Friday Five
Venture capital is resetting its bets this week. Funds are settling for a reliable 4x return instead of chasing 10x shots. Sequoia closed the scouts program that found Uber and Stripe. China's AI startups are collapsing under valuations their revenue cannot support. The pattern is consistent: investors now demand proof of paying customers before they fund growth.
Scout's Pick — Outlier
Some investors still hold out for the 10x outcome
Against the shift toward dependable 4x returns, some backers still underwrite rare outsized wins, so the reset remains incomplete.
Source: Adjacent
Sequoia retreats from two decades of expansion
Closing the scouts program that surfaced Uber and Stripe trades broad early bets for companies with proven traction.
Source: Adjacent
Investors now price uncertainty instead of funding around it
As capital tightens, unknowns shift from upside to risk. Verified revenue is now required for a term sheet.
Source: Adjacent
China's AI startups fall under valuations revenue cannot carry
China shows where unchecked valuations end: funding dries up once customer revenue cannot support the price. That test is now everywhere.
Source: Adjacent
Agencies are tracking visibility while clients pay for revenue
The same demand for proof reaches agencies, where rankings and visibility scores matter less than measurable returns clients will pay for.
Source: Adjacent
6 themes · 264 signals · 96 sources
Signals from adjacent fields
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