Navigating VC Challenges in Defense and Hard Tech

Strategies for Enhanced Fund Performance

In the intricate realm of venture capital, nuanced events often hold broader implications. Recent closures, albeit smaller in scale—the likes of Countdown Capital and another firm that I’ve supported for the past year—may not have sent seismic shockwaves through the VC landscape, but they serve as vital case studies worth our attention.

What has caught our collective eye is the less-than-rosy quarterly return revealed by PitchBook's Quantitative Perspectives report. The disheartening -16.8% Internal Rate of Return (IRR) in Q4 2022 for US-based venture capital funds stands as a sobering reminder of the complexities and challenges that can affect our specialized sectors.

While these closures might not have echoed loudly across the broader VC spectrum, they offer invaluable lessons for those attuned to the intricacies of defense, hard tech, and deep tech investment.

Join us in this exploration as we analyze, strategize, and seek to learn from these instances to fortify our path forward in t…