VC Bifurcation and the 3-and-30 Fee Problem
Twelve established firms captured approximately 75% of all venture capital fundraising this year, driving extreme concentration at the top of the market.
Theme
Venture capital: what the top podcasts are saying.
How venture investors pick, price, and back companies. 22 write-ups from 6 shows so far, the newest from September 2026.
22 write-ups6 shows
The short version
Venture capital returns and liquidity are concentrating inside a small group of large firms and top-performing small funds. Extended private timelines force investors to rethink fund structures and seek alternative exit paths.
Top talking points
Top-tier firms dominate venture capital fundraising
Twelve large funds captured 75% of capital this year, shifting the market toward mega-cap leaders. Established brands charge fees up to 3-and-30.
- VC Bifurcation and the 3-and-30 Fee Problem How I Invest · Sep 27
- David Cahn on AI Infrastructure and Founder Career Equity TBPN · Sep 13
Smaller venture funds deliver higher market returns
Vehicles under $750 million returned 4.76x on average, compared to 2.42x for billion-dollar funds. Emerging managers in their first three vintages consistently produce the best outcomes.
- Bill Maris: Small VC Funds Outperform By 2x. Why It Matters. All-In Podcast · Jun 14
- Slipstream's Anti-FOMO Strategy: Disciplined Venture Diversification TBPN · Aug 16
Extended private timelines break the traditional fund model
Tech startups routinely remain private for 15 to 20 years. Benjamin Black launched a publicly traded closed-end fund with net asset value fees to provide liquidity without multi-decade lockups.
- Why the 10-Year Venture Capital Fund Model Is Broken How I Invest · Aug 23
- Why Benjamin Black Took Venture Capital Public on Nasdaq How I Invest · Aug 23
- Why Public Venture Funds Trade Carried Interest for NAV Fees How I Invest · Aug 23
Mega-IPOs obscure an ongoing venture liquidity crisis
Public offerings from companies like SpaceX could yield $1.5 trillion. Only 20% of institutional venture firms hold shares, leaving most funds with an ongoing lack of distributions.
- Mega IPOs Mask Venture Capital's Deep Liquidity Problem Private Equity Funcast · Jul 5
- VC's Trillion-Dollar Hunt: New Money Floods Late-Stage Tech All-In Podcast · Jun 7
Firms integrate AI to identify early founders
Venture funds deploy AI agents to scan digital writing and spot founders before public announcements. Firms create dedicated AI roles to manage internal tools and shape investment theses.
- Byron Ling on Why AI Replaces VC Sourcing but Not Judgment How I Invest · Sep 6
- AI-Native VC Footwork Defines the 'AI Lead' Role How I Invest · Aug 9
Most interesting insights
Twelve established firms captured approximately 75% of all venture capital fundraising this year, driving extreme concentration at the top of the market.
From VC Bifurcation and the 3-and-30 Fee Problem, How I Invest · Sep 27
Venture capital funds smaller than $750 million delivered an average return of 4.76x, significantly outpacing funds over $1 billion which only managed 2.42x.
From Bill Maris: Small VC Funds Outperform By 2x. Why It Matters., All-In Podcast · Jun 14
This fear of losing a good job drives VCs to seek internal consensus and, more surprisingly, to "collude" with competitors to validate deals before bringing them to their own partners.
From Why VCs Collude With Competitors (Not Partners), 20VC with Harry Stebbings · Jun 21
Upcoming mega-IPOs like SpaceX could generate an unprecedented $1.5 trillion in value, matching the entire VC industry's IPO output from 2015 to today.
From Mega IPOs Mask Venture Capital's Deep Liquidity Problem, Private Equity Funcast · Jul 5
People quoted on Venture capital
Latest write-ups
Keith Rabois: The Real Danger to AI Valuations
Keith Rabois warns that an IPO misstep or gross margin disappointment from OpenAI or Anthropic would trigger an immediate, sharp reset for private venture valuations across the sector.
David Cahn on AI Infrastructure and Founder Career Equity
Venture capital has concentrated heavily, shifting from tracking a hundred promising early-stage bets to funding the top 10 mega-cap leaders ahead of public market listings.
Hunter Somerville: Stop Letting Rogue Brokers Trade Your Cap Table
Institutional capital is concentrating inside multi-billion dollar mega-funds, boxing out emerging managers as seed rounds swell into de facto Series A rounds.
Byron Ling on Why AI Replaces VC Sourcing but Not Judgment
Byron Ling has evaluated founders across roughly 30,000 meetings over the past decade.
Sequoia's Partner Rules for Spotting Outlier Founders
Doug Leone tests self-awareness by asking candidates for their best reference first, waiting for them to list their accomplishments, and immediately following up with: "Who would be your worst reference and why?"
Why Benjamin Black Took Venture Capital Public on Nasdaq
Benjamin Black launched Powerlaw Corp. (Nasdaq: PWRL) as a publicly traded 1940 Act closed-end fund to hold late-stage private tech companies without traditional multi-decade lockups.
Why Public Venture Funds Trade Carried Interest for NAV Fees
Launching a public closed-end fund under the Investment Company Act of 1940 requires up to 18 months of unpaid preparation before earning a dollar in management fees.
Why the 10-Year Venture Capital Fund Model Is Broken
Private tech companies now routinely stay private for 15 to 20 years, making the traditional 10-year venture fund structure obsolete.
Slipstream's Anti-FOMO Strategy: Disciplined Venture Diversification
The best venture returns often come from small, emerging managers, specifically those in their first three vintages with fund sizes typically around $30-50 million. These managers often craft unique portfolio constructions.
Defense Tech Funding Soars Past $100B Annually
Venture capital interest in defense tech has skyrocketed from "single-digit billions" in 2019-2020 to "well over $100 billion a year" today, signaling a rapid re-rating of the sector by sophisticated capital.
AI-Native VC Footwork Defines the 'AI Lead' Role
Footwork, an AI-native venture firm, mandates weekly internal discussions where every team member shares how they're using AI, ensuring a collective "learning mode" to raise firm-wide proficiency.