Jess Mah: Stronger Founders Emerge in Tighter Market
Jess Mah, founder of Mahway, stated that the current, more constrained venture capital market is forcing the strongest founders to emerge. She argues that capital scarcity necessitates greater focus, efficiency, and more compelling pitches from entrepreneurs. This environment contrasts with previous years where funding was more readily available.
- Before founding the venture firm Mahway, Jess Mah launched her first business in middle school, was the youngest woman accepted into Y Combinator in 2010, and founded the fintech company inDinero. Her current firm, Mahway, acts as a venture builder, co-founding only 2-3 companies per year in sectors like AI, fintech, and biotech. - While global venture funding saw a modest rebound in 2024, the number of deals declined, with capital becoming more concentrated in fewer, larger funds. Early-stage seed and Series A investments dropped by 19% and 23% respectively in NYC, indicating a tougher environment for new ventures seeking initial capital. - AI startups are a major exception to the funding slowdown, capturing nearly a third of all global VC investment in 2024, an 80% increase from the previous year. In New York City, AI accounted for 35% of all venture capital raised. - The NYC startup ecosystem is now the second-largest in the world, with Manhattan hosting more early-stage startups than San Francisco as of 2023. NYC-based startups raised $18.7 billion in 2024, with firms like FirstMark, Union Square Ventures, and Thrive Capital actively funding local AI and SaaS companies. - For engineers building on the side, indie hackers like Pieter Levels (NomadList, PhotoAI) and Tony Dinh (TypingMind) serve as models. Dinh, for example, built the minimum viable product for his profitable AI-focused app in just two days by using a familiar tech stack. - Successful bootstrapped SaaS companies provide a blueprint for building without VC funding. Mailchimp, an email marketing platform, grew without outside investment before being acquired by Intuit for $12 billion. - In the current market, investors are scrutinizing non-AI startups more heavily, leading to longer fundraising timelines. Founders are expected to demonstrate strong unit economics and capital efficiency, a shift from the growth-at-all-costs mindset of previous years. - Venture capital interest in AI is moving beyond foundational models toward more specific applications. A 2024 survey of VCs showed high interest in vertical AI (36.6%), AI infrastructure (29.3%), and AI agents (22%).
