The term “startup” is typically used to describe private companies in their early stages of operation that focus on innovating new products or services to meet a market gap. Unlike other types of new businesses, most startups have explicit goals of scaling and growth and often seek to disrupt an existing market or industry. To achieve this, they often must raise significant outside capital.
Hours of research by our editors, distilled into minutes of clarity.
Combined, the top seven companies by market cap in the US as of December 2024—Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Tesla—were worth more than $16T at the time.
The definition of the word “startup” is complicated—so who better to define it than Y Combinator, perhaps the most well-known startup accelerator in the business? YC’s blog also explains how startups make money and build products.
Not all startup founders are created equal. A data visualization of the universities that produce the most startup founders is based on the number of alumni who have raised venture capital funding for their companies. That means these alumni had to do much more than put "entrepreneur" in their LinkedIn bio to be considered startup founders.
The magazine article included what’s widely considered the first recorded use of the word “startup.” The following year, the publication Business Week went on to use the term in a piece as well.
They also differ from small businesses in that startups have a higher level of risk, may take on outside funding from venture capital firms to boost growth, and more.
WeWork has been through a lot since the office space company was founded as a startup in 2010. From its failed IPO in 2019, to its founder Adam Neumann’s various leadership antics, this video tells the full story of WeWork’s growth, failures, and more. Watch the video here.
Some experts argue that product-market fit is what separates the most successful startups from those that never get off the ground. While there isn’t an official rulebook for how to optimize and test product-market fit, email startup Superhuman’s CEO has attempted to provide one with a specific four-step process.
Also known as an MVP, startup incubator Y Combinator’s Group Partner Michael Seibel explains how to build a minimum viable product for any startup idea. Using real companies that experienced the Y Combinator program as examples, he walks through how to determine an MVP feature set, how to present an MVP to potential investors, and more.
When startups take on outside funding, those investments are divided into different ‘rounds.’ For instance, preseed investments can range from about $25K to $500K, whereas Series D investments can be hundreds of millions of dollars.
Startups are inherently risky ventures. Successful startups are relatively rare due to factors including cash flow drying up, marketing issues, and more.
The United States is home to more than 33 million businesses, the vast majority of which are small businesses, with millions being created (and others closing shop) every year. These businesses often rely on loans, provide the goods and services that keep the economy flowing, and sometimes even grow large enough to enter public markets or provide private investment opportunities. Explore key topics central to business and finance, from the role of the Federal Reserve to how initial public offerings work, how millions of American students finance higher education, and more.