Unanimous mid-to-high investment committee scores are a red flag because elite founders retrofit narratives to tell investors what they want to hear.

a16z's investment principle in large markets is to always bet on the leading independent startup over an incumbent, even when the incumbent controls models, distribution, open-source assets, and the platform.

“Historically we as a team have bet on the independent in a large market right if there's a leading independent we'll always bet even if the incumbent seems very scary.”

Unanimous mid-to-high IC scores (7-8) are a red flag because top founders can retrofit their narratives to tell investors what they want to hear.

“If everyone's a seven or eight, it's quite dangerous because look, founders know what we want to hear. The best founders are able to you know, retrofit the narrative that they think is going to land with investors and that can be dangerous.”