What the next investor will test at seed, pillar by pillar. Each indicator is read by its parts, and each part gets its own status. A part has a floor and, where sources publish a range, a typical and a strong level. Each level says where it comes from.
Type a word or two. Only what holds them stays.
Nothing on this page holds those words.
Team
Are building and selling each owned by a named person, and is the team the round needs being hired?
Coverage
The people who build the product are in the company: a technical founder at the start, named owners of product and engineering by Series A.
Y Combinator’s Michael Seibel asks of every team: "Is there a technical co-founder?" Point Nine asks at seed for a team that "has shown that it can build fast with a small team".
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide. Look for the name of the person who builds, and what that person has shipped before: a product, a system or a company, with a place and a year.
Shown
At pre-seed and seed: the deck names the person who builds the product and gives three facts about software that person has released before: what it was, the company it was built at, and the year. At Series A: the deck names the person who owns product and the person who owns engineering. One person may hold both.
Claimed
At pre-seed and seed: the deck names a technical founder, gives someone a title such as CTO, or says the team is technical, and any of the three facts is missing. At Series A: the deck says product and engineering are covered, or shows a technical team, and names no owner for one or both.
Not met
The deck says the product is built by an agency, by contractors or by anyone outside the company, or says the company has no technical founder or is looking for one. At Series A: the deck says the post of product owner or of engineering owner is vacant. Where this applies it is Not met, whatever else the deck says.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The code repository and its history; a reference call with someone who has worked with the technical founder; at Series A the organisation chart.
Applies to
Every company.
For AI companies
a16z asks whether AI has ended the old rule against non-technical founders, and gives the case against: "there’s still a big gap between a demo and a reliable product that can scale". A founder who built the first version with AI tools still has to show who will make it reliable.
Point Nine asks at seed for "Success with founder-led sales". Bessemer: the founder sells alone to $100k of ARR, then with a first hire to $1M.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide and the slide on how you sell. Look for who holds the customer conversations and who closed the deals so far. For a self-serve product, look for who owns how users arrive and start paying.
Shown
The deck names the person who owns customers and gives at least one thing that person has done, with a number or a named customer: interviews held, pilots signed or deals closed. For a self-serve product: it names the person who owns growth, and gives a dated figure that person answers for, such as sign-ups, conversion to paid or paying accounts.
Claimed
The deck names a person as owning sales, growth or customers, gives someone a commercial title, or says sales are founder-led, and gives nothing that person ran with a number or a named customer.
Not met
The deck says selling is left to an adviser, an agency or a hire not yet made, or says nobody owns it.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The CRM export showing who ran each conversation and closed each deal; a customer reference call. For a self-serve product: sign-ups and conversion to paid by channel, from product analytics.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
How many founders there are.
The bar at seed
No pass mark The report states how many founders the deck names, and who owns building and who owns selling. It gives no pass mark for the number of founders.
Published views on the number differ. Y Combinator: "We regularly accept solo founders", while advising that "you're more likely to succeed with a co-founder". Antler: "We don’t invest in solo founders." a16z lists "No solo founders" among the old rules that AI may change. So the number is reported and not marked.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide. Count the people called founder or co-founder. Where the deck uses neither word, count the people it names at the head of the company, such as the chief executive and the chief technology officer.
Shown
The deck names each founder: each person it calls a founder or co-founder or, where it uses neither word, each person at the head of the company.
Claimed
The deck mentions founders it does not name: a number of founders with fewer names than the number, or "the founders" with no names.
Not met
Not given for this part. It has no pass mark, so a deck cannot fall short of it.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The cap table and the company register.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
Y Combinator’s Michael Seibel, on what he wants to know about a team: "Is everyone working full time?"
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide. Look for "full-time" beside each founder, with a date. At pre-seed, a date by which each founder leaves their other job counts.
Shown
The deck says each founder is full-time and gives a date for each: the date they started, or at pre-seed the date they will start, no later than the close.
Claimed
The deck says the founders are full-time, "committed" or "all in", and for at least one founder gives no date. A team slide with names and titles and nothing about time is Unknown, not Claimed.
Not met
The deck shows a founder who holds another job or a role at another company and gives no date for leaving it, or at pre-seed gives a leaving date after the close. Where this applies it is Not met, whatever the deck says of the other founders. In a university spinout, an academic founder who keeps a university post is read under the university relationship and does not count against this part.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Employment contracts or resignation letters with dates; the university’s written approval where a founder keeps an academic post.
The founders’ shares vest: a founder who leaves early does not keep them all.
The bar at seed
Floor
Vesting signed
SVV’s judgement on the timing. Investors ask for it by Series A (Y Combinator’s Series A diligence checklist).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
Rarely on a slide. It may be on the team slide, the ask, or a cap table in the appendix. Look for the word "vesting" with its length.
Shown
The deck says founder vesting is signed and gives the vesting period. At pre-seed, a statement that it will be signed at the close, with the period, also counts.
Claimed
The deck mentions founder vesting and leaves out one of the two things Shown asks for: that it is signed (or at pre-seed will be signed at the close), or the period.
Not met
The deck says founder shares are held outright with no vesting and gives no plan to add it.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The founder agreement or shareholders’ agreement, and the cap table.
The company owns the intellectual property its product depends on, or holds a signed licence to it.
The bar at seed
Floor
All IP assigned to the company
SVV’s judgement on the timing. Investors ask for it by Series A (Y Combinator’s Series A diligence checklist).
For a university spinout a signed licence counts. Its terms are read under the university relationship.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide, the product slide or the appendix. Look for who owns the code, the models and the rights to data, and whether founders, staff and contractors have assigned their work to the company.
Shown
The deck says the IP is assigned to the company and names who assigned it: founders, staff, contractors or a previous employer. For a university spinout: it names the signed licence and its date. At pre-seed, a statement that the assignment or licence will be signed before the close also counts.
Claimed
The deck says the company owns its IP, its code or its technology, and does not say who assigned it or name a licence.
Not met
The deck says work the product depends on belongs to someone else (a founder personally, a previous employer, a contractor or a university) and names no assignment or licence, signed or to be signed before the close.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
IP assignment agreements for founders, staff and contractors; for a spinout, the signed licence.
The first hires are planned and costed at pre-seed, and made or open by seed.
The bar at seed
Floor
One or two hires made as planned, or the roles funded and open with a date
SVV's judgementNo published threshold. The direction is supported: Unusual Ventures gives "hiring initial team members" as the team milestone of the seed phase.
Small is normal. First Round’s level 1, which covers pre-seed and seed, is a team of fewer than 10 people. Its level 2, seed or Series A, is up to 20.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide, the plan or the ask. At pre-seed, look for the first roles by name, the month each starts and what each costs. At seed, look for people hired since the last round with their roles, or open roles with a date.
Shown
At pre-seed: the deck names the first two roles and gives the start month and the cost of each. At seed: the deck names one or two people hired, with their roles, or names the roles that are open and the date each is to be filled.
Claimed
The deck says something about hiring (that the round will pay for it, that the team is growing, a headcount, or a list of roles) and leaves out any of what Shown asks for at its round.
Not met
At pre-seed: the deck says no hires are planned in the next twelve months. At seed: the deck says no hire has been made and no role is open, or that the first hires wait for this round.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The hiring plan for the first roles, the monthly cash plan, and the organisation chart against the plan.
Applies to
Every company.
Where the figures are from
Seedcamp, a European seed investor, mapped the hires of 60 of its companies before Series A: "Across most sectors, engineers comprise over 50% of the first 20 hires".
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
A written update goes to investors or advisers every month.
The bar at seed
Floor
A written update to investors every month
SVV's judgementNo investor sets it as a bar. The direction is supported: Carta advises monthly updates before a raise, and Y Combinator’s Tom Blomfield names the three numbers that belong at the top of every investor update: revenue, burn rate and runway.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide or the appendix. Look for who already receives a monthly update and since when, or for a sample of one. At pre-seed the readers are advisers, angels or investors you have met.
Shown
The deck names at least one person or group that receives a written monthly update and says since when, or includes an update.
Claimed
The deck mentions updates to investors, angels or advisers and leaves out who receives them, that they are monthly, or since when.
Not met
The deck says no update is sent, or that updates are not written or not monthly.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The last six investor updates.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Who advises the company, and what each has done in this market.
The bar at seed
No pass mark The report names the advisers the deck lists and what each has done in this market. It gives no pass mark.
The number of advisers is not marked at seed either, for the reason given at pre-seed.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide. Look for advisers by name, with the role each held in the customer’s industry.
Shown
The deck names each adviser it mentions and gives the role each has held in this market.
Claimed
The deck shows advisers by name or logo and, for at least one, gives no role held in this market.
Not met
Not given for this part. It has no pass mark, so a deck cannot fall short of it.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Adviser agreements, and a note of what each adviser did for the company in the last quarter.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
Intellectual property the product depends on has not been assigned to the company: work a founder did before it was formed, work done at a previous employer, or work done by a contractor. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.
First Round’s level 1, pre-seed or seed, is 3 to 5 customers. Its level 2, seed or Series A, starts at 5.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The product and traction slides. In production means live and used for real work, not a demo and not a test account. Look for how many customers or design partners use it, named or counted, and for a screen or a number from real use. A customer the deck lists only as a letter of intent, or as a pilot not yet started, is not using it. For a self-serve product, a dated count of paying or active accounts is the number.
Shown
The deck gives the number of customers or design partners using the product in production, the number is at or above the floor for the round, and it backs the number with at least one of: named customers, a dated usage figure, or a screen of the product in use. A list of named customers counts as the number.
Claimed
The deck says the product is live or in production, or gives a number of users or customers at or above the floor, and gives none of the three: named customers, a dated usage figure, or a screen of it in use.
Not met
The deck gives a number in production that is below the floor for the round, or says the product is a demo, a pilot not yet started or still being built.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Production metrics and usage by customer; a live demonstration on real data.
Applies to
Every company.
Where the figures are from
Both sources are American and describe sales-led B2B companies. A self-serve product with many small accounts passes the count easily; for it the usage parts say more.
Accounts use the product in every period it is meant to be used.
The bar at seed
Floor
60% of onboarded accounts active in each period
SVV's judgementNo published figure for accounts. The direction is supported: Point Nine asks at seed for "Strong engagement + stickiness".
The period is the product’s own. A product used every week is read by the week. A product whose job comes round monthly or quarterly is read on that period and is not marked down for it. The deck has to say which period applies.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The traction slide. Look for active accounts as a share of all accounts, what counts as active, and the period: a week for most products, a month or a quarter where the job the product does comes round that often.
Shown
The deck gives the share of accounts active in each period, says what counts as active, names the period and dates the figures, and the share is at or above the floor for the round. At pre-seed: it shows each design partner’s use for the last six weeks, and each used the prototype in at least four.
Claimed
The deck says something about how much the product is used (for example "daily" or "heavily", or a share of active accounts at or above the floor) and leaves out any of what Shown asks for: the share, what counts as active, the period or the dates. Revenue billed on what accounts used in a period says something about use: with no share of active accounts it is Claimed, not Unknown.
Not met
The deck gives a share of active accounts that is below the floor for the round, with or without the rest. At pre-seed: it shows a design partner who used the prototype in fewer than four of the last six weeks.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Product analytics: active accounts in each period for the last six months, with the meaning of active.
Applies to
Every company.
For AI companies
a16z finds that early use of AI products overstates what lasts: people sign up to try them and leave within a couple of months, so it measures from month three. Read usage from the first weeks after sign-up with that in mind.
A set of prompts on a third-party model does not count as an asset. CRV: "Advantages built on prompting or current model superiority erode within months."
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The slide on the product, the AI or the moat. Look for what is named as the company’s own and for anything that shows it at work.
Shown
At pre-seed: the deck says which of three things will be the company’s own (data only it holds, a workflow customers run their work through, or integrations into customers’ systems) and how it will be built up. At seed: the deck names one such asset that exists and gives a fact about it: its size, how it grows with use, or the customers whose systems it is built into. At Series A: as at seed, and the deck gives a result or a deal won that it puts down to the asset.
Claimed
The deck says its technology is proprietary, unique or defensible and falls short of Shown for its round: it names no asset of the three kinds, or names one and gives nothing more.
Not met
The deck says the product has no data, workflow or integrations of its own and gives no plan for any, or the only thing it names as its own is a set of prompts on a third-party model. An integration counts as the company’s own. Prompts alone do not.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The IP summary; the list of data sets with the rights to each; the list of customer integrations.
Applies to
Every company.
For AI companies
a16z: "AI is an extraordinary engine for product differentiation. But it’s not a moat." Point Nine: a moat from AI needs "proprietary data that is impossible to obtain for others", and that data must lead "to superior model performance".
At Series A
Floor: The data or workflow advantage shown at work, with evidence. The bar at Series A
The AI is measured against a baseline on the company’s own test set.AI only
The slide on the AI. A baseline is the result without your product: the current manual process, a general model used as it comes, or the leading alternative. Look for a quality or accuracy number, the test set it was measured on, what it was compared with, and the date.
Shown
The deck gives four things: the result, the test set it was measured on, the baseline it was compared with, and the date.
Claimed
The deck gives an accuracy or quality figure, or says the model outperforms something, and any of the four is missing. A score on a public benchmark with no test set of the company’s own is Claimed.
Not met
The deck says no evaluation has been run, or gives a result that is no better than the baseline it names.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The evaluation report: the test set, who labelled it, the baseline and the results.
Applies to
Only AI companies.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
The product is measured against the way the job is done today.Not AI
The bar at seed
Floor
The before and after written up, from customers’ own use
SVV's judgementIt is the counterpart, for software that is not AI, of the evaluation against a baseline asked of AI companies. No published threshold.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The product or problem slide. Look for a before and after in the customer’s numbers: time, cost or errors, on a real task.
Shown
The deck gives a before and an after, both as numbers, for a named task, with a named customer or design partner and the date.
Claimed
The deck says the product is faster, cheaper or more accurate than the current way (for example "10x faster" or "saves hours") and any of these is missing: the two numbers, the task, the named customer or design partner, or the date.
Not met
The deck says no comparison has been made, or gives numbers in which the product does no better than the current way.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The measurement: the task, the customer, the figures before and after, and who recorded them.
Applies to
Only software companies that are not AI companies.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
The code is under version control: every change is recorded, with who made it.
The bar at seed
Floor
In use
SVV's judgementNone of the sixteen investors whose published guidance SVV read names internal systems as a reason to invest. It is checked in diligence, so have it ready. A deck is not expected to show it.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
A deck does not usually say. It may be on a product or technology slide.
Shown
The deck names the version control system in use, or shows the repository.
Claimed
The deck says the code is properly managed, or that the team follows "engineering best practice", and names no system.
Not met
The deck says the code is held outside the company, for example by an agency, or that changes to it are not recorded.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Access to the repository.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
The product can be built and released the same way every time.
The bar at seed
Floor
Automated deployment
SVV's judgementNone of the sixteen investors whose published guidance SVV read names internal systems as a reason to invest. It is checked in diligence, so have it ready. A deck is not expected to show it.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
A deck does not usually say. It may be on a product or technology slide.
Shown
The deck says how the product is built and released, and what it describes meets the level for the round: at pre-seed a build anyone on the team can repeat, at seed automated deployment, at Series A automated testing and deployment on every change.
Claimed
The deck says something about how often or how well it releases and does not say how releases are made, or what it describes is short of the level for the round.
Not met
The deck says releases are made by hand, or that only one person can build or release the product.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The repository and the deployment pipeline, shown live.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Floor: Automated testing and deployment on every change (CI/CD). The bar at Series A
There is a roadmap for the next twelve months, and each item is tied to a customer need.
The bar at seed
Floor
Twelve months, each item tied to customer value
SVV's judgementY Combinator treats a roadmap as optional in a seed deck: "You can optionally include a summary product roadmap (6 quarters max) indicating what an investment buys."
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The plan or roadmap slide. Look for what ships in each quarter and which customer need or revenue each item serves.
Shown
The deck shows a roadmap that runs at least twelve months ahead, and every item on it names the customer need, the customer or the revenue it serves.
Claimed
The deck shows a roadmap or a list of planned features that falls short of Shown: it runs less than twelve months ahead, it has no dates, or at least one item names no customer need, customer or revenue.
Not met
The deck says there is no roadmap.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The twelve-month roadmap.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
The company neither owns the code and models its product is built on nor holds a signed licence to them. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.
No product in production. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.
A critical dependency on one third-party model, with no tested way to run on another. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.AI only
The product depends on one third-party platform, interface or data source that could be withdrawn, with no fallback. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.Not AI
Market
Is the customer defined sharply enough to find more of them?
ICP
The ideal customer is written down: segment, size, buyer and trigger.
The slide on who buys or how you sell. ICP stands for ideal customer profile: the customer who needs the product most and buys fastest. Look for four things: the kind of organisation (segment), how big it is, the role that buys, and the event that makes it buy now (trigger). For a self-serve product the buyer is the user who pays, the size may be the size of team, and the trigger is what makes a user sign up or start paying.
Shown
The deck states all four: the segment, the size of organisation, the role that buys and the trigger.
Claimed
The deck describes a target customer and one or more of the four is missing.
Not met
The deck says the customer is anyone, for example "any company" or "all businesses".
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The ICP document.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
The customers you are winning match the ideal customer you wrote down.
The bar at seed
Floor
Half of design partners and pipeline, taken together, match the ICP
SVV's judgementNo published figure. The direction is supported by Unusual Ventures and by Bessemer’s advice to keep the ICP "uncomfortably narrow".
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The slide on how you sell, or traction. At seed, look for how many design partners and open deals match the ICP. At Series A, look for the share of new ARR (annual recurring revenue added) in the last twelve months that came from customers who match it. For a self-serve product, read pipeline as new sign-ups.
Shown
The deck gives the share that matches the ICP, with the counts or the revenue behind it, and the share is at or above the floor for the round: half of design partners and pipeline taken together at seed, 80% of new ARR in the last twelve months at Series A. For a self-serve product: the share of new paying accounts.
Claimed
The deck says its customers are in its target segment, or shows their logos, and gives no share, or gives a share at or above the floor with no counts or revenue behind it.
Not met
The deck gives a share, or counts from which the share can be worked out, and it is below the floor for the round.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The CRM export with each customer and open deal marked as matching the ICP or not; new ARR by customer. For a self-serve product: sign-ups and paying accounts by kind of customer, from product analytics.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Floor: 80% of new ARR in the last twelve months from customers who match the ICP. The bar at Series A
Market size
The market you can reach with this product and these channels is large enough.
The bar at seed
Floor
£250m a year
SVV’s judgement, in sterling. No investor publishes a threshold for SAM. Published thresholds are for the total market.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The market slide. SAM is the part of the total market you can reach with this product and the ways you sell, in every country you mean to sell in. Look for it as a yearly figure. A figure the deck calls its serviceable or reachable market counts, whatever the label. Markets the deck sizes one by one, each with a count and a price, are read together, and the report shows the addition as the reader’s working. A market that depends on something the deck says is not yet shown does not count. A deck in dollars or euros is read against the same number in its own currency.
Shown
The deck gives a SAM as a yearly figure at or above the floor for the round, and shows the sum behind it: a count of customers and a price.
Claimed
The deck gives a SAM at or above the floor and no sum behind it. A figure for the reachable market taken from a report is Claimed.
Not met
The deck gives a SAM below the floor for the round, with or without working. A figure for the first market alone, where the deck names further markets and leaves them out of the count, is not the SAM: the part is Unknown, and the report states the figure and what was left out.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The bottom-up market model.
Applies to
Every company.
Where the figures are from
These bars are SVV’s own, in sterling, written for UK and Irish enterprise AI software companies. They are for everything the product can reach, not for the UK and Ireland alone.
The market slide. Bottom-up means the number of target customers multiplied by what each would pay in a year. Look for the count, where the count comes from, and the price.
Shown
The deck shows the count of target customers, the yearly price used and the multiplication. At pre-seed the count also carries a named source.
Claimed
The deck gives a market size and any of what Shown asks for is missing: the count, the price, the multiplication, or at pre-seed the source of the count. A figure quoted from a report with no sum of the deck’s own is Claimed. So is a market worked out top-down only: a total from a report with a percentage applied, such as "1% of a £30bn market".
Not met
The deck says its target customers have not been counted, or that it has no price to multiply by.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The market model, with the source and date of each count.
No pass mark The report states the total market the deck gives and how it was worked out. It gives no pass mark at seed.
The total market has no pass mark at seed. Published guidance still looks for it early. Y Combinator’s seed guide: "Total Available Market (TAM) >$1B if possible." Sequoia: "A market on the path to a $1B potential allows for error and time for real margins to develop."
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The market slide. TAM is what every target customer, everywhere, would spend in a year at your price. Look for the figure and the sum behind it. A figure for one country, one region or a first market is not a TAM, and a reader does not add regions together to make one: where the deck gives no figure for the whole market, the part is Unknown. A deck in dollars or euros is read against the same number in its own currency.
Shown
The deck gives a TAM and shows the sum behind it: a count of target customers and a yearly price, multiplied. At Series A the figure is also a billion a year or more.
Claimed
The deck gives a TAM with no sum of its own behind it. A figure quoted for a whole industry or taken from a report is Claimed, whatever source is named.
Not met
At Series A: the TAM the deck gives is below a billion a year, with or without working. Not given at seed, where this part has no pass mark.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The market model, bottom-up and top-down, with sources.
Applies to
Every company.
Where the figures are from
The published figures are in US dollars. Balderton is a European investor; Sequoia and Y Combinator are American. Where the market does not exist yet no figure can be shown: Balderton says "some markets may not yet exist", and that founders then have to work harder to convince an investor it is there.
The why-now slide. Look for one outside change with a date: a regulation, a shift in a platform or a technology, or a new budget line.
Shown
The deck names one change outside the company (a regulation, a shift in a platform or a technology, or a new budget line), gives its date, and gives one fact about it that can be looked up: the name of the regulation, a published price or a published target.
Claimed
The deck names a change or a trend outside the company (for example "AI is here") and leaves out its date, the fact that can be looked up, or both.
Not met
The only reasons the deck gives for the timing are inside the company: the product is ready, the team is in place, the round is open.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The regulation, price curve or published target itself, with its date.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Floor: One documented trigger: a regulation, a platform shift or a budget line. The bar at Series A
Customers name the trigger themselves.
The bar at seed
Floor
2 customer references cite it
SVV's judgementNo published count. The direction is supported: Unusual Ventures asks before a Series A for "a tight set of references to build on".
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The why-now, problem or traction slide. Look for quotes from interviewees or customers, each with a name or with a role and organisation, giving the trigger as their reason.
Shown
The deck quotes or cites people who give the trigger as their reason, each identified by name or by role and organisation, and there are enough of them: 2 interviewees at pre-seed, 2 customers at seed, 5 customers at Series A. Whether anyone was prompted is not read from a deck.
Claimed
The deck says customers give this reason and identifies fewer of them than the round asks for, or none, without saying those are all there are.
Not met
The deck quotes customers on why they buy and none of them gives the trigger, or says how many customers cite the trigger and the number is below what the round asks for.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Interview notes at pre-seed; reference calls at seed and Series A.
The alternatives a customer could choose are named.
The bar at seed
Floor
3 named alternatives
SVV’s judgement on the count. Naming the alternatives is published advice (Sequoia’s business plan outline; CRV’s seed deck guide).
Sequoia describes markets where customers have accepted the problem as a fact of life, and says a company there "will likely face less competition". The alternatives are then the current way of working and doing nothing, and they count.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The competition slide, and any slide that says how the job is done today. Count the alternatives named anywhere in the deck. Doing nothing, the current manual way and building it in-house each count. Several ways of doing the job by hand count as one.
Shown
The deck names at least three alternatives. Doing nothing and building it in-house each count as one. At pre-seed one of the three is the customer building it themselves. A deck that says it has no competitors and still names three alternatives is counted by what it names.
Claimed
The deck refers to "competitors" or "incumbents" as a group, or says it has mapped the competition, and names none.
Not met
The deck names one or two alternatives only, or says there are no competitors and names fewer than three. At pre-seed: it names three or more and building it in-house is not among them.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The competitive matrix.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
The reason you win has been tested with customers.
The bar at seed
Floor
Positioning tested in 5 customer conversations
SVV's judgementNo published count. The point is whether "where we win" has been tested in deals, or only asserted.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The competition slide. Look for the stated reason to win and who agreed with it: design partners at pre-seed, customer conversations at seed. For a self-serve product, look for what paying customers used before and why they changed.
Shown
The deck states the reason it wins and says who confirmed it. At pre-seed: at least 2 design partners, named. At seed: a number of customer conversations in which it was tested, and the number is 5 or more. For a self-serve product, customers asked in a survey or at sign-up count as conversations.
Claimed
The deck states the reason it wins and gives nothing on who confirmed it, or at pre-seed names one design partner only, or at seed mentions customer conversations with no number.
Not met
At seed: the deck gives a number of customer conversations below 5. At either round: the deck reports that customers did not accept the reason, for example deals lost on that point.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Notes of the conversations, and the deals won and lost against each alternative. For a self-serve product: what customers said they used before, from a survey or sign-up question.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
No written ideal customer profile. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.
One customer is more than half of revenue.
An incumbent, a supplier the customer already uses, has shipped the same feature and there is no differentiated win to show.
Revenue
Are customers paying, and is there a way to find more of them?
Level
Paying customers and signed contracts, or at pre-seed signed evidence that a customer will pay
The bar at seed
Floor
Three paying customers, or £100k of contracted ARR
SVV's judgementThe customer count matches First Round's first level, three to five customers (First Round 2024). The £100k is SVV's own figure. It sits inside Point Nine's seed range of about $0 to $1.5M of ARR (Point Nine 2023).
Typical
Up to $500k of ARR from three to five customers (First Round, level 1). About $0 to $1.5M of ARR (Point Nine)
In Point Nine's 2023 survey, seven of the 27 seed rounds were in companies with more than $500k of ARR. First Round's second level starts at $500k of ARR and five customers.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The traction slide. At pre-seed the bar accepts three kinds of signed evidence: a paying customer, a signed paid pilot, or three signed letters of intent that each name the person who holds the budget. A letter of intent counts here as evidence of demand. It is never revenue. SVV's definitions: "A verbal yes, a letter of intent or a proposal under review is pipeline, not revenue." A pilot fee is pilot revenue and is not ARR. At seed the bar is three paying customers, or contracted ARR. SVV's definitions do not use the term "contracted ARR". It is read here as three of the categories they do define, added together: billed and collected recurring revenue; billed, not yet collected; and contracted, not yet billed. Only the first is headline ARR, so the deck should show the three apart. A pilot with no fee is not a paying customer. For a self-serve product, paying accounts are the customers, and recurring revenue paid by card stands in for contracted ARR: see MRR and ARR in the definitions.
Shown
The deck names each customer, pilot or signatory it counts. Names are enough without a date. Or, where it gives a count or contracted ARR without names, it gives the date and says what is counted: for contracted ARR, how much is billed and collected, how much is billed and not yet collected, and how much is contracted and not yet billed. For a self-serve product: a dated count of paying accounts, or dated recurring revenue with what it counts. Either way, the count or figure is at or above the floor for the round.
Claimed
The deck gives a count or a figure at or above the floor with no names, and with either no date or nothing to say what is counted.
Not met
The deck's own count or figure is below the floor for the round. Or everything it counts is unsigned or unpaid: verbal commitments, proposals under review, pilots with no fee, or letters of intent that are not signed or name no budget owner. At seed a letter of intent is never a paying customer. Where one slide gives a count of customers and another lists who they are, the list decides.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The signed contracts, pilot agreements or letters, and a list of each with its start date, its annual value and whether it has been invoiced and paid. SVV's ARR bridge template is that list.
Applies to
Every company.
For AI companies
AI companies get to revenue faster, so more is expected of them. In a16z's data on enterprise AI companies (June 2025), revenue six months after the first revenue was $0.5M for the bottom quarter, $0.7M at the median and $2.0M for the top quarter (Andreessen Horowitz 2025).
Where the figures are from
Every published figure here is American and in dollars. SVV found no European investor that publishes a revenue threshold for seed or Series A. SVV's floors were set for UK and Irish companies.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
10% a month over six months, or doubled in six months
SVV's own figure. No source gives a growth figure for a seed round as such. It is below the 15% to 25% a month that investors gave Lenny Rachitsky for companies under $1M of ARR (Lenny Rachitsky 2022).
Typical
15% to 25% a month, for companies under $1M of ARR
The typical level is the range the answers of Lenny Rachitsky's investors "typically fell in" for companies under $1M of ARR. It is tied to revenue, not to a round. Craft Ventures' benchmark, at least 15% a month below $1M of ARR, is for companies seeking a Series A or B, not a seed round (Craft Ventures 2021). Craft also says 10% a month is about three times a year, and Point Nine's seed range is about two to three times a year where there is revenue (Point Nine 2023). The same investors told Lenny Rachitsky that a monthly percentage means little while the base is small: below $1M of ARR they look at how quickly the company gets to $1M after launch. The measure "Speed" reports that.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The traction slide. Look for recurring revenue month by month, and for what the deck says the figures count. Recurring revenue is billed and paid for, with pilot fees, set-up fees and services left out, and a label on a chart does not make it so. The rate has to hold over the whole period the bar names, so one strong month does not count. Monthly figures that can be read off a running total count: a chart that only adds up is a fault of the slide and does not lower this status.
Shown
The deck shows recurring revenue month by month, or gives the start and end figures with their dates, over the period the bar names, and says what the figures count. What they count is recurring revenue as the definitions have it. The growth is at or above the floor.
Claimed
The deck states a growth rate at or above the floor and does not show the monthly figures or the start and end figures behind it. Or it shows figures for a shorter period than the bar names. Or it shows figures it calls ARR, MRR or revenue and does not say what they count, or says they include pilot fees, one-off fees or services without the recurring part at the start and the end of the period.
Not met
Over the period the bar names, the deck's own figures give growth below the floor. Or the deck's own account of its customers shows that none of them pays, so there is no recurring revenue to grow, whatever a chart is labelled.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Twelve months of monthly recurring revenue, from the billing system or the accounts.
Applies to
Every company.
For AI companies
These figures come from classic software, and AI companies are growing faster. The fast-growing AI companies Bessemer tracks quadruple their ARR in each of their first two years (Bessemer Venture Partners 2025). In a16z's data the median enterprise AI company went from $0.7M of revenue six months after its first revenue to $2.1M at twelve months (Andreessen Horowitz 2025).
Where the figures are from
All of these figures are American. Nothing comparable is published for the UK or Ireland.
At Series A
Floor: 3× year on year, or 15% a month sustained for six months. Strong: 230% growth a year or more. The bar at Series A
Repeatability
How a customer is won, written down step by step
The bar at seed
Floor
A written process with named steps and the conversion rate between them
SVV's judgementNo source gives a threshold. The direction is supported: Bessemer puts building the sales playbook between $100k and $1M of ARR (Bessemer Venture Partners 2025), and Point Nine looks at seed for "Success with founder-led sales" (Point Nine 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The slide on how the company sells. For a company with a sales team this is the sales process: the named stages from first conversation to signed contract. For a self-serve product it is the funnel from sign-up to paying customer.
Shown
The deck sets out everything the bar for the round lists. At pre-seed: who buys, how they are reached, how long a sale takes and the price. At seed: the named steps, and the conversion rate from each step to the next.
Claimed
The deck says there is a sales process, a funnel or a go-to-market plan, and leaves out one or more of the things the bar lists.
Not met
The deck describes selling as different for every customer, with no fixed steps, or says the process is not yet written down.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The written process, one page, and the pipeline report that shows deals moving through its steps. For a self-serve product: the funnel report, step by step.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Customers won by following those steps
The bar at seed
Floor
Three deals through the same process
SVV's judgementNothing is published on the number. First Round's first level, pre-seed or seed, is three to five customers, and three is also this standard's seed floor for paying customers (First Round 2024).
Strong
Five or more
SVV's own figure, set as the strong level. It is the top of First Round's first level, and its second level starts at five customers (First Round 2024).
First Round on its first level: "the hallmark of this level is that it lacks repeatability", and that is "to be expected at Level 1".
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The same slide, or the traction slide. Look for how many customers came through the process the deck describes, and not by a one-off route. For a self-serve product, a dated count of paying accounts that came through the funnel is the count.
Shown
The deck names the deals, or gives the count with dates, and says they followed the process it describes. The count is at or above the floor.
Claimed
The deck says deals have followed the process and gives no count, or a count with no names and no dates. Or it names or counts deals at or above the floor and does not say they followed the process.
Not met
The deck's own count of deals through the process is below the floor.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The pipeline report or CRM export: each deal, the date it entered each step, and who closed it. For a self-serve product: paying accounts by the month they signed up.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
The first customers renewed or bought moreSold by a sales team
The bar at seed
Floor
80% of the customers whose renewal has fallen due
SVV's own figure. No source gives a renewal figure for seed. It is in line with what is published for later stages: First Round's second level has 10% to 20% regretted churn (First Round 2024), and Craft gives customer retention of 70% to 80% for small-business customers, 85% for mid-sized and 90% to 95% for enterprise (Craft Ventures 2021).
If no contract has reached its renewal date, the deck should give the date the first one does. The part is then Unknown, and the report says it is too early to tell. First Round expects no renewals yet at its first level. No source gives a higher level for seed. Craft's 90% to 95% is for enterprise customers at Series A, and First Round's regretted churn of under 10% belongs to its third level, Series A to C.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The traction slide. Look for the customers whose first contract has reached its renewal date, and how many of them renewed or expanded. A product billed by the month with no fixed term has no renewal date: it is read under monthly churn.
Shown
The deck gives the number of customers whose renewal date has passed and how many of them renewed or expanded, and the share is 80% or more.
Claimed
The deck says customers are renewing, or gives a retention figure of 80% or more, without the counts behind it.
Not met
By the deck's own counts, fewer than 80% of the customers due for renewal renewed or expanded.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The customer list with each contract's start date, renewal date and what happened at renewal.
Applies to
Only companies that sell through a sales team.
For AI companies
Early retention in AI products is less reliable. Notion Capital reports many AI companies losing 10% to 30% of their customers every month (Notion Capital 2025). a16z counts retention from month three, after the people who were only trying the product have left (Andreessen Horowitz 2025).
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
How many paying accounts leave each month, and what those who stay go on to spendBought self-serve
The bar at seed
Typical
Monthly churn of 2.5% to 5%, for products sold to small and mid-sized businesses
No pass mark The report states the churn and the net revenue retention the deck gives, each with its period, beside the published figures. It applies no pass mark.
Lenny Rachitsky: "For B2B SMB + Mid-Market: Between 2.5% and 5% is GOOD, and less than 1.5% is GREAT". He means products sold mainly to companies with fewer than 1,000 employees, and churn once it has settled, not in the first month. For products sold to consumers he gives 3% to 5%, and under 2%. For net revenue retention in self-serve products sold into companies, his panel put good at about 100% and great at about 120% (Lenny Rachitsky 2020). None of these is tied to a round, so there is no pass mark. Monthly billing is not a weakness in itself.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The retention or unit economics slide. A product bought self-serve and billed by the month has no renewal date, so every month is one. Monthly churn is the share of paying accounts that stop paying in a month. Look for it with the months it is averaged over, and for net revenue retention with its period.
Shown
The deck gives monthly churn of paying accounts with the months it covers, or net revenue retention with its period, or revenue by the month customers signed up.
Claimed
The deck says churn is low or that customers stay, or gives a churn or retention figure with no period.
Not met
Not given for this part. It has no pass mark, so a deck cannot fall short of it.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Paying accounts at the start and the end of each month, and revenue by sign-up month, from the billing system.
Applies to
Only companies whose customers buy self-serve.
Where the figures are from
Both sources are American and describe classic software.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Pilots are set up to become paid contracts, and doSold by a sales team
The bar at seed
Floor
50% of finished pilots
SVV's own figure. It is in line with the one published figure found. ICONIQ's 2026 survey of go-to-market leaders at more than 150 B2B software companies reports free trials and proofs of concept converting at roughly 50%, up from about 36% in 2025 (ICONIQ 2026). That survey covers companies of every stage, not seed alone.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The traction slide, or the slide on how the company sells. A pilot is a trial with one customer for a fixed time. At pre-seed, look for whether each pilot is paid, when it ends, and the price the customer has agreed to pay if it goes well. At seed, look for the number of pilots that have finished and how many became paid contracts.
Shown
At pre-seed: the deck gives, for each pilot, the end date and the price agreed for the contract that follows. At seed: the deck gives the number of pilots finished and the number that became paid contracts, and half or more did.
Claimed
The deck says pilots convert, or will, and gives no agreed price at pre-seed, or no counts at seed. A ratio such as "3 of 5" that does not say the five are pilots that have finished is Claimed.
Not met
At either round: the deck shows a pilot that is free and gives it no end date, or says the price will be agreed after the pilot. At seed: by the deck's own counts, fewer than half of the finished pilots became paid contracts.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The signed pilot agreements, and the list of pilots with the start date, the end date and the outcome of each.
Applies to
Only companies that sell through a sales team.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
Pilots have finished and none has become a paid contractSold by a sales team
One customer over 50% of ARR
The deck counts as revenue or ARR something no customer is yet bound to pay for: a verbal yes, a letter of intent, a proposal or a pilot with no fee. For a self-serve product: revenue from accounts that have not paid. Raised where the slides show it, such as an ARR figure beside customers who are all unpaid.
Systems
Does the company know its numbers every month?
Cash and finance
A cash plan that reaches the next round
The bar at seed
Floor
A cash model for the next 12 months
SVV's judgementNothing is published on the length. Y Combinator's 12 to 18 months to the next fundable milestone supports the direction (Y Combinator).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The plan slide and the ask slide. Look for cash by month or quarter and the month it runs out. At pre-seed, look also for the target the deck itself names for its seed round: a number, such as customers or revenue, and the date it expects to reach it. That target is what the floor means by the number the seed round needs. The report does not judge here whether the target is the right one: the Revenue pillar's seed bar does that. A runway figure on its own is a claim. At Series A the plan is a full model: profit and loss, cash and headcount joined together.
Shown
The deck shows the plan itself, as a table or chart by month or quarter, covering the months the bar for the round names, with the cash left at the end. At pre-seed the deck also names its target for the seed round and the date it expects to reach it, and the plan shows cash left at that date.
Claimed
The deck gives a runway figure, or says a plan or a model exists, and shows none of it. At pre-seed, a plan that is shown but names no target for the seed round, or no date for it, is also Claimed.
Not met
The plan the deck shows stops short of the months the bar names, or its own figures show the cash running out before them. At pre-seed: its own figures show the cash running out before the date the deck gives for reaching its seed target.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The plan or model itself, as a spreadsheet, with its assumptions.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Floor: A model for the next 18 months that joins profit and loss, cash and headcount. The bar at Series A
The month the cash runs out is known
The bar at seed
Floor
Stated to the month
SVV's judgementNo source says "to the month". The direction is supported: Y Combinator names revenue, burn rate and runway as the three numbers that belong at the top of every investor update (Y Combinator).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The ask slide. Runway is the time until the cash runs out. Burn is the cash the company loses each month. Look for runway stated as a month and a year, with the cash in the bank and the monthly burn it is worked out from.
Shown
The deck names the month and year the cash runs out, and gives the cash in the bank and the monthly burn behind it.
Claimed
The deck gives runway as a number of months or as a range, or names a month with no cash balance and no burn behind it.
Not met
The deck states a runway, and its own cash plan shows the cash running out two or more months sooner. Where the deck shows no plan, the test is the cash in the bank divided by the monthly burn: Not met if that comes to two or more months less than the runway stated. A gap of one month is rounding.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The bank balance and the last three months of spending.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
A company bank account, and books that agree with it
The bar at seed
Floor
The books reconciled to the bank every month
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes it as a test. Y Combinator's diligence checklist asks for the most recent financial statements, which need reconciled books behind them (Y Combinator).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
A deck rarely says this. If the deck is silent the part is Unknown, and it becomes one of the questions to the founder.
Shown
The deck or its appendix shows figures it labels as actuals from the books or the accounts, with the date or the month they cover, and names who keeps the books: a person, a firm or the accounting software.
Claimed
The deck says the books are kept, or names who keeps them, and shows no figures labelled as actuals from the books.
Not met
The deck says there is no company bank account, or that the books are not up to date.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
Bank statements and the bookkeeping ledger for the last three months.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
A written update to investors every month with five core numbers: revenue or customers, usage, pipeline, burn and runway
SVV's judgementIt is in line with Y Combinator's advice: four or five key metrics, with revenue, burn rate and runway at the top of every investor update (Y Combinator).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
Anywhere in the deck. A KPI, or key performance indicator, is a number the company steers by. The five are: customers or revenue (design partners at pre-seed), usage, pipeline, burn and runway. At seed the five go to investors in a written update every month. A deck shows this by giving the five numbers with their dates, and at seed by showing an update or saying how many have been sent. For a self-serve product, read pipeline as new sign-ups.
Shown
The deck gives all five numbers, each with its date. At seed it also shows a monthly update, or says how many have been sent and since when.
Claimed
The deck gives some of the five numbers, or says the company tracks its KPIs or sends investor updates, and falls short of Shown.
Not met
The deck says one of the five is not measured yet, or at seed that no regular update is sent.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The monthly updates already sent.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
Every sales conversation and deal is recorded in one placeSold by a sales team
The bar at seed
Floor
Every deal in a CRM
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes it.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The pipeline slide. CRM stands for customer relationship management: the record of every prospect and deal. At pre-seed a spreadsheet counts. Look for a pipeline table or a picture of the record, with a stage against each row.
Shown
The deck shows the pipeline as a table or a picture of the record, with a stage against each deal.
Claimed
The deck says deals are tracked in a CRM, or gives a pipeline total, and shows no rows.
Not met
The deck says conversations and deals are not recorded in one place.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The CRM export, with stages.
Applies to
Only companies that sell through a sales team.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Each stage of the sales process has a written definitionSold by a sales team
The bar at seed
Floor
A written definition for every stage
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes it. It overlaps with the written process under Revenue: one page answers both.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The slide on how the company sells. Look for the named stages and what has to be true for a deal to move from one to the next.
Shown
The deck names the stages and says what moves a deal from each to the next.
Claimed
The deck names stages, or shows a funnel, with no definitions.
Not met
The deck says the stages are not defined in writing.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The stage definitions, one page.
Applies to
Only companies that sell through a sales team.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
Everyone who works for the company has a signed contract that assigns their work to it
The bar at seed
Floor
Signed by every employee and contractor
SVV's judgement on timing. Y Combinator's diligence checklist asks for employee confidentiality and proprietary information agreements at closing (Y Combinator). Staff without them is a red flag in this standard.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
A deck rarely says this. If the deck is silent the part is Unknown, and it becomes one of the questions to the founder.
Shown
The deck or its appendix lists the staff and contractors and says each has signed a contract with IP assignment.
Claimed
The deck says all staff have signed contracts, with no list.
Not met
The deck says someone works for the company without a signed agreement.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The signed agreements, and a list of staff and contractors to check them against.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
The staff option pool is set up, and granted as planned
The bar at seed
Floor
An option pool set up
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a stage for it.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide, the ask slide or the cap table. Look for the size of the pool and, at Series A, how much of it has been granted against the plan.
Shown
The deck gives the size of the pool as a share of the company. At Series A it also gives how much has been granted, and to how many people.
Claimed
The deck says there is an option pool, and gives no size.
Not met
The deck says there is no pool, or at Series A that options promised to staff have not been granted.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The option scheme documents and the register of grants.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Floor: Options granted as the plan said, with none promised and not yet granted. The bar at Series A
A hiring plan for the next twelve months
The bar at seed
Floor
Roles and start months for the next twelve months
SVV's judgementNothing is published.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The team slide or the plan slide. Look for the roles to be hired and the month each starts.
Shown
The deck lists the roles to be hired over the next twelve months, with a start month for each.
Claimed
The deck says the round pays for hiring, or gives a headcount target, without roles and months.
Not met
The hiring plan in the deck stops short of twelve months, or the deck says there is none.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The hiring plan, tied to the cash model.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
The deck says there is no cash model, or its own figures give less than six months of runway and it does not say so. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.
The numbers in the deck do not agree with the company's own records: its CRM, billing system or accounts. Two slides that disagree are a fault of the deck, read under the check on figures agreeing, and do not raise this flag. From a deck alone it is not checked.
Staff without employment or IP agreements. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.
Trust
Could the company answer a buyer's security and data questions today?
Security posture
A second step at sign-in on every core system
The bar at seed
Floor
MFA or SSO on every core system
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust or security slide, if there is one. MFA, multi-factor authentication, is a second step at sign-in, such as a code from a phone. SSO, single sign-on, is one controlled sign-in for every system. The core systems are the code repository, the cloud account, email and anywhere customer data is held.
Shown
The deck names the core systems and says MFA, or at seed MFA or SSO, is enforced on every one.
Claimed
The deck says "MFA enabled" or "secure by design", and names no systems.
Not met
The deck says a core system has no MFA.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
A picture of the enforcement setting in each system, or the user list from the sign-in provider.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
A written security policy
The bar at seed
Floor
A security policy
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust or security slide. Look for a policy that is named and dated. At pre-seed one page is enough.
Shown
The deck shows the policy or an extract, or names it with its date and the person who owns it.
Claimed
The deck says the company takes security seriously or has policies, and names none.
Not met
The deck says there is no written policy.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The policy.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Customer data is encrypted when it moves and when it is stored
The bar at seed
Floor
Encryption in transit and at rest
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust, security or architecture slide. "In transit" means while data moves between systems. "At rest" means while it is stored.
Shown
The deck says customer data is encrypted in transit and at rest, and says how: the standard, or the cloud service that does it.
Claimed
The deck says data is "encrypted" or "secure" without covering both, or without saying how.
Not met
The deck says customer data is stored or sent without encryption.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The architecture diagram, and the storage and network settings.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
One security questionnaire completed and keptSold by a sales team
The bar at seed
Floor
One completed security questionnaire on file
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust slide. A security questionnaire is the list of questions a buyer's security team sends before it signs. Look for a statement that one has been completed, and for whom.
Shown
The deck says a questionnaire has been completed, and names the buyer or the standard form used.
Claimed
The deck says the company is "enterprise-ready" or has passed security reviews, and names none.
Not met
The deck says none has been completed.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The completed questionnaire.
Applies to
Only companies that sell through a sales team.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust or architecture slide. A data map lists what data the product takes in, where it is stored, who can see it and where it is sent, including to any model provider.
Shown
The deck shows the data map, or a diagram of where customer data goes.
Claimed
The deck says customer data is handled safely or is "GDPR compliant", with no map.
Not met
The deck says it has not been written down.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The data map.
Applies to
Every company.
For AI companies
For an AI product the map should show what is sent to a model provider, and whether that provider may train on it. a16z found large enterprises uneasy about sharing their own data with closed model providers (Andreessen Horowitz 2024).
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
The right to use any data the models are trained on, in writingAI only
The bar at seed
Floor
Rights to training data documented
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes it as a test for a stage. The direction is supported: a16z found large enterprises not comfortable sharing their own data with closed model providers (Andreessen Horowitz 2024).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The slide on the AI or on the data. Look for where the training data comes from, and the agreement or licence that allows it to be used for training. If the company trains nothing and uses a provider's model as it comes, the deck should say so.
Shown
The deck names the sources of its training data and the agreement, licence or contract clause that gives the right to train on each. Or it says plainly that no model is trained or tuned on customer data.
Claimed
The deck says the company owns its data or has "proprietary data", and names no agreement.
Not met
The deck says models are trained on customer data or scraped data with no written right to do so. Or it says the training data is held by someone else, such as a university or a previous employer, and names no agreement that lets the company use it.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The data agreements and licences, and the clause on use of data in each customer contract.
Applies to
Only AI companies.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
A published privacy policy
The bar at seed
Floor
A privacy policy
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust slide may give the link. A deck rarely says this. If the deck is silent the part is Unknown, and it becomes one of the questions to the founder.
Shown
The deck gives the link to the policy, or shows it.
Claimed
The deck says there is a privacy policy.
Not met
The deck says there is none.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The policy, on the company's website.
Applies to
Every company.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
A data processing agreement for customers
The bar at seed
Floor
A DPA template ready to sign
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust slide. A DPA, or data processing agreement, is the contract that says how a supplier may handle a customer's personal data. At seed, look for a standard template ready to sign. At Series A, look for one signed with every enterprise customer. For a self-serve product the DPA is part of the terms every customer accepts.
Shown
At seed: the deck says a DPA template exists, and shows it or gives the link. At Series A: the deck gives the number of enterprise customers and the number with a signed DPA, and they match. For a self-serve product, at either round: the deck gives the link to the DPA in its published terms.
Claimed
The deck says DPAs are "in place" or "available", with no template shown and no counts.
Not met
The deck says there is no template, or at Series A that an enterprise customer has no signed DPA.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The template. At Series A, the signed DPAs set against the customer list.
The product's risk class under the EU AI Act, written downAI only
The bar at seed
Floor
The risk class documented, with the reasoning
SVV's judgementNothing is published on AI governance by stage. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Bessemer expects AI vendors to "surface evidence of effectiveness before purchase", and says evaluations become "a core requirement for procurement and governance" (Bessemer Venture Partners 2025).
The EU AI Act as it stands in November 2026, after the amendments that came into force on 27 July 2026 (European Commission 2026). Most prohibited uses have been banned since 2 February 2025, with one more added on 2 December 2026. The transparency rules have applied since 2 August 2026. The obligations for high-risk systems apply from 2 December 2027, and from 2 August 2028 for AI built into products that are already regulated. Of the minimal-risk class, which carries no rules under the Act, the European Commission says: "The vast majority of AI systems currently used in the EU fall into this category." (European Commission 2026; Future of Life Institute 2026)
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust slide or the slide on the AI. The Act sorts uses of AI into four classes: prohibited, high-risk, limited risk with transparency duties, and minimal risk. Look for one line that names the class and gives the reason. "Minimal risk" is a complete answer where it is true.
Shown
The deck names the class and gives the reason, such as what the product is used for. Or it says the product is not sold or used in the EU.
Claimed
The deck says the product is "EU AI Act compliant" or "AI Act ready", and names no class.
Not met
The deck says the class has not been worked out.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
One page: what the product does, whose lives its outputs affect, the class and the reasoning.
Applies to
Only AI companies.
Where the figures are from
The Act reaches beyond the EU. Its duties for high-risk systems fall on any provider that places one on the EU market or puts it into service there, wherever the provider is based, and on providers outside the EU whose system's output is used in the EU (Future of Life Institute 2026). Ireland is in the EU. The UK is not. A UK company with customers in the EU is inside the Act. A company with no customers or users in the EU should say so in the deck.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
A person can check and overrule outputs that affect peopleAI only
The bar at seed
Floor
A human-oversight mechanism
SVV's judgementNothing is published on AI governance by stage. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Bessemer expects AI vendors to "surface evidence of effectiveness before purchase", and says evaluations become "a core requirement for procurement and governance" (Bessemer Venture Partners 2025).
For high-risk systems the Act will require "appropriate human oversight measures" from 2 December 2027 (European Commission 2026). For other products this is a buyer's question, not a legal duty.
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The product slide or the slide on the AI. An output affects a person when it is about a named or identifiable individual and is used to decide something about them. The Commission's own examples are marking an exam, sorting job applicants and scoring someone for credit (European Commission 2026). Look for where a person reviews, approves or can reverse such an output before it is acted on. If the product produces no output of that kind, the deck should say so.
Shown
The deck shows the step: who reviews the output, at what point, and what they can change. Or the deck says the product produces no output about an identifiable person.
Claimed
The deck says there is a "human in the loop" or human oversight, without saying who reviews or at what point.
Not met
The deck describes outputs about identifiable people being acted on with no person reviewing them and no way to reverse them.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
A screen or a flow that shows the review step, and the log of reviews.
Applies to
Only AI companies.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Written records of the model and of how it is testedAI only
The bar at seed
Floor
Model documentation and evaluation documentation
SVV's judgementNothing is published on AI governance by stage. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Bessemer expects AI vendors to "surface evidence of effectiveness before purchase", and says evaluations become "a core requirement for procurement and governance" (Bessemer Venture Partners 2025).
The slide on the AI. Look for which models are used and for what, the test set, who labelled it, how often the tests run and the latest result with its date.
Shown
The deck names the models used and describes the evaluation: the test set, how often it runs and a dated result.
Claimed
The deck speaks of how the model is tested (an accuracy figure, a test set, "rigorously tested") and leaves out any of what Shown asks for.
Not met
The deck says there is no evaluation set, or no written record of the model.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The document that describes each model and its limits, and the evaluation report.
Applies to
Only AI companies.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
A trust pack ready to send to a buyerSold by a sales team
The bar at seed
Floor
A pack with all four: security overview, architecture, sub-processors, insurance
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes a security or data test for any stage, and none names one as a reason to invest. The direction is supported by what buyers ask. Unusual Ventures says customers will require compliance certification of a supplier that processes or stores their data, even at the design partner stage (Unusual Ventures 2023).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The trust slide. A trust pack is the set of documents a buyer's security team wants to see before it says yes. The pack has four: a security overview, the architecture, the sub-processors and the insurance.
Shown
The deck says the pack exists and lists what is in it, covering all four.
Claimed
The deck says security documents are available on request, with no list.
Not met
The deck says the pack is not ready, or its own list leaves out one of the four.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The pack.
Applies to
Only companies that sell through a sales team.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Standard contract termsSold by a sales team
The bar at seed
Floor
Standard contract terms, ready to send
SVV's judgementNo investor publishes it as a test. Y Combinator's diligence checklist asks for the company's standard terms and standard forms of agreement at closing (Y Combinator).
How it is read, and what counts
How it is read from a deck
The slide on how the company sells, or the trust slide. Look for a statement that customers sign the company's own standard terms.
Shown
The deck says customers sign standard terms, and shows them or gives the link.
Claimed
The deck says contracts are in place, without saying whether the terms are standard.
Not met
The deck says there are no standard terms.
Unknown
The deck is silent.
What would evidence it
The standard terms.
Applies to
Only companies that sell through a sales team.
At Series A
Not asked at Series A.
Read for Series A only These parts have no bar at seed. They are read against the bar for Series A.
Models are trained on customer data with no right in the contract to do so. Raised only where the deck says or shows this. A silent deck is not checked.AI only
Unable to complete a standard security questionnaireSold by a sales team