Tale of two cities: some startups raise tens of millions in 5 weeks, others stall at 100 meetings

dunkhippo33 · x · 2026-10-09

Investor dunkhippo33 (Delian Asparouhov) describes a tale of two fundraising markets: some companies easily raise tens of millions in under 5 weeks from fewer than 100 investors, while everyone else still lives by the old rules.

His advice: investors have no reason to commit now if they can get in later at the same price, so founders must create urgency; a common mistake is pitching investors who invest at a later stage than you — hard to detect since most VC websites look alike; and if you've taken 100 meetings without closing, pause, internalize the feedback, and go build more product or revenue progress before reevaluating.

Related event: VCs Revive the 5-100-500 Seed Fundraising Rule(3 posts)→

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