What does it take to raise Series A in today’s market?

The goalposts have moved, the stakes are higher, and investors seem pickier than ever as the AI boom reshapes the industry. At TechCrunch Disrupt, three investors — Thomas Green of Insight Partners, Moxxie Ventures’ Katie Stanton, and GV’s Sangeen Zeb — broke down what they’ll be looking for in the new year.

The numbers tell a clear story. Fewer rounds are getting funded but deal sizes have grown, said Green citing a study.

“It has never been easier to start a company, and it has never been harder to build something that is defensible,” Stanton said.

For Zeb, GV uses a specific formula to evaluate companies. The firm analyzes whether startups have achieved product-market fit, examining demand patterns to ensure every quarter outperforms the last. “That sequence should be happening consistently,” he said.

Stanton echoed this priority. “Can you prove that you can repeatedly sell? Can you prove that you can repeatedly grow in a big and growing market?”

But Green cautioned that not every company should pursue venture-scale growth. “It’s not worth even taking this money unless you think it can be a really big business, right?” he said. “Most companies should not [pursue] venture scale. They should not take hundreds of millions of dollars.”

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Beyond metrics, all three investors emphasized founder quality. Stanton said she is looking for passionate founders who can endure the long journey of building a company. Zeb agreed. “Passion is still the most important thing,” he said.

The panel inevitably turned to AI. Green assured non-AI companies: “Just because you’re not AI doesn’t mean you don’t have a very attractive asset, intrinsic quality to you,” he said.

For AI companies trying to differentiate in a crowded market, Green returns to first principles. “We try to understand, if it’s a market with a lot of competition — [including] both incumbents and next-gen competitors and platform players — what is going to be the standout path?”

Stanton said she looks founders who combine industry and technical expertise, while Zeb prioritizes relentless drive, seeking founders who are constantly asking how to move faster than the competition.

Despite market fluctuations, the panel suggested that core investor priorities remain consistent. “The bar is high, but if the outcome can be impossibly huge, we’ll take that [bet],” Green said.

Dominic-Madori Davis is a senior venture capital and startup reporter at TechCrunch. She is based in New York City.

You can contact or verify outreach from Dominic by emailing dominic.davis@techcrunch.com or via encrypted message at +1 646 831-7565 on Signal.