Syndicated rounds, for founders who can’t find a Series A lead

We interviewed 30+ different YC founders that had successfully raised Series As about how they did so. We found that fundraising often looks easy from the outside (especially in the press release), but in reality can be quite messy and filled with failure (especially the first time around). We wanted to write this to talk about what founders could do to get the capital they need if things aren't going their way.

The Machiavellian treachery needed to raise money like this is probably why the few big successes that are run by non-sociopaths are far more likely to be bootstrapped. While pitching investors has a lot in common with pitching customers, playing them off each other like Mean Girls has nothing to do with the core business mechanics of building products, selling them, and hiring employees.