What Seed investors are actually betting on
At Seed, the evidence is thin by definition. Investors are making a probability-weighted bet on: the founding team's ability to execute, the quality of the problem being solved, the size of the market opportunity, and early signals that the thesis is right (even if revenue isn't there yet). The strongest Seed pitches establish deep founder-market fit — why are you specifically the right person to solve this problem — and pair it with any traction signal available: pilot customers, signed LOIs, waitlist conversion, user interviews with strong pain validation.
Seed round sizes and typical terms
US Seed rounds: $1M–$4M is typical for first institutional Seed. Pre-money valuations of $5M–$12M in SF/NYC, $3M–$8M in other markets. European Seed rounds: €500K–€2M for DACH/Nordic markets. €1M–€4M for London/Paris/Berlin. Pre-money valuations of €3M–$8M. Most Seed rounds today are done on SAFEs (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) with a valuation cap and optional discount. SAFEs defer valuation negotiation to Series A — faster to close and cheaper to execute than priced rounds. The risk: multiple SAFEs at different caps complicate the Series A cap table.
Seed investor types and how they differ
Pre-Seed / Micro VCs ($50K–$250K checks): Fast decisions, high volume, often thesis-driven. Good for early validation and warm introductions to Seed funds. Seed VCs ($250K–$1M checks): Institutional process, partner meetings, light diligence. Typically lead or co-lead a round. Angel investors ($25K–$200K checks): Domain experts, operators, or former founders. Valuable for specific introductions and advisory credibility in diligence. Accelerators (Y Combinator, Antler, Techstars): Take 5–10% equity for a program plus investment. The network and signalling effect are often worth more than the capital.
The Seed pitch deck
Seed decks are typically 10–14 slides. The emphasis shifts compared to Series A: Problem and Solution deserve more real estate because you're selling the thesis, not the metrics. Traction is whatever you have — even qualitative signals count. Team slide matters more at Seed than at any later stage. Keep the deck to one clear narrative: here's the pain, here's why it matters, here's our solution, here's what we've learned so far, here's what the round funds. See CAPLINK's full pitch deck guides for slide-by-slide guidance.
How to find Seed investors
Start with warm introductions from founders who have raised from your target funds. Cold outreach to Seed VCs has a <2% response rate; warm intros have a 40–60% first-meeting rate. Build your target list from: portfolio companies of the funds you're targeting (founders who've raised from them are your best introduction source), AngelList, LinkedIn, and CAPLINK's investor database filtered by Seed stage and your sector. Aim for 30–50 qualified targets, prioritised by relationship proximity.