2023: less capital at every stage

The slowdown broadened

Early-stage funding fell more than 40% year over year in the report. Late-stage and seed also declined. That makes the year more than a delayed correction in the largest rounds; fewer dollars were reaching the company formation pipeline as well.

A relative, not absolute, drought

The report placed 2023 near the lowest level since 2018, yet noted it was less than 20% below the pre-pandemic years of 2018 through 2020. The severity depends on whether 2021 or the longer pre-boom baseline is the reference.

How to read a trough

The meaningful question for a founder is how much capital is available for a specific stage and sector, and what evidence investors now require. A global total can identify the cycle but cannot serve as a term-sheet forecast.

One measurement wrinkle is explicit in the source: Crunchbase changed the inclusion rule for corporate rounds in January 2023. A trend spanning that boundary therefore deserves a methodology note alongside the percentage decline.