Startup funding has never been more binary, with an extreme divide between haves and have-nots

• Venture investment has always been unequal with some startups raising gobs of money and others left in the cold.
• But investors say 2023 was unusual, with more extremes than they’ve seen before. 
• The more binary fundraising environment has changed the job of both VCs and founders.

A few weeks ago, Ben Lerer, managing parter of Lerer Hippeau, a New York-based early-stage venture firm, set his sights on leading a young enterprise software startup’s seed round. Given it has been a struggle for non-AI startups to raise capital in 2023, he did not expect much competition with other investors.