Venture capital, startups, and tech industry trends by Turner Novak
BNPL use rises to 28% for groceries among Americans, Turner Novak notes
Eighty-six percent of Americans say that the cost of groceries is stressful. Turner Novak reported that 28% of Americans have used buy now, pay later (BNPL) services to purchase ...
Turner Novak: WSJ questioned Adyen's legitimacy when it was backed by early investor
The Wall Street Journal did not believe that Adyen was a legitimate company when Asenkut decided to back it, according to details shared by Turner Novak. Novak recounts that Asenkut found Adyen ...
Business owners care about working capital, zaidrmn notes
Zaidrmn described how Flex, a company targeting construction businesses, shifted its product focus from a payments workflow to working capital for business owners, arguing that while payments ...
Turner Novak: Open to invest $500,000 in Kansas City startups
Turner Novak declared a willingness to invest $500,000 in any startup based in Kansas City, regardless of the product. Novak invited Kansas City-based startup founders to contact him directly if ...
Cam Skattebo shares thoughts on uncapped SAFE investments, Cam Skattebo reveals
Cam Skattebo has revealed how he feels about investing in uncapped SAFE agreements. Turner Novak shared this ...
Turner Novak: Government-backed fund structure offers option for later LP buyout
A government-backed approach to launching a new startup ecosystem involves supporting 40 percent of a Fund 1 while requiring general partners to raise the remaining 60 percent from limited ...
Oren Zeev manages $2.7 billion across 11 funds without a team, Turner Novak notes
Oren Zeev manages $2.7 billion across 11 funds without having a team, holding meetings, writing investment memos, or using presentation slides for limited partners. Turner Novak highlighted this ...
Turner Novak: Average new Monaco customer sees 16 percent monthly revenue growth
The average new Monaco customer increases their revenue growth by 16 percent per month, which amounts to over four times growth per year. Turner Novak said that this figure had risen from 3x per ...
Raising more money may heighten risk, Credistick explains
Turner Novak drew attention to a debate over how much capital is necessary for seed investing, noting that some people claim more than $1 billion is required. Novak highlighted that Credistick ...
Turner Novak: Family office approaches portfolio with 100-year perspective
Turner Novak said he met with a family office that takes a 100-year view in managing its portfolio. Novak described this as an example of what he called truly playing the long ...
Growth rounds now seen as more rational than seed rounds, Turner Novak notes
Turner Novak described a shift in market sentiment regarding funding rounds compared to 2021. According to Novak, seed rounds were previously considered rational while growth rounds and public ...
Turner Novak: Mega funds closing new rounds exceed first-time fundraising
Turner Novak points to a key trend in venture funding, highlighting that several large funds are currently raising or closing single rounds that surpass in size all the first-time fundraising ...
Anthropic tops list of in-demand secondary shares in Q3 2026, Turner Novak notes
Turner Novak highlights that Anthropic remains the most in-demand startup for secondary share trading in the third quarter of 2026, with OpenAI following closely in second place. Novak adds that ...
Turner Novak: Ring founder explained $1 million TV ad bet amid limited cash
Turner Novak shared an account of a conversation with Jamie Siminoff, the founder of Ring, who explained his decision to spend $1 million on television ads when the company had just $1 million in ...
Ring grows to $5B in revenue under Amazon, Turner Novak notes
Turner Novak highlights the growth of Ring, describing it as one of the most underrated consumer hardware products. Novak notes that Ring, which began as an invention in a garage, has reached ...
Turner Novak: Tim Cook anticipated major free cash flow after hardware focus
Turner Novak suggests that Tim Cook saw the potential for hundreds of billions in annual free cash flow following the company's successful hardware business and decided to step away. The comment ...
VCs promise to get in at $50 billion after missing first rounds, Turner Novak notes
Turner Novak comments on venture capitalists approaching limited partners about entering Instinct at a $50 billion valuation after missing the first four funding rounds due to summer vacations. ...
Turner Novak: LPs use fly brain to run venture capital fund with top decile returns
Turner Novak reports that limited partners are experimenting with training a fly brain to manage a venture capital fund. Early indications show that the fund is already achieving returns in the ...
FlexSuperApp launches global stablecoin for business accounts, Turner Novak notes
Turner Novak highlights that the average business owner prefers a single bank account to manage their finances. He notes that FlexSuperApp has introduced a new stablecoin, aiming to simplify ...
Turner Novak: Six investments made in three weeks using Instinct
Turner Novak reports a shift in his investment strategy after switching to Instinct three weeks ago. He states that he has completed six new investments during this period, with two occurring ...
Startup seeks $100 million using flag slides, Turner Novak notes
Turner Novak describes receiving a presentation consisting solely of ten slides featuring American flags. He goes on to state that the presenting team intends to raise $100 million by the end of ...
