There are different ways to ascend venture capital’s top ranks. Move fast, be loud and raise a lot of money. Or, build slowly, stay quiet and let the deals speak for themselves.

For examples of these two approaches, just look at Andreessen Horowitz and Thrive Capital. Both launched near the depths of the 2009 financial crisis and both have successfully cracked the exclusive group of tier-one VC firms at impressive speeds. But only one of these firms is a household name today. 

If Thrive founder Josh Kushner, whose firm has $3 billion in new funds and a hand in Stripe and OpenAI deals, aims to take Thrive to higher heights, he may need to take a cue from the Andreessen Horowitz playbook.