiring?
19:01 Should founders care about GP deployments?
24:15 Are LPs rotating away from venture?
27:19 The allure of going public
28:11 Rex’s cheat sheet on getting into VC
36:30 Why do so many MBAs want to be VCs?
39:14 When will we have a $1B company with one employee
41:20 Outro

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by David Willbrand (Chief Legal Officer, Pacaso) for a wide-ranging conversation on fundraising with SAFEs, liquidation preferences, and the relationship between founders and lawyers. 

What started as a discussion on the technical aspects of raising a SAFE, late-stage liquidation outcomes, and other fundraising topics turned into an examination of the founder/lawyer relationship with one of the world’s top experts on the subject. It’s a unique look at a partnership that you don’t want to miss. 

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk: https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:
00:16 Intro
02:01 Are SAFEs properly understood?
07:41 What should founders know before a priced round?
13:30 Valuation caps and discounts
20:30 How much should liquidation preferences matter?
32:02 Exploring the value of counsel to founders
41:41 The shifting perception on founder secondaries 
47:09 Outro

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Charles Hudson (Managing Partner and Founder, Precursor Ventures and writer of the Venture Reflections Substack - chudson.substack.com) for a deep discussion about pre-seed deals, the differences between multi-stage and small funds, and the types of investing that work in this AI dominated market. 

They also cover SAFEs, how pre-seed investing has changed, Charles' time in the National Venture Capital Association, and how what happens in Washington can affect emerging managers nationwide.

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk: https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:
00:00 Welcome
1:42 Intro to Precursor Ventures
7:06 The changes in pre-seed syndication
13:38 Setting aside reserves in funding
15:23 Competing with multi-stage funds
19:12 Distinctions in AI funding 
23:09 Making the case for small funds
30:51 SAFEs and priced rounds
37:47 Handling LP concerns
39:34 Secondary selling and liquidity 
43:24 Speed round questions
43:29 Most interesting sector or subsector for investment?
44:12 Most unique way that a GP has brought value to a portco?
45:45 The one question more founders should ask in fundraising?
48:16 The National Venture Capital Association

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) and Waseem Daher (Co-founder and CEO, Pilot) discuss all things financial for early-stage startups. They go deep on founders' salaries, those important calculations every startup should know, like burn rate and runway, as well as building a startup in different interest rate environments.

Throughout this episode, you'll hear references to Pilot's incredible founder salary report, which you should check out here: https://pilot.com/report/founder-salary-2024

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk: https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:
00:00 Welcome
1:43 Intro to Pilot
2:56 Founder salary report overview
6:15 Founder salaries by location and team
7:44 The AI founder market
10:12 Common questions on founder salaries and financials 
11:58 Managing burn rate
12:51 Runway timelines
16:36 Difference in the pre and post-zero interest rate era 
18:54 Discussing layoffs
21:02 The emphasis on different metrics
22:14 What does “line of sight" mean?
24:25 Advice for founders
27:05 The capital light VC
29:11 Closing thoughts

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Kate Shillo Beardsley (Founding Partner, Hannah Grey) for a wide-ranging conversation on VC, private equity, investor trends, and the chasm between seed stage startups and those that make it to series.

This jam-packed conversation also includes a debate on priced rounds versus SAFEs, the importance of a founder’s DNA over where they are located, and, of course, AI.

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk: https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:
00:00 Welcome
03:29 Intro to Hannah Grey
04:44 How are a VC or thesis and a sector different?
07:02 Discovering and identifying trends
10:11 Leading vs. following in investing
15:25 Priced rounds, SAFEs, and leverage
21:22 Developing an AI thesis 
25:42 The Series A Chasm
32:10 Is it easier to build a business today with less cash?
34:47 Difference in founder mindset by geography
37:16 The thesis Kate is most excited about right now
39:26 Most unique way a fund has brought value to a portco
42:22 The number one question founders should ask during fundraising 
45:28 When does venture stop being positive?

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this episode, Peter reads a few of your most pressing questions for a special pre-seed focused Data Minute Q&A.

Using information from the State of Pre-Seed: Q1 2024 report, Peter uses five charts to answer five questions related to pre-seed fundraising.

Learn about:

How pre-seed funding is faring in this market
SAFEs and convertible notes
Valuation caps and your business

You can access this data and more with our State of Pre-Seed: Q1 2024 report, which you can read here: https://carta.com/blog/state-of-pre-s...

Plus, if you want us to answer your question on the Data Minute, send us an email to [email protected]

Also, if you’re a pre-seed founder, you can start building your cap table and fundraise with SAFEs for free on Carta Launch. Learn more here: https://carta.com/launch

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:35 How is pre-seed funding faring in this venture capital downturn?
01:24 What sorts of instruments are pre-seed founders fundraising on?
02:11 What kind of SAFE should I use?
03:43 What are the key terms of a SAFE that I need to understand?
04:51 What valuation cap should I choose for my business?
06:26 Final thoughts

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this week’s episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Darcy Casarella (Director of Talent, NEA) for a wide-ranging discussion all about how founders should think about compensation and how to structure teams.

Hiring at startups is down and compensation trends are shifting, so it's a perfect time to talk to an expert that advises many startup founders at New Enterprise Associates.

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk: https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
1:50 The role of a talent team at a VC fund
9:14 When do most people bring in an in-house recruiter? 
11:35 Chart: Q1 hiring
16:25 Is there a difference in the kinds of people that are being hired more frequently? Fractional execs
19:50 Compensation for fractional execs
23:47 Is fractional better suited for certain functions over others?
25:48 Do startups promote well?
29:37 Why is it so much easier for equity comp to change than salary comp?
34:22 Salary vs. equity comp at the exec level

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this week’s episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Darren Cooke (Executive Director, Berkeley Life Sciences Entrepreneurship Center) for an enlightening discussion about some emerging trends with biotech companies: Namely, while pharma and biotech currently rank as the 5th most-funded type of pre-seed startups, they simultaneously enjoy favorable valuations to other SaaS-type businesses.

This leads Peter and Darren into a conversation about biotech, the challenges and differences for biotech founders when raising seed capital, and of course, Darren’s history and experience leading Berkeley’s accelerator program, SkyDeck — one of the most celebrated accelerators in the startup world.

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter:
https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk:
https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:44 Darren Cooke, Berkeley Life Sciences Entrepreneurship Center
02:05 Berkeley SkyDeck
04:39 The pre-seed experience for biotech companies
08:22 Regulation, reimbursement, and outside funding
10:29 Round sizes in the biotech industry
12:27 Investor interest in biotech
16:42 The five stakeholders biotech companies need to know
21:15 Pre-seed fundraising and priced rounds
23:27 Demo day
25:52 Words of advice

This presentation contains general information only and eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”) is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services, and is for informational purposes only.  This presentation is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. © 2024 eShares, Inc., dba Carta, Inc. All rights reserved.

In this episode of The Data Minute podcast, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Mendel Chuang (GP at Acquired Wisdom Fund) for a wide-ranging discussion around two interesting trends in Carta’s data:

• How valuation caps have been changing over time since Q1 2022

• The percentage of seed rounds that are priced, by raise amount

Along the way, Peter and Mendel share insights and perspectives on countless issues in venture — from how often founders should update their investors, to what Mendel looks for in a company valuation-wise, the mentality of pre-seed VCs, and more.

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Explore interactive startup and VC data, with Carta’s Data Desk: https://carta.com/data-desk/

Chapters:
00:24 Intro
01:15 Mendel Chuang and Acquired Wisdom Fund
06:22 Differences between pre-seed and seed rounds
09:02 Chart: Median raise for a priced seed round
14:30 SAFEs, side letters, and investor updates
17:58 The importance of having a founder network
21:18 On founders and accelerators
23:22 SAFEs and convertible notes
27:26 Raising capital, AI, and being a leader in a space
29:40 Chart: How valuation caps have been trending lately
35:18 Advice for founders on the pre-seed VC market

In this episode of The Data Minute, join Peter as he breaks down five charts from Carta's recent State of Compensation Report to answer five of the most common founder questions related to startup compensation today. 

Using anonymized, aggregated data from Carta's Total Compensation tool, Peter dives deep into:

• Startup hiring and layoffs
• Equity and salary compensation compared to previous years
• The state of remote work at U.S. startups

You can access this data and more with our State of Startup Compensation report, which you can read at the link below. And if you have a question you'd like Peter to answer on the Data Minute, send us an email at [email protected].

Read the State of Startup Compensation report: https://carta.com/blog/startup-compensation-h2-2023/

Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.com/subscribe/data-newsletter-sign-up/

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
01:13 Are startups still hiring?
02:15 Who got hit in startup layoffs?
03:25 How is salary trending across private startups?
04:38 What is happening to equity compensation?
06:00 What is the state of remote work at U.S. startups?
07:10 Final thoughts