VC News | Foley & Lardner issues mid-year report on venture capital
Andreessen Horowitz decides to reincorporate in Nevada.
Foley & Lardner LLP:
Two Partners in the Silicon Valley office of Foley & Lardner LLP take a look at the venture capital landscape at the midpoint in 2025 and conclude, “In a word, we got it all wrong.”
They write, “To say that the first half saw massive volatility and unprecedented uncertainty would be an understatement, or worse, a star appearance from ‘Captain Obvious.’ Venture capital investment started euphorically and was then stunned by a machine gun fire of Presidential orders, waves of tariffs not seen in a century, active war, heightened Cold War, and societal upheaval. This was all topped off by one big ‘beautiful’ bill to permanently extend certain tax cuts, make some other new temporary tax cuts, and crystallize the new administration’s budget priorities.”
Noting that the kick off to the summer brings a new paradigm, they predict that “a backlog of successful, growing technology companies are lining up to get ready to go out as soon as the window opens. Hopefully, the second half is better than the first.”
Click here to read their analysis.
Unmatched Ventures:
Unmatched Ventures, a talent-led venture firm purpose-built to invest in and scale the next generation of frontier technology and industrial innovation, has announced its launch. Founded by Todd Gitlin, Simon Casuto, Aaron Zeeb, and Holly Rockwell, Unmatched Ventures brings a combined track record of scaling breakout companies across frontier technology, venture capital, executive search, and advisory.
Unmatched Ventures is focused on the reindustrialization of the U.S. economy and the revitalization of sectors critical to national competitiveness. The firm invests in Series A through C growth stage companies leading advancements in:
- Aerospace and Defense;
- Alternative Energy;
- Robotics and Automation; and
- Advanced Manufacturing, including 3D printing and industrial applications of artificial intelligence.
According to the news release announcing the Los Angeles-based firm, what sets Unmatched apart is its talent-led model, pairing capital with executive search, advisory, and proprietary data on real-time company and talent movement to help founders build high-density leadership teams fast.
The Veteran Fund:
The Veteran Fund, a venture capital firm run by General Partners with military experience, is raising $50 million for its second fund, according to a recent post from PitchBook.
The fundraising effort from the firm, which backs early stage start-ups with veteran founders, comes amid venture capital’s ongoing investment spree into start-ups linked to U.S. defense and national security initiatives.
Veteran Fund II will invest in “dual-use” start-ups, which generate revenue from both government contracts and the private sector.
The firm is targeting $20 million for a first close anticipated around Veterans Day in November. Existing Limited Partners are investing in the new fund, and new family offices are interested, General Partners Ryan Micheletti and Mike Sherbakov told PitchBook.
Rittenhouse Ventures:
Rittenhouse Ventures, a leading venture capital firm with more than 15 years of experience backing the country’s top early stage software founders, has announced the successful closing of Fund III. The new fund will build on the firm’s strong track record of investing in capital-efficient, innovative Business-to-Business software, artificial intelligence, and tech-enabled services companies, with a particular focus on the Mid-Atlantic and other underserved regions across the United States. With the close of this fund, Rittenhouse Ventures has more than $75 million of assets under management.
“We are thrilled to be able to continue to back world-class management teams who have been able to scale their businesses through up and down markets, and navigate the challenges of building early-stage companies into category leaders,” said Saul Richter, Founder and Managing Partner.
The Fund III investment philosophy aligns with prior funds, focusing on companies that exhibit capital-efficient growth and the potential for market leadership. These businesses benefit from the firm’s deep operational expertise, differentiated network access, and strategic guidance to accelerate scalable growth.
Andreessen Horowitz:
Andreessen Horowitz, one of the largest venture capital firms in the country, announced on July 9 that it will be reincorporating in Nevada despite recent Delaware corporate law changes made to appease concerned companies. The firm is also encouraging its portfolio companies to do the same.
In a statement attributed to three individuals, they wrote that Delaware “used to be a no-brainer” when choosing which state to start a company in. “That is no longer the case due to recent actions by the Court of Chancery, which have injected an unprecedented level of subjectivity into judicial decisions, undermining the court’s reputation for unbiased expertise. This has introduced legal uncertainty into what was widely considered the gold standard of U.S. corporate law. In contrast, Nevada has taken significant steps in establishing a technical, non-ideological forum for resolving business disputes,” the announcement reads.
Andreessen Horowitz’s departure comes after significant turmoil within Delaware’s premier corporate law system.
According to this article posted on Delaware Public Media, the beginning of the fallout can largely be attributed to Chancellor Kathaleen St. J. McCormick‘s January 2024 decision to block what would be the largest Chief Executive Officer (CEO) compensation deal in U.S. history — a pay package worth $56 billion — for Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
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