The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch
20VC: Lessons from Investing $2BN and Returning $8BN in Cash | Why Most Venture Partnerships are Broken | We Sold Salesforce Early and Lost Out on Billions | Are The Best Deals Always Expensive and Competitive with Jake Saper @ Emergence Capital
Mar 10, 2025
Jake Saper, General Partner at Emergence Capital, discusses his firm's impressive track record of investing $2BN and returning $8BN. He shares insights about their early investment in Zoom and the critical importance of market dynamics over mere traction. Saper also delves into the changing landscape of SaaS metrics and the significance of retaining customers. He highlights the existential concerns around AI and encourages companies to aim for becoming board discussion topics, all while revealing lessons learned from their early sale of Salesforce.
01:28:49
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Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
- Jake Saper emphasizes the importance of aligning investment strategies with genuine market needs and operational realities to ensure startup success.
- The podcast discusses the necessity of supporting founders with a robust enterprise sales model to foster long-term growth and operational stability.
Deep dives
Investment Returns and DPI Performance
The venture firm discussed deploying nearly $2 billion in capital, which has returned over $8 billion in cash, translating to a staggering 16 times DPI (distributions to paid-in). This fund, often referred to as fund three, includes notable successes such as Zoom. The analysis on the firm's investments reveals that 90% of the deals have raised subsequent financing rounds successfully, indicating a strong performance against market benchmarks. Furthermore, one out of every five investments has surpassed billion-dollar rounds, showcasing significant growth potential within their portfolio.
