Private tech investing usually slows down in July and August when startup investors take a hiatus from pitch meetings and escape to their sunny destination of choice. But with vacations canceled because of the coronavirus, venture capitalists are entering into new investments at a rapid clip.
Startups seeking early-stage funding say they’ve seen a surge in interest, while some investors say they’re doing more than double the deals they’d usually do. All this activity follows a slow spring, when venture capitalists were focused on financing bigger, older private companies rather than small upstarts. This summer’s flurry of early-stage deals shows that investors are once again willing to take on riskier bets, a sign of optimism in what’s turned out to be a wildly unpredictable year.
“I’ve never seen it more competitive than this,” said Geoff Lewis, co-founder of Bedrock Capital, a $350 million venture fund that makes Series A investments.
