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Vinod Khosla: 'Founder Friendly' VCs Are the Worst Thing That Can Happen to You

By Vinod Khosla · Investing · 1 min read

I hate the culture. There are firms in the Valley who push the idea of 'we are founder friendly' — which really means they're never going to challenge you. They want to be popular with you as opposed to help you. 95% of feedback you'll get will be hypocritical politeness. It doesn't help you.

Key Points

'Founder friendly' really means they're never going to challenge you — they want to be popular, not helpful
95% of VC feedback is hypocritical politeness — it makes you feel better but adds zero value
The best founders ask 'what can I do better?' — not 'let me tell you what's going well'

We prefer brutal honesty to hypocritical politeness. 95% of the feedback you'll get will be hypocritical politeness, and it doesn't help you.

They Want to Be Popular, Not Helpful

Khosla: I hate the culture. There's a number of firms in the Valley who push the idea of 'we are founder friendly' — which really means they're never going to challenge you. They want to be popular with you as opposed to help you.

It's like my kids. If I always say yes, they'll end up really spoiled. You want their welfare at heart, but you want to teach them what's right and wrong, or debate them.

'Founder friendly' means they're never going to challenge you. They want to be popular, not helpful.

The 90/10 Rule

Khosla: I have a rule with my kids — they're all grown up. At age 12, I made 90% of the important decisions and they made 10%. By the time they were 18, they made 90% and I made 10%. It's a pretty good rule for kids. But startups are very much like kids. You don't always want to say yes to everything.

At 12, I made 90% of the decisions. At 18, they made 90%. Startups are very much like kids.

Brutal Honesty Over Hypocritical Politeness

Khosla: There's a saying on our website that we put there in 2004 when we started the firm — we prefer brutal honesty to hypocritical politeness. 95% of the feedback you'll get will be hypocritical politeness. It makes you feel better, but it doesn't really help you.

Real, well-intended critique of your strategy is what you want. The best founders and CEOs I know always ask me: what can I do better? That's the most important question they ask — not 'what am I doing great, let me tell you about that.'

95% of feedback is hypocritical politeness. It makes you feel good but adds zero value.

Tell Me What's Not Going Well

Khosla: I was just talking to Amjad from Replit this morning. My first comment: tell me what's not going well. Then we can discuss solutions.

He could have talked about all the things going well — lots of things are going well. We could have filled up the hour. I'd feel good. He'd feel good. And we'd go away. But I'd have added zero value to his thinking.

We could have filled the hour with good news. I'd feel good. He'd feel good. Zero value added.