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Congratulations to our partner Chris Rizik, founder and CEO of Renaissance Venture Capital, on receiving the Venture Vanguard Award—the nation's highest honor in venture capital—presented by the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA)! 🎉 Chris’s impact on the startup ecosystem, particularly in Michigan and throughout the Midwest, has been nothing short of transformative. From pioneering a first-of-its-kind fund of funds to bridging underserved regions with national and global investors, his leadership has helped shape venture success stories across Michigan, Ohio, Texas, and Wisconsin. The success of Renaissance’s UnDemo Day® as a national model for startup-investor engagement speaks volumes about his vision and commitment. This recognition is not just a milestone for Chris and Renaissance, but also a testament to the growing influence of Michigan and the Midwest as a thriving hub for innovation and venture capital. Chris will be formally honored as part of the 2025 Venture Vanguard class at the NVCA Leadership Awards Dinner, held on June 5, 2025, at the Rosewood Hotel in Menlo Park, California. The ceremony—presented by platinum sponsors EY Private and SVB, a division of First Citizens Bank—will celebrate leaders who have transformed the venture capital industry and fueled America's innovation economy.🎖️ Congratulations once again, Chris! Your contributions continue to inspire entrepreneurs, investors, and the entire startup ecosystem. 🚀👏 #StartupEcosystem #Innovation #michigan #MidwestStartups #Entrepreneurship

🦄 It will take 30 years for every U.S. company on The Crunchbase Unicorn Board to go public or be acquired if the current pace of #startup exits persists. And that's an improvement from when last measured nearly a year ago, when the unicorn backlog stood at 49 years. 🦄 With the tech IPO market mostly frozen at the moment, public markets likely won’t be providing returns in the near term. As for M&A, large-cap tech acquirers certainly have the cash for unicorn-scale acquisitions....We shall see! Meanwhile, for startups, this means: 1. Extended Exit Timelines: The protracted timeline for exits means startups may need to operate independently for longer periods, requiring sustained funding and robust business models to remain viable over extended durations. 2. Shift in Investor Expectations: Investors are likely to prioritize startups that demonstrate clear paths to profitability and sustainable growth, rather than those relying solely on high valuations or rapid scaling. 3. Emphasis on Capital Efficiency: The emergence of "lean AI unicorns" (startups achieving significant valuations with minimal teams) underscores the importance of capital efficiency. Startups are encouraged to leverage automation and focus on core competencies to maximize output with limited resources. 4. Sector-Specific Hot Spots: Despite the overall slowdown, sectors like AI, cybersecurity, and health tech continue to attract substantial investment. For instance, AI-powered cybersecurity startups have raised over $2.6 billion, nearly tripling the previous year's figures. 5. Increased Scrutiny on Valuations: The disparity between high valuations and actual exit values suggests that startups should be cautious of overvaluation and focus on building intrinsic value. https://lnkd.in/emrryr8h

📢 Want to take your company from steady sales to explosive growth? Marketing fills your pipeline, but branding is what drives exponential success. In this masterclass, experienced CEO + founder Jeff Hoffman will break down: ✅ How to shape your brand ✅ How to craft a powerful brand promise ✅ How to identify your key brand asset ✅ How to shift from outbound sales to inbound demand (with lower acquisition costs!) 📍 Join us at GEC and learn how to build a brand that sells itself. 🔗 Register now at www.gec.co #TheBoldChangeTheWorld

🚨 Calling on university-affiliated ventures! The Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) is launching the Dual-Use University Accelerator Challenge — a 12-week program to help early-stage startups break into the defense market. Who Should Apply? -U.S. startups founded by students, faculty, staff, or recent grads (within 18 months) -Pre-seed/seed stage (TRL 2–4) -No prior DoD contracts -Non-traditional defense contractors 💰 $500K in prizes + expert mentorship + DoD access. 📅 Full details drop May 2025. 📩 Questions? PrizeChallenge@diu.mil 👉 One-pager attached. Ariel Fanger #DIU #DefenseTech #StartupChallenge #DualUseInnovation

Is your innovation ready for liftoff? 🚀 The 2025 #EntrepreneurshipWorldCup has new prizes for space tech companies. 🛰️ Apply today: https://lnkd.in/dqxYcxu 🏆

🎯 The Great Startup Valuation Delusion Let's talk about startup valuations. Since the beginning of 2025 I have personally watched over 500 pitches, I have seen it all. You know, those magical startups valuation numbers floating around LinkedIn, especially those fancy charts from Carta showing what early-stage companies are "worth" based on their funding rounds. After years of biting my tongue, I've got to say it: This whole thing is crazy, insane, preposterous, absurd, oxymoronic and any other harsh word I could find.  As a VC, I'm watching my industry fellows collectively losing their minds. I'd use stronger words, but my thesaurus just burst into flames. Someone must say it out loud! now! Some hard truths: • 90% of startups fail. That's not pessimism – that's math. • Today's market: M&A is crawling, IPOs are unicorn-rare, and late-stage VCs are sitting tight. • Yet pre-revenue startups still expect $10M valuations. Why? Because "everyone else is getting it." One founder (I know personally) that shut down his startup after raising $85M put it perfectly: "I didn't realize I was being set up to fail until it was too late. That $80M valuation wasn't a compliment - it was a hurdle I could never overcome." High early stage valuation is not necessarily a good thing. Think again. Remember this: Valuation isn't validation – it's a promise you'll have to keep Choose investors who'll stick around for down rounds, not just up rounds A reasonable valuation gives you room to stumble and recover To founders: Your pre-revenue startup likely isn't worth $10M or even $5M. Without angels willing to bet on you, that brilliant idea is worth $0.00. To my fellow investors: STOP enabling this nonsense. You're not doing anyone any favors , especially to yourself by playing along. Put down the crazy pills and pick up a calculator. Remember those things called fundamentals? Yeah, they still matter. This isn't crypto in 2021 – we're supposed to be building real businesses here. It's time we all sobered up and brought startup valuations back to reality. Let's guide founders back to the land of actual business metrics and sustainable growth. Because right now? We're just playing fantasy football with term sheets. See You on the court. #VentureCapital #StartupAdvice #Entrepreneurship #VCFunding #RealTalk #founders #founder #startup #angels #angelinvestor #angelinvesting Varnum LLP Young Basile Hanlon & MacFarlane, P.C. StartupNation CitySide Ventures Birmingham Angels Rehmann Tim Moore Michael Plocher Nicola Reasoner Thoughts? 👇