All A👀s on YCombinator's newest wishlist
Feb 21, 2024
Kaley Ubellacker
Market Stirrings 🚩
Here's what the week looked like in pre-seed:
Data aggregated from proprietary research and Crunchbase; valuation estimate based on 10-20% ownership stake.
Hot off the Press♨️
If you’re a biotech nerd, or even remotely curious about what’s going on in the sector, the time has come. Check out the Necessary Ventures’ Biotech Watch List on our blog, covering emerging trends like KRAS therapeutics, EGFR inhibitors, APRIL, and others. If you don’t know what any of those acronyms mean, there’s only one way to find out.
VCs are adopting more infants – as in early stage startups, not screaming babies. As of the end of 2023, invested capital in pre-seed stage companies is up 51% compared to 2021, which is over 30% greater than the next most funded stage, seed rounds on SAFEs. It isn’t a tale of the tortoise and the hare either. Since 2021, pre-seed has attracted capital at a steadily accelerating rate compared to seed and later stages.
Good Reads 📖
For the rushed reader …
In its latest Request for Startup list, YCombinator is calling for startups focused on spatial computing, AI, climate tech, healthcare, and defense tech – quite the charcuterie board.
For the less rushed reader …
THE AI LIST: Forget the nursery myth about stranger danger; this could be the one time you want to pick up the phone from an unknown number. In its latest Request for Startup list, YCombinator is calling for startups focused on spatial computing, AI, climate tech, healthcare, and defense tech – quite the charcuterie board. Most digital currencies and crypto were not invited back to the YC party, except for one request for stablecoin finance. The list provides a temperature check on where investors might be likely to allocate the most funding, but YC will accept startups outside their sector menu. For those jumping towards a YC application, I’ll end with a quote from YC co-founder Paul Graham, “It’s hard to do a really good job on anything you don’t think about in the shower.” Don’t stink; go shower.
WALK IN THE P(ARC): On the hunt for a binge-worthy read? This character has an Arc well-worth following – in fact, that’s the name of the startup. Necessary Ventures’ portfolio company Arc is making waves with a launch for its next-level, all-electric sports boat, faster and more powerful than most boats in the wake sports segment. In its most recent model, Arc blended aerospace engineering with EV tech and advanced software, programming in over-the-air software updates that keep the system freaky fresh. Check out coverage in CNBC, Axios, Electrek, The Verge, Boating Mag, CleanTechnica, etc. Time to wake up, and smell the sea salt.
VIDEO STAR: I’m Sora-y if this is the 8th time you’re reading about Sora this week, but who would we be if we didn’t include the buzziest piece of news out there? OpenAI’s new groove is a text-to-video app called Sora that can create hyper realistic videos from just a few words. Currently available to only a few creators and security experts, researchers have said Sora requires a decent amount of effort and prompt engineering to craft the desired output. However, Sora is learning fast and is able to adapt to 3D geometry and consistency faster than any animation wizard. As eager as everyone is to get their hands on it, it will be interesting to see what next years’ Oscars hold – step aside, Leonardo DiCaprio.
Fire Up the Pre-Seeds🔥
Highlights from this week’s pre-seed raises:
Climatetech
Pathways - Construction on a no carbon diet
The Problem: Buildings are responsible for 39% of energy-related carbon emissions, and manufacturers need to keep carbon receipts.
The Tech: Software that automates construction paper filing and helps track the carbon trail.
Recently Raised: $2.5 million in funding led by Pi Labs and Zacua Ventures.
Also Note: The new capital injection brings its total funding to $2.7 million across two rounds, including backing from 10 investors to date.
HEALTHTECH
Mika Health - Medical bags full of Benjamins
The Problem: Health data is hiding. Within the US, there are $400 billion of health spending that are never fully recorded.
The Tech: A dashboard that covers all the dirty work by providing medical centers with a detailed analysis of their expenses and consumption.
Recently Raised: Undisclosed amount of funding led by 17Sigma.
Also Note: In terms of waste, the medical sector is a massive polluter, clocking in at 8.5% of greenhouse gas emissions in the US.
Outro🚪
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Thanks for reading, and see you next week!
