What a16z Looks for in a Pitch Deck
A practical synthesis of a16z's public fundraising, diligence, and metrics guidance: the thesis, evidence, team, market, and plan your deck needs to make clear.
This Seed2Table guide explains what a16z looks for in a pitch deck by synthesizing guidance that Andreessen Horowitz has published for founders. It is an independent reading aid, not an internal scorecard. Seed2Table is not affiliated with or endorsed by a16z, and the firm may weigh a company differently by partner, market, and stage.
Start with a thesis, not a tour of features
In a16z's public data-room guidance, the pitch deck is the first item in a diligence package. At minimum, it says the deck should establish the company's thesis, product vision, competitive landscape, traction, team, and a rough plan for using the capital. That list is useful because it describes an argument, not a slide template: what should be true about the future, what you are building to make it true, and why this team can execute.
A clean opening therefore does more than name a product category. State the change you believe is happening, the customer problem it creates or exposes, and the durable company that can be built around it. Product details matter, but they make more sense after the reader understands the thesis they support.
Show the product vision and the wedge
The product section should make the current experience concrete and connect it to the larger vision. Use a simple workflow, a focused screenshot, or a short sequence that a reader can follow without narration. Then explain where the product can expand if the initial wedge works. A list of disconnected features leaves the investor to infer both the customer value and the long-term ambition.
The competitive landscape belongs beside that story. Name direct competitors, indirect alternatives, and the status quo. The useful question is not whether competition exists; it is why your insight, distribution, product, data, or economics can produce an advantage that strengthens as you grow.
Make traction auditable
a16z's published startup-metrics guide repeatedly distinguishes measurements that sound similar but mean different things: bookings versus revenue, recurring versus services revenue, blended versus paid acquisition cost, and gross versus net churn. A strong metrics slide defines the metric, gives the period, shows the absolute base, and uses the same definition throughout the deck.
Avoid cumulative charts that can only move up, percentages detached from raw values, or unlabeled axes. If the business is early, traction can also mean product use, pilots, retention, a repeatable customer-learning loop, or another honest proof point. The goal is not to imitate a late-stage dashboard; it is to show exactly what evidence exists and what it demonstrates.
Connect the team and market to execution
The team slide should explain why these founders have unusual access, insight, technical ability, or operating experience for this problem. Titles and employer names are not enough on their own. Tie each relevant credential to a risk the company must solve, and make roles and full-time commitment clear.
For the market, show the customer, the initial segment, and a bottom-up path from customers and pricing to an opportunity large enough for venture returns. Then connect go-to-market to that first segment. A giant top-down market number does not explain how the company reaches its first repeatable customers.
Let the ask reveal the operating plan
a16z's fundraising guidance frames capital around milestones, and its data-room guidance asks for a rough road map for use of funds. Put the raise amount in context: what runway it creates, which hires or investments matter, and what product, revenue, or market milestones should be reached before the next financing decision.
That makes the ask a test of strategic coherence. The thesis, product plan, go-to-market motion, metrics, and budget should point toward the same next stage. If the plan requires assumptions that are not yet supported, name them; disciplined uncertainty reads better than false precision.
Official sources used for this guide
Seed2Table synthesized the public guidance above in its own words. Read the named organization's original material here:
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