spray and delay

Definition

A strategy where investors make many small bets, then heavily support only the winners in subsequent rounds. The venture capital version of throwing spaghetti at the wall, then only cooking the pieces that stuck.

Example Usage

Their spray and delay approach meant they invested $50K in us at seed but reserved $5M for a Series A if we showed traction.

Origin

Evolution of 'spray and pray' terminology in the 2010s, emphasizing staged deployment

Fun Fact

This strategy requires massive reserves ('dry powder') to support winners, which is why mega-funds like Sequoia can do it but smaller funds cannot.

Source: Venture capital investment strategy terminology

Related Terms

Advanced

mezzanine financing

Late-stage debt or hybrid securities used to bridge the gap between venture rounds and an exit. It's called mezzanine because it sits between the ground floor (equity) and penthouse (IPO).

🚀 Startup / VC

Intermediate

ARR

Annual Recurring Revenue -- the amount of subscription money a company expects to collect over a year, assuming nobody cancels, which they will. It's the startup metric most likely to appear in fundraising decks and least likely to match reality.

🚀 Startup / VC

Advanced

super pro rata

The right to invest more than your proportional share in a subsequent round, allowing early investors to increase their ownership. Pro rata's aggressive older sibling who always wants more.

🚀 Startup / VC

Intermediate

Venture Capital

Money given to startups by firms who expect most of their investments to fail spectacularly, banking on one unicorn to pay for all the donkeys. VCs will fund almost anything if you put AI in the pitch deck and promise to disrupt something.

💰 Finance / Accounting🚀 Startup / VC

Advanced

parachute round

Emergency financing raised by a struggling startup at unfavorable terms just to avoid immediate shutdown. It's the fundraising equivalent of pulling the ripcord on a failing skydive.

🚀 Startup / VC

Intermediate

feature factory

A product development organization obsessed with shipping features rather than solving customer problems or delivering value. The startup equivalent of a hamster wheel—lots of motion, no actual progress.

🚀 Startup / VC

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