Is the problem meaningful?
Understand the customer, the current alternative, and why the need matters. A clear problem helps put the proposed solution into context.
Our investment approach
A clear-eyed view.
A long-term perspective.
Our evaluation starts with business fundamentals. We examine the opportunity, the assumptions behind it, and how a capital relationship could support the next stage.
01 / OUR INVESTMENT LENSFour questions
Four questions
worth spending time on.
A useful starting framework for understanding a business. The depth and scope of evaluation depend on the opportunity.
Why this approach, and why this team?
Explore the team’s insight, experience, and ability to translate understanding into a product or service customers value.
What does the evidence show?
Separate demonstrated progress from assumptions. Consider customer feedback, product adoption, business economics, and the next questions to resolve.
What can capital make possible?
Connect the investment to a meaningful milestone, then examine the expectations and responsibilities of the relationship.
From introduction to alignment
A thoughtful conversation
has a clear progression.
The path and timing vary with each opportunity.
Introduce
A concise overview of the company, the problem, the team, and the purpose of the conversation.
Explore
A closer discussion of the business, the evidence so far, and the questions that deserve further attention.
Evaluate
If there is mutual interest, a deeper review of the opportunity and the proposed capital relationship.
Align
Discuss the investment structure, expectations, and next steps before any commitment.
02 / A USEFUL FIRST CONVERSATIONClarity helps
Clarity helps
both sides.
We want to understand where you are today, as well as where you want to go.
A concise introduction is more useful than a long document that leaves the central questions unanswered. Describe what the company does, who it serves, what you have learned, and what comes next.
For capital partners, start with your investment objectives and the scope of the relationship you are considering. Specific investment criteria and arrangements are discussed in context.
Prepare a conversationA deeper review
Turn broad claims
into specific questions.
The scope of a review depends on the company, the available evidence, and the proposed investment.
| Area of review | What we explore | What can make the discussion concrete |
|---|---|---|
| Customer & market | The buyer, user, current alternative, and the reasons a customer would act. | Customer conversations, buying processes, product usage, retention, and the context behind lost opportunities. |
| Product & technology | How the product delivers its result and what is required to operate it reliably. | A workflow demonstration, architecture overview, dependencies, integration needs, and known limitations. |
| Business economics | How value becomes revenue, and what it costs to create and deliver that value. | Pricing, delivery costs, customer acquisition, support requirements, cash needs, and the assumptions in the operating plan. |
| People & execution | Relevant experience, responsibilities, and the capabilities needed for the next milestone. | A clear team overview, decision ownership, hiring priorities, and a realistic account of capability gaps. |
| Risk & dependencies | What could interrupt adoption, weaken differentiation, or change the investment case. | Customer concentration, platform reliance, operating constraints, and alternative plans if key assumptions change. |
| Capital & alignment | How the capital supports the plan and how the relationship would be structured. | Use of funds, milestones, proposed terms, information expectations, and responsibilities. |
What makes evidence useful
Context matters as much as the headline. Explain the period, customer group, or sample behind a result, distinguish recurring activity from one-off events, and show where the evidence is still incomplete.
Evidence appropriate to the stageDifferent stages.
Different stages.
Different proof points.
At pre-seed, customer discovery and a focused prototype may be the most useful evidence. At seed, we examine adoption, product usage, and the path to a paying customer. At seed+, the discussion moves toward repeatable delivery, retention, and business economics. We consider what the company can reasonably demonstrate today and what the next investment should help establish.
Read our early-stage perspectiveA different perspective
starts a conversation.
For founders building a business and capital partners thinking about what comes next.
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