Disrupting disruption with disruptive disruptions since 2010.
Selling to other companies rather than consumers, typically involving longer sales cycles and higher contract values.
Proof that actual humans are willing to pay actual money for your product, the ultimate validation for the venture capital community.
The realistic revenue you can capture in the next 5-10 years—the number that makes your board members slightly less nervous than TAM.
The messy dissolution of a relationship (romantic or business) where two things that were stuck together decide they'd rather never see each other again. Bonus awkwardness if they share a friend group.
A competitive advantage based on how easily you can reach customers. Spoiler alert: most startups don't have one and never will.
To board a vessel or aircraft, or more metaphorically, to start something new and vaguely terrifying. Whether it's a cruise ship or a startup, embarking means you've committed and there's no backing out now.
Sequential funding rounds labeled alphabetically, each supposedly representing the company's progression from barely-viable to 'we probably need more money anyway.'
Serviceable Obtainable Market—what you can realistically capture in the first 3-5 years. It's the intersection of TAM, SAM, and aggressive optimism.
A mechanism where existing users naturally bring in new users, creating exponential growth without paid advertising. It's the holy grail that almost nobody actually achieves.
How much money your subscription business expects to make monthly from existing customers. The metric that makes founders feel slightly less broke.
Sequential rounds of venture funding with progressively larger checks and increasingly skeptical investors asking harder questions.
Money from professional investors betting billions annually that 1% of startups will become unicorns. A mostly efficient system for transferring wealth from LPs to founders (and from founders to VCs).
Special shares that get priority in liquidation, dividends, or control—essentially investor insurance against founder incompetence.
Large organizations like pension funds, insurance companies, or endowments that invest in venture funds, adding legitimacy and money but no direct feedback.
Section 409A of the tax code that requires startup stock options to be valued at fair market value when granted; 101 refers to California corporate code. It's basically the IRS saying 'no, you can't just give away equity tax-free.'
A spreadsheet showing who owns what percentage of your company, updated regularly as you dilute yourself with more funding rounds.
The engineering audit where technical experts examine your code, architecture, and tech debt to see if you're about to implode.
A market opportunity that nobody has thoroughly exploited yet, either because it's genuinely undiscovered or because nobody cares.
The introduction of something new—a fresh idea, process, or product that differs from the status quo. The corporate world's favorite word to slap on anything that isn't from 1987.
Venture Capitalist or Venture Capital—investors who bet on high-risk, high-reward startups in exchange for equity. They're basically professional optimists with other people's money.
Being the first to boldly venture into uncharted territory—whether that's a new market, technology, or increasingly, a niche on TikTok. The marketing term for 'we did it before it was cool.'
Selling directly to individual consumers, requiring massive scale and viral growth to be venture-viable.
Cloud-based software customers pay for monthly/yearly as subscriptions instead of licensing, the dominant startup business model.
Groups of angel investors or VCs pooling resources to make a larger investment than they could individually, because apparently teamwork makes the dream work.