The Data Minute

What actually separates a great early-stage bet from an obvious one? This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Lan Xuezhao, Founder and Managing Partner of Basis Set Ventures, fresh off closing the firm's $250 million Fund IV. Lan built Basis Set in 2017 as one of the first venture funds structured specifically around AI, years before AI became the entire market's obsession. Her portfolio includes an early bet on Scale AI before the fund technically existed, along with Quince, Path ...

What does it actually take to build an executive team from nothing? This week on The Data Minute, Ashley Neville fills in for Peter and sits down with Francois Ajenstat, Founder and CEO of Golden Analytics, to talk hiring at the earliest stages of a company, from seed through Series B. Francois spent over a decade as Chief Product Officer at Tableau before leading product at Amplitude, and recently launched Golden Analytics, an AI-native BI platform that just closed $21 million in total seed...

What if you treated hiring at your startup like an NBA Front Office scouting for the next Draft? This week on The Data Minute Podcast, Ashley sits down with Kirk Lacob, EVP of Basketball Operations at the Golden State Warriors, to discuss what it's like to gather the data and make the calls on world-class basketball talent. Kirk argues that data's real value in the draft isn't identifying the best players: everyone already knows who they are -- it's in improving decision accuracy at the marg...

How do you invest in what’s cool before the rest of the world catches on? This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Amber Atherton, Partner at Patron, to explore the rapidly shifting landscape of consumer venture capital. Amber reveals the tactical strategies she uses to keep her pulse on the cultural vanguard, including running multiple TikTok burner accounts and hunting for early micro-trends inside gamer communities and niche digital spaces. They dive deep into her recent thesis o...

Is seed investing facing an existential crisis? This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Rob Go, Founding Partner at NextView Ventures, to discuss the structural shifts making the "game on the field" harder than ever for early-stage investors. Rob explains why many successful seed VCs are exiting the industry and how the rise of mega-funds and massive accelerators like YC has squeezed traditional seed firms into a narrow "subset" of the market. They dive into the "feeder fund" phen...

There is a long-standing stigma in venture capital that debt is a "company killer." This week on The Data Minute, Peter Walker sits down with Marshall Hawks, former SVB expert and author of “Venture Debt Deals,” to debunk the myths and explain why debt is often the smartest addition to a founder’s equity mix. Marshall breaks down the tactical reality of how these deals actually get done, from the "sniff test" lenders perform during office visits to the critical differences between venture ban...

Live from the Chase Center in San Francisco, Peter gathers four leading venture investors to discuss the shifting landscape of private markets. This special episode features Salil Deshpande (Uncorrelated Ventures), Amit Patel (Owl Ventures), Vignesh Ravikumar (Sierra Ventures), and Corey Goodman, PhD (venBio Partners). The episode covers why gross margins have become the most critical metric for AI model companies and how the rise of secondary markets is challenging the traditional ten-year ...

In this special deep dive episode, Peter is joined by his Carta Insights colleague Hamza Shad to unpack the operational reality of running a venture fund. They leave behind portfolio performance metrics to focus entirely on the business of the fund itself. Peter and Hamza break down the data from Carta’s inaugural Fund Economics report. They analyze how much capital GPs are actually committing to their own funds, why anchor LPs are taking larger stakes, and whether the industry standard "2 a...

This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Arian Ghashghai, Founding Partner at Earthling VC, to discuss his thesis of investing in "weird stuff early." Arian explains why he bets on robotic oyster farms, virtual reality, and ocean exploration when other investors are chasing the latest consensus trends. He breaks down his "pirate ship" approach to venture capital and why being the first check is often more valuable to a founder than being the "most helpful." They also discuss the cur...

Welcome to 2026. In this special New Year’s episode of The Data Minute, Peter sits down with his colleague Ashley Neville from Carta’s Insights Team to dissect the data that defined 2025 and forecast the trends shaping the year ahead. Ashley and Peter analyze the "haves and have nots" market where AI startups command a 40% valuation premium over their peers. They explain why solo founders now account for over a third of all new companies and how capital constraints are driving this shift. The...

This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Ben Orthlieb, Founding Partner at Blue Moon VC, for a look under the hood of a firm that has completely re-engineered the venture capital process using AI. Ben explains how Blue Moon uses a proprietary tech stack to source over 12,000 teams a year and screen them down to the top 5% based on their probability of graduating to Series B, achieving performance metrics that rival top-tier firms without the massive headcount. He breaks down why the...

Is the "co-founder mandate" dead? This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Julian Weisser, co-founder of ODF and solofounders.com, to unpack the data behind a massive shift in the startup ecosystem: solo founders now make up over a third of all new companies. Julian breaks down the "Denominator Delusion"—the survivorship bias that tricks founders into forcing partnerships that often fail. They discuss why co-founder breakups are the silent killer of early-stage startups, the struct...

This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Vivek Ladsariya, Managing Director at Pioneer Square Labs, for a deep dive into the Seattle startup ecosystem and the evolving world of venture studios. Vivek breaks down why Seattle has become the quiet giant of AI infrastructure, holding the second-highest concentration of AI talent in the US, and explains why the "locked up" talent at Amazon and Microsoft is finally breaking free. He also gives a candid assessment of the venture studio mo...

In another special solo episode, Peter Walker dives deep into Carta's Q2 Fund Performance Report to unpack the data on what's really happening inside venture capital today. Peter walks through the critical benchmarks every GP and LP needs to know, from median and top-decile Net IRR, TVPI, and DPI across different vintages and fund sizes. He explains why the 2021 vintage is struggling, why small funds have higher performance dispersion, and how liquidity pressure is (or isn't) impacting GP beh...

In this special live episode of The Data Minute, recorded in San Francisco, Peter is joined by Janelle Teng from Bessemer Venture Partners for a data-driven look at the state of AI fundraising. Peter and Janelle walk through the data on everything from the AI valuation premium to the new benchmarks for growth, breaking down Bessemer's "Supernovas" and "Shooting Stars" framework. They discuss why fundraising timelines have gotten longer, how dilution remains steady despite soaring valuations, ...

In another special solo episode, host Peter Walker tackles the most requested topic on The Data Minute: AI funding and valuations. Using data from Carta and Bessemer Venture Partners, Peter unpacks what’s really happening inside the AI boom. He walks through five key charts that reveal where the capital is flowing, the massive valuation premiums AI-native companies command at Seed and Series A, and why San Francisco is still the undisputed center of the AI universe. Peter also breaks down Be...

This week, Peter is joined by Yohei Nakajima, founding partner of Untapped VC and one of the most forward-thinking investors in the AI space. Known for his public experiments with AI agents and automations, Yohei shares his radically different approach to venture capital: investing from the top down. Yohei explains how he uses the social networking site X and his AI community, Baby AGI, to map market trends, develop a unique conviction, and source founders, flipping the traditional referral-...

In this special solo episode of The Data Minute, host Peter Walker dives into the data from Carta's latest research on the state of startup hiring. With hiring down month-over-month since 2021, Peter unpacks the trends that every founder, operator, and investor needs to understand. Using five key charts, Peter breaks down the current talent landscape: the shrinking gap between layoffs and voluntary departures, the reality of net headcount growth, and the "one in, one out" philosophy that's d...

On this episode of The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Drew Glover, founder and managing partner at Fiat Ventures and Fiat Growth, for a wide-ranging conversation on what’s next in fintech and what founders actually want from their investors. They dive into how fintech is moving from DTC chaos into quietly powerful B2B infrastructure, why capital is no longer a moat, and how AI may turn traditionally “unsexy” industries into VC-ready moonshots. Drew shares how Fiat combines strategic capit...

In this special episode of The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Dave Chen, Co-Head of Global Technology Investment Banking at Morgan Stanley, for a tactical deep dive on how today’s founders should think about going public. Dave shares what IPO prep really looks like in 2025 and beyond, why the best companies start working with bankers 2–3 years ahead of a listing, how institutional investors actually evaluate growth-stage companies, and which metrics every founder needs to start tracking l...

What does it really take to spin out and start your own private equity firm? Stephanie Srulowitz, co-head of U.S. private funds at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, joins The Data Minute to break it all down. From legal structure to fundraising strategy to LP negotiation tactics, she and Peter walk through the three common paths to fund launch (and which is the hardest), why some seed capital can come at a steep cost, and how new managers should think about anchor LPs, placement agents, and fund te...

This week on The Data Minute, Peter sits down with David Zhou, Head of Investor Relations at Alchemist Accelerator and the host of Superclusters, for a deep dive into how LPs choose, and say no to, emerging managers. David shares what hundreds of GP conversations have taught him about building trust and avoiding the "sea of sameness.” They talk about why charisma can be learned, how LPs think about relationship-building versus returns, and why fund managers should spend less time pitching an...

Lu Zhang Managing Partner of Fusion Fund joins Peter this week to talk about what it takes to scale an early-stage venture firm—and back game-changing companies—at the speed of today’s AI boom. Fresh off her oversubscribed $190M Fund IV raise, Lu talks about what most managers get wrong when pitching institutional LPs, what it takes to stand out in a bubble-driven market, and why true founder support means going way beyond capital. She opens up about her unique CXO and Super Founder networks...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter is joined by Beezer Clarkson, Partner at Sapphire Ventures and co-host of the acclaimed Origins podcast, for a candid, rapid-fire look inside the minds of LPs, the realities of fundraising, and why venture isn't broken, but is being reshaped. They cover the biggest questions emerging managers are asking right now: How do you stand out in a market filled with sameness? Do mega-funds really distort early-stage deals? And how should GPs talk to LPs abou...

What does it mean to be a “day one partner” for founders—and how does that change in an era of AI-driven acceleration? On this episode of The Data Minute, Peter sits down with Ed Sim, founding partner of Boldstart Ventures and the voice behind “What’s Hot 🔥 in Enterprise IT VC.” Ed shares what it means to invest at the “inception stage”—before a company is even a company—and how startup formation, team sizes, fundraising expectations, and milestones have radically shifted post-AI boom. This...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Liza Benson, Partner at Moderne Ventures, to discuss investing in real-world industries and Moderne’s unique LP-driven approach. They discuss the Moderne Passport, a multi-stage investment fund and industry immersion program, how to turn pilots into revenue, and why so many founders overlook real estate as a growth channel. Liza also shares what LPs are really looking for today, as well as practical ...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Brianne Kimmel, founder and managing partner at Worklife Ventures, to explore what it really takes to build enduring companies in today’s AI-first startup landscape. They discuss the new playbook for go-to-market, why “renewals are the new revenue,” and how modern founders are raising—and deploying—capital differently. Brianne brings a tactical lens to everything from strategic hiring and secondaries ...

Welcome to a very special episode of The Data Minute. For the first time, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by an actual Founder and CEO, Anubhav Srivastava whose company Tactyc.io is now a part of the Carta family! Join them for an in-depth conversation that goes in two directions. First, for VCs, they discuss reserve ratios, recycling capital, forecasting, and the effect LP influence could have on your fund metrics. Second, Anubhav shares his experience on what it’s like ...

In this week’s episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) and Marie Drez (Venture Capital CFO) sit down for an insightful conversation on the crucial role of fund CFOs and how emerging managers can find one. This discussion is full of expert insights. Marie shares important lessons from the SVB crisis, questions to ask banking partners, and why, in the world of AI, great CFOs are more important than ever. Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https:...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) and Aditi Maliwal (Partner, Upfront Ventures) have an in-depth conversation regarding the seed and Series A market. They discuss seed stage dynamics across the U.S. plus AI companies and how to determine which companies are worth investing in. There’s also a discussion on the importance of grit, both in an investor portfolio and as a founder trait, and, of course, speed round questions. Subscribe to Carta’s weekly ...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Rex Salisbury (Founding GP, Cambrian Ventures) to discuss what’s developing in the fintech space, GPs calling more capital, and Rex’s idea on how to get into the tech industry. This conversation also covers Rex’s personal cheat sheet explaining why someone shouldn’t be a VC, and should instead start a career in tech or become a founder. Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.co...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by David Willbrand (Chief Legal Officer, Pacaso) for a wide-ranging conversation on fundraising with SAFEs, liquidation preferences, and the relationship between founders and lawyers. What started as a discussion on the technical aspects of raising a SAFE, late-stage liquidation outcomes, and other fundraising topics turned into an examination of the founder/lawyer relationship with one of the world’...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Charles Hudson (Managing Partner and Founder, Precursor Ventures and writer of the Venture Reflections Substack - chudson.substack.com) for a deep discussion about pre-seed deals, the differences between multi-stage and small funds, and the types of investing that work in this AI dominated market. They also cover SAFEs, how pre-seed investing has changed, Charles' time in the National Venture Capi...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) and Waseem Daher (Co-founder and CEO, Pilot) discuss all things financial for early-stage startups. They go deep on founders' salaries, those important calculations every startup should know, like burn rate and runway, as well as building a startup in different interest rate environments. Throughout this episode, you'll hear references to Pilot's incredible founder salary report, which you should check out here: htt...

In this episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Kate Shillo Beardsley (Founding Partner, Hannah Grey) for a wide-ranging conversation on VC, private equity, investor trends, and the chasm between seed stage startups and those that make it to series. This jam-packed conversation also includes a debate on priced rounds versus SAFEs, the importance of a founder’s DNA over where they are located, and, of course, AI. Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minu...

In this episode, Peter reads a few of your most pressing questions for a special pre-seed focused Data Minute Q&A. Using information from the State of Pre-Seed: Q1 2024 report, Peter uses five charts to answer five questions related to pre-seed fundraising. Learn about: How pre-seed funding is faring in this market SAFEs and convertible notes Valuation caps and your business You can access this data and more with our State of Pre-Seed: Q1 2024 report, which you can read here: https:...

In this week’s episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Darcy Casarella (Director of Talent, NEA) for a wide-ranging discussion all about how founders should think about compensation and how to structure teams. Hiring at startups is down and compensation trends are shifting, so it's a perfect time to talk to an expert that advises many startup founders at New Enterprise Associates. Subscribe to Carta’s weekly Data Minute newsletter: https://carta.c...

In this week’s episode of The Data Minute, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Darren Cooke (Executive Director, Berkeley Life Sciences Entrepreneurship Center) for an enlightening discussion about some emerging trends with biotech companies: Namely, while pharma and biotech currently rank as the 5th most-funded type of pre-seed startups, they simultaneously enjoy favorable valuations to other SaaS-type businesses. This leads Peter and Darren into a conversation about bio...

In this episode of The Data Minute podcast, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) is joined by Mendel Chuang (GP at Acquired Wisdom Fund) for a wide-ranging discussion around two interesting trends in Carta’s data: • How valuation caps have been changing over time since Q1 2022 • The percentage of seed rounds that are priced, by raise amount Along the way, Peter and Mendel share insights and perspectives on countless issues in venture — from how often founders should update their invest...

In this episode of The Data Minute, join Peter as he breaks down five charts from Carta's recent State of Compensation Report to answer five of the most common founder questions related to startup compensation today. Using anonymized, aggregated data from Carta's Total Compensation tool, Peter dives deep into: • Startup hiring and layoffs • Equity and salary compensation compared to previous years • The state of remote work at U.S. startups You can access this data and more with our ...

Even in turbulent times, early-stage investing has held up in one particular area: Healthcare. In fact: Biotech, pharmaceutical, and digital therapeutic startups are receiving more capital now than before the pandemic, in 2018 - 2019. In this week’s episode of The Data Minute, join Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) as he sits down with Marissa Bertorelli (Principal, Polaris Partners) for an illuminating conversation around trends they're seeing in early-stage healthcare investing. In...

In the inaugural episode of The Data Minute podcast, Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Dave Anderson (GP at Beat Ventures) to discuss recent venture industry data around two key questions: • In today’s fundraising market, how many individual checks should the average founder plan to raise in their first SAFE round? • Do early-stage companies from California tend to raise at higher valuation caps than companies in other states — and if so, why? Along the way, Pet...

Starting April 15th: Join Carta's Head of Insights, Peter Walker, as he breaks down the data that's fueling today's most fascinating trends in startups, VC, and the private market ecosystem. Featuring guests from across the venture industry — from founders to investors, and everyone in between — each new Data Minute is a bite-sized breakdown of the metrics, patterns, and important insights you need to navigate the ever-changing world of startups. This presentation contains general info...