The article provides insights from several experts in the venture capital and startup industry about their predictions for 2025. Here are some of the key points:
Trends that will continue:
- The focus on AI and hard technology will continue, with a growing interest in areas like bio, tech, and hardware.
- Venture capitalists will prioritize paths to profitability and sustainable business models over growth-at-all-costs investments.
- LPs (limited partners) will think more critically about how they select managers and construct their portfolios.
Trends that will decline:
- The "spray-and-pray" investment approach, where investors throw money at many startups without much due diligence, is expected to decline.
- Consumer tech may see a resurgence in popularity as AI creates new opportunities for consumer applications.
- The perceived short list of winners in the AI space will continue to command significant investor attention.
Unexpected events:
- Some big-name unicorns may face mergers or closures due to lack of growth and cash reserves.
- A significant climate-related disaster, geopolitical conflict, or economic shock could fundamentally reshape the startup and VC landscape.
- OpenAI could convert to a for-profit entity just for Microsoft to acquire it in the largest acquisition ever.
Key quotes:
- "We’re already seeing some consolidation, and this will likely accelerate into 2025." – Ken Cohn (Cazeau)
- "A significant climate-related disaster, geopolitical conflict, or economic shock has the potential to fundamentally reshape the startup and VC landscape." – Linamai
- "A surge in venture dollars looking at hard technology, as software becomes commoditized due to generative AI. Hard tech as defined by bio, tech, hardware, other forms of deep tech taking center stage." – Basch
