Is VC dead?

1. The juniors joining today won't build any useful skills beyond networking

   - Only at "sourcing" shops. Many (if not most) VC firms have Juniors doing execution and diligence. 

2. Chances of investing in a unicorn are lower than ever 

   - But they will come back. And idiots will cycle venture-backed companies like hot potatoes once again. 

3. Most funds are screwed with their 2021 portcos, VC returns are awful beyond the tier 1 funds

   - Much like a fine vineyard, some vintages will turn to vinegar and others will age into beautiful wines. Tier-1 funds actually made a lot more "vinegar" because they had to deploy capital while Tier-2/3 shops let the grapes sit on the vine. Smaller managers tend to actually have better returns in VC. Look at a16z's moderation as they have grown in fund size.

4. unless you exited your own VC backed startup, there's no path to partner in VC

   - Not at all the case at all. I interact with partners on a daily basis that have not worked outside of finance.

5. There are no exit opps out of VC beyond startups

   - Plenty of people transition to PE, GE, & HF from the junior level. Speaking from experience, the process is a little more difficult.

I think the best path regardless 

Rumblings of the death of VC is greatly exaggerated. Obviously the market took a hit post 2021 and those vintages are pretty foul, but we're again on the up-swing, and there's an exciting new platform shift (AI) driving innovation across all industries. I'd also differentiate between "tier 1s" that are playing the AUM game, many of which are momentum investors, and the long tail of boutique and specialist VCs that still care about carry and show better overall returns.

To share my thoughts on your questions:

1. If you're at a smaller early stage fund, you're more hands on with your ventures, if you're in growth, it's more fire and forget. In either case, as a junior you do get a lot of exposure to diligence, have the opportunity to work your way up to contributing to boards, and I'd not underestimate networking as a critical core skill for this industry. It goes without saying that no two funds are the same.

2. Unicorns are old news, we're in the decacorn era now, though it's true that returns are less lucrative today than they were in the 90s in part due to the incredible competition between VCs.

3. I've talked to many LPs, and while they also have a bad taste in their mouth from the 2021-adjacent vintages, they also expect the 2022/2023 vintages to be some of the best performing of all time. Some tourist money is gone from the market, but core LPs are still investing in VC. Remember, VCs tend to be uncorrelated to the market, and high rate GICs aren't forever. LPs still want VC exposure, and to drive a good return, they need to include high performing emerging managers. It's a tough fundraising market, but lots of room to maneuver.

4. The going wisdom is that there is no such thing as career progression in VC, and historically VC would be more of your last job not your first. That said, in the last few years we've seen recruitment of younger talent with less experience, and many firms are adding more focus on fostering talent as the first generation of SaaS VC talent is starting to burn out.

5. The exit opps out of VC is to launch your own business or fund, join a startup, do something else in the innovation ecosystem, or retire. You typically exit to VC, not out of it. I won't sugarcoat it, it's a very niche industry and the skill-set, while generalizeable, can be challenging to sell into traditional roles.