paragQuestion / Claim
Cold outreach can be an effective way to raise venture capital without warm introductions.
Key Assumptions
- VCs who publicly state openness to cold outreach actually act on it.(medium confidence)
- Founders can differentiate themselves through concise, high-signal cold messages.(high confidence)
- Access to networks is not the primary determinant of fundraising success.(medium confidence)
Evidence & Observations
- Analysis of 300+ funds using Evalyze identified 15 investors who publicly welcome cold outreach.(data)
- Examples of investors (e.g., Elizabeth Yin, Fabrice Grinda) stating they always respond to cold emails and source deals this way.(citation)
Open Uncertainties
- How response rates from cold DMs compare quantitatively to warm introductions.
- Whether this approach scales beyond pre-seed and seed stages.
Current Position
Warm intros are overrated; many top VCs explicitly read and respond to high-signal cold DMs.
This is work-in-progress thinking, not a final conclusion.