SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Tech investors need to rethink how they put money to work in the new world order of Trump tariffs.
“I’d say for the last decade, 15 years, I mean everything that we were investing in, we’d say, is there a global TAM [total addressable market] for that? And I think then it was sort of, well, is there a global TAM, maybe less China? And now it is sort of, well, geez, you really do [need to] be the winner in the US at least,” Greycroft co-founder and managing partner Dana Settle told Yahoo Finance at the Milken Institute Global Conference.
Settle and Greycroft are seen as OGs in the venture capitalist tech scene in San Francisco.
Greycroft was founded in 2006 by Settle, Ian Bigelow, and Alan Patricof. Since then, it has raised more than $3 billion in capital and invested in more than 400 companies. The buzziest exits include Axios, Bumble (BMBL), Venmo (now owned by PayPal (PYPL)), and The RealReal.
Notable current portfolio companies include Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop, Epic Games, Stability AI, and MNTN.
The backdrop for venture capitalists has gotten tougher this year as the Trump administration wields its tariff wand.
Read more: The latest news and updates on Trump’s tariffs
Since Trump’s “Liberation Day,” more companies have delayed their IPOs, including closely watched names such as Klarna, Chime, and eToro.
The value of 2025’s IPO deals so far is on track to underperform the average year of the past decade, while the number of deals is higher, reports Yahoo Finance’s David Hollerith.
Early-stage companies are also finding it harder to raise capital.
Still, Settle is sticking to her disciplined investing process and remains focused on investing in strong AI plays.
“[AI] doesn’t seem to be slowing down. It feels like the urgency that companies feel to adopt AI and just really be running their businesses more efficiently in some ways because of all of the other uncertainty,” Settle explained.
“Like, how can I make my business operate as efficiently as possible so that I can kind of weather these other storms? It seems like that pole is stronger than any headwinds.”
Read more about what business leaders and top political figures are saying at the 2025 Milken Institute Global Conference:
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent aims to soothe nerves of international investors
Global investors to Trump: Speed up the trade war
Bill Ackman on his move to recreate Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway
Apollo CEO: I don’t agree with Warren Buffett on tariffs
Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance’s Executive Editor. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Tips on stories? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com.
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