👋 Hi, I’m Andre and welcome to my newsletter Data-Driven VC which is all about becoming a better investor with Data & AI. Join 30,915 thought leaders from VCs like a16z, Accel, Index, Sequoia, and more to understand how startup investing becomes more data-driven, why it matters, and what it means for you.

Brought to you by Affinity — Deal Sourcing Strategies for 2025

At a time when 42% of VCs cite increased competition as a key challenge, how do you ensure your firm stays ahead? Sourcing the highest quality deals as early as possible is key. Affinity's new deal sourcing guide offers practical insights from industry leaders at Kleiner Perkins, Intel Capital, and more.

I split my annual predictions into 50/50 into general VC industry predictions and AI & data in VC predictions. Before we dive into the 2025 outlook, let’s look at the scorecard for last year’s predictions. Here’s the quick review:

Right, many VCs failed to raise their next vintage and/or closed

End 2024 = wrong. Early 2025 too early to tell.

Too early to tell

Right, competition for the top 1% deals continues to become more and more competitive, and investors increasingly more creative

Right, most pre-emptions we’ve ever seen

Right, data & AI in VC starts to become mainstream. More data on this in the upcoming DDVC Landscape 2025

Right, at least according to preliminary DDVC Landscape 2025 data, the number of engineers continues to grow, whereas the number of investors remains unchanged

Right, I’ve never seen so many new cool tools for VCs within one year

Too early to tell

Too early to tell, but many VCs invested heavily into firm brand and personal brand initiatives. Rebrandings from Redpoint, GC, Seedcamp, Cherry, and many more

Share this article with others who might benefit.

As for last year, I’ll split my predictions 50/50 into general VC and AI & Data in VC. Let’s dive in.