Your Window Into the Innovation Economy

The past five years have been brutal for cybersecurity leaders. The 2020 SolarWinds breach showed how nation-states could weaponize software supply chains, compromising thousands of organizations across public and private sectors. In May 2021, the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack shut down nearly half the fuel supply for the U.S. East Coast, triggering widespread gas shortages and panic buying. Just a few months earlier, vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange gave attackers access to tens of thousands of email servers worldwide.

Last week, more than 1,500 investors squeezed into a San Francisco venue for a coveted seat at YC’s invite-only Spring 2025 Demo Day. Over six hours, 144 startups delivered rapid-fire, one-minute pitches, each launching just seconds apart. Investors furiously took notes, sized up founders, and fired off intros. Yet Demo Day has evolved beyond a pure deal-sourcing frenzy. By the time the curtain rises, many YC teams already have term sheets in hand from top firms and are well on their way to sealing seed rounds.

The venture world has long recognized the outsized influence of alumni networks from breakout companies — none more famous than the PayPal Mafia. But today, we’re seeing the rise of a new and potentially more transformative force: the AI Mafia. At Alumni Ventures, we believe the dense networks forming within companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and others represent one of the most compelling engines of innovation and venture opportunity in a generation. In this piece, we unpack how these “mafias” are forming, why they have structural advantages unlike any previous tech wave, and what this means for the future of startup creation, enterprise adoption, and investment strategy.

Seed-stage investing involves high risk and high reward, where bold ideas evolve into products with the potential for significant growth. Investors at this stage focus on assessing key factors such as founder expertise, market potential, product differentiation, and scalability. A diversified approach, thorough due diligence, and strategic involvement with founders can enhance the chances of success in this high-stakes investment space, despite challenges like high failure rates and unproven business models.

Join Alumni Ventures Managing Partner Ron Levin, Senior VP of Investor Relations Hilary Ncala, Partner Meera Oak, and Associate Jason Bird for a comprehensive onboarding session designed specifically for Seed Fund investors.

As a relatively new father (the oldest of my three being six years old), I’ve come to appreciate the African proverb that says, “It takes a village to raise a child.” I’m fortunate to have a strong support system, including a remarkable spouse who somehow holds “dual PhDs” in organic chemistry and parenting. But even with these advantages, I’ve seen firsthand the challenges parents face to keep a household running smoothly and provide the care and attention our children need to thrive.