Girls founders and buyers raised $38.8 billion in funding within the U.S. in 2024, up 27% from the 12 months earlier than, in accordance with PitchBook.
The report was created by PitchBook Information’s Nizar Tarhuni, Paul Condra and Garrett Black. The variety of transactions involving girls founders is down 13.1%, as deal exercise continued to pay attention amongst a smaller inhabitants of corporations.
General, feminine founders took house a smaller share of whole U.S. VC funding for the 12 months by way of each deal depend and worth. In 2024, feminine founders have been concerned in 25.1% of all offers, in comparison with 26.4% in 2023. And feminine founders have been 19.9% of whole VC deal worth in 2024, in comparison with 20.8% in 2023. It’s clear that male founders dominate tech startups.
Recreation deal information is way worse
Girls are far underrepresented in recreation offers.
But it surely’s far worse within the recreation trade by way of feminine illustration amongst funded startups. Within the male-dominated panorama of recreation startups, girls have been solely 0.11 % of the sport VC deal worth in 2024, worse when in comparison with 0.18% in 2023.
Feminine founders in recreation corporations raised an estimated $215.7 million in offers in 2024, up from $163.2 million in deal worth in 2023. And feminine founders have been 0.26% of whole deal depend for recreation startups in 2024, in comparison with 0.56% in 2023.
PitchBook mentioned sociopolitical tides are shifting with renewed motion towards variety, fairness & inclusion (DEI) and ESG initiatives, which can affect the trajectory of founder demographics within the US. The diploma of affect stays unsure. President Donald Trump’s govt order to finish DEI initiatives and associated ongoing authorized battles will take a while to settle and be mirrored in funding figures.
Extra information on girls in recreation offers.
Nevertheless, PitchBook mentioned it’s notable that the entry factors for underrepresented founders could narrowagain within the face of latest challenges, not less than till authorized precedent is determined. Feminine founders will undoubtedly proceed to innovate and lift new capital within the 12 months to come back, however a extra even demographic cut up for VC funding stays farther on the horizon, PitchBook mentioned.
On the nice facet, PItchBook mentioned that beneficial properties, although uneven, have been made by feminine founders in 2024. Later stage corporations and people working in choose software program and healthcare subsectors noticed substantial funding momentum. The variety of newly minted unicorns rose materially as 13 female-founded corporations crossed the coveted $1 billion valuation threshold.
Feminine founders additionally secured a report 24.3% of whole US VC exit depend in a optimistic sign significantly for buyers who work with these founders.
The 2024 US All In report is made potential by means of sponsorships from Wilson Sonsini, Constancy Personal Shares, and Flourish Ventures.
On the excessive degree within the U.S., bigger checks and a slower decline in deal depend drove extra worth for feminine founders. The 12 months 2024 outpaced 2023 for the third-highest annual degree of capital raised by VC deal exercise for all-female-founded corporations.
As of December 31, 2024, a extra muted 7% discount in deal depend, illustrating a disproportionate decline for female-founded corporations. feminine founders. Annual deal depend remained barely increased than its pre pandemic norms and declined at a slower charge than in 2023, indicating some confidence returning to investor communities. All-male-founded and all-female-founded corporations skilled related traits in 2024, although the all-male class noticed a better 33.2% progress in deal worth and The inverse pattern between deal worth and depend demonstrates the ability of mega-financings for a extra choose inhabitants of corporations whereas the broader base of corporations continues to face challenges. This pattern can also be VC deal exercise for all-male-founded corporations
Throughout all US offers, pre-seed/seed deal quantity took an outsized hit whereas the extra mature venture- progress stage elevated in deal quantity, and this pattern carried over for female-founded corporations as nicely.Feminine founders’ share of whole U.S. VC deal exercise trended downward in 2024.
Feminine founders took house a smaller share of the nation’s whole VC deal exercise in 2024. Their share of deal worth, which is usually extra risky and pushed by market results, declined by lower than a share level to only beneath 20%. Their share of whole deal depend declined for the third 12 months in a row to its lowest degree since 2018 however remained above the 25% threshold.
Given the variety of variables concerned in an organization closing a deal, feminine founders’ share of whole funding exercise is unlikely to comply with a superbly linear development every year, however the long term pattern strains point out progress towards parity.
Inspecting the previous 10 years of annual deal counts reveals stronger CAGRs of 5.5% for all-female based corporations and three.8% for female-founded corporations in contrast with 1.1% for all-male-founded corporations. The subsequent decade of progress will rely on the evolution of right now’s fledgling corporations, socioeconomic components, and the event of investor relationships.
Feminine founders are a rising a part of VC deal exercise.
Median early-stage VC pre-money valuation ($M) Feminine-founded firm valuations rose throughout all phases in 2024 alongside broader US exercise, however a big hole stays between the 2 classes on the late- and venture-growth phases.
With these mature corporations driving extra exercise in VC markets, this hole has an outsized affect on the general disparity in female-founded firm valuations. Nevertheless, the variety of venture-growth offers closed by feminine founders has grown for the previous two years, which might assist shut this hole in time.
Test sizes additionally rose throughout the board in 2024. The median verify dimension for female-founded corporations skilled sooner YoY progress than median VC deal worth ($M) as a result of they didn’t increase additionalrounds. Whereas verify sizes are rising for people who safe new rounds, feminine founders are maintaininga decrease median VC burn charge—the distinction in capital raised and the variety of months between rounds— the broader US class at one-third and almost one-quarter, respectively.
Girls founders increase extra money when paired with male founders.
This progress displays the extra selective cohort of corporations receiving funding over the previous two years, as nicely because the affect of scorching applied sciences resembling AI which might be attracting bigger investments. The development of corporations by means of successive funding rounds, known as the “VC funnel,” illustrates the variety of corporations that aren’t counted towards these median figures than the broader US class. Even asVC sentiment improves, bottom-line controls stay a precedence.
In 2024, feminine founders’ share of enterprise funding hit its lowest degree in 5 years, with early-stage financing taking the best hit. Regardless of these headwinds, buyers and founders alike are discovering methods to adapt. Feminine entrepreneurs proceed to construct progressive, high-growth enterprises, and buyers are recognizing the market potential of female-led startups. PitchBook mentioned the important thing query is: How will we flip the tide and be sure that feminine founders obtain the capital they should thrive?
Lisa Wu Companion at Norwest Enterprise Companions, mentioned in a dialogue within the report, “As investors, we have the power to reverse this funding trend by actively seeking out and investing in female led companies and by hiring more female investors. Studies show that female investors are more likely than male investors to invest in female founders. At the same time, female founders should not be discouraged by this stat and instead stay focused on the basic fundamentals of building a strong business.”
Girls are a rising a part of management in funded tech startups.
She added, “A founder’s ‘founder market fit’ is crucial when starting a company, and female founders are particularly well equipped to create products and services for the female demographic, which holds the highest purchasing power. Women manage an estimated $32 trillion of global spending and are expected to control 75% of discretionary spending worldwide in the next five years. When female founders build products for female customers, they leverage their own understanding of women’s needs and experiences to create products specifically tailored to address pain points and desires that might be otherwise overlooked.”
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