Why it is hard for startups founded by “outsiders” to raise venture capital: the huge boost that comes with warm introductions from mutual connections. One study in the UK found a warm introduction from a mutual connection leads to 13x higher chance of funding over a cold one.
Everyone agrees that investing in the best founders is key to early stage. But the reason that's really hard is bc you are not trying to asses who's "best" today, but how this founder will grow over the next few years. You are investing in the founder of the future, not today