Mega-funds are coming for seed
Are Mega-Funds Taking Over Seed? A month ago I posted a simple question on X: are mega-funds actually taking over Seed, or does it just feel that way? 65,000+ impressions and hundreds of DMs later, it was clear the question had hit a nerve. So we went further. Using Harmonic data, we analyzed 20 mega-funds across three eras (SaaS, ZIRP, AI) to answer what's actually happening to the early-stage market. In our second big research drop, we covered: 🔹 How has their Seed activity changed over the last 10 years? 🔹 Is Seed just a side activity for them, or a core part of their strategy? 🔹 Which Seed sectors are attracting the most attention from mega funds? 🔹 How do traditional Seed rounds compare to "mega Seeds"? 🔹 Do mega funds actually succeed at Seed investing? Key takeaways: ◾️ The average mega-fund went from 10.6 early-stage deals per year in the SaaS era to 23.9 in the AI era. Only 3 out of 20 funds scaled back. ◾️ The median round with a mega-fund on the cap table sits at $6.2M in the AI era, versus $1.4M for the broader market – a 4.4x gap that has held stable across all three eras. …
Saved for the 4.4x round-size gap alone.