Founders

Only 2.3% of Startups Reach $25M ARR

Praveen Panjiar

20 Nov 2025 — 5 min read

Why 98% Startups Don’t Scale

October 11, 2025

In partnership with

Hey founders,

We don’t usually show up in your inbox on a Saturday—but today’s not just any Saturday.

This Special Edition of Foundevo is stacked with hidden gems founders are already using to raise faster, build smarter, and spot opportunities before anyone else.

Think of it as your private vault: frameworks, tools, and insights you won’t find scrolling X or LinkedIn.

Which one sparks your next breakout move? Dive in and find out

Startups who switch to Intercom can save up to $12,000/year

Startups who read beehiiv can receive a 90% discount on Intercom's AI-first customer service platform, plus Fin—the #1 AI agent for customer service—free for a full year.

That's like having a full-time human support agent at no cost.

What’s included?

6 Advanced Seats
Fin Copilot for free
300 Fin Resolutions per month

Who’s eligible?

Intercom’s program is for high-growth, high-potential companies that are:

Up to series A (including A)
Currently not an Intercom customer
Up to 15 employees

Apply now

Only 2.3% of Startups Reach $25M ARR — Here’s Why

New data from 6,525 SaaS startups reveals a staggering truth — it’s statistically harder to reach $25M ARR than it is to get into Harvard or Stanford.

Nearly half of software startups make it to $1M ARR, but only 1 in 50 break the $25M mark within 10 years. The data, powered by ChartMogul’s decade-long dataset, uncovers what separates the few who scale from the many who stall.

⚙️ 47% of startups reach $1M ARR after monetizing.
1 in 5 reach $5M ARR.
1 in 10 hit $10M ARR.
Only 1 in 50 ever make it to $25M ARR.

This isn’t just data — it’s a reality check for every founder chasing long-term growth.

If your startup’s chasing sustainable growth, this is a must-read reality check.

Dive into the full ChartMogul analysis and see where your startup stands.

Stanford Just Made Its AI Courses Free

Stanford Just Made Its AI Curriculum Free — Learn What the Pros Know

Stanford just did something incredible — they’ve released their entire AI curriculum online for free. Same professors. Same lectures. Zero cost.

While most people just use AI, few truly understand how it works. These 6 free courses will help you master the fundamentals — and get ahead of 99% of the crowd:

1️⃣ CS221: Artificial Intelligence — Search, reasoning & decision-making

2️⃣ CS229: Machine Learning (Andrew Ng) — Regression, classification & clustering

3️⃣ CS230: Deep Learning (Andrew Ng) — Neural networks, CNNs & RNNs

4️⃣ CS229M: ML Theory — The math & proofs behind ML algorithms

5️⃣ CS234: Reinforcement Learning — Q-learning & policy gradients

6️⃣ CS224N: NLP with Deep Learning — Word embeddings & transformers

The same courses shaping Silicon Valley’s best minds — now open to everyone.

Which University in Your State Built the Most Unicorns?

The “college dropout” founder story is fading — data shows that top universities are now the real startup launchpads. From Stanford (207 unicorns) to Harvard (164) and UPenn (67), graduates from elite programs are shaping the next generation of billion-dollar companies.

Even states like Michigan (41), New York (58), and Illinois (36) are fueling unicorn ecosystems through their university networks. Yet, in others — like Idaho, Hawaii, and South Dakota — there’s just one.

This new wave of “academic founders” is redefining what success looks like in tech — and the data might surprise you.

See which university leads in your state.

WEB PICKS

Deloitte Busted Using AI to Write Government Report — With Fake Citations!
Deloitte admits using GPT-4o to draft a $440K report full of fabricated references. The scandal is now prompting global conversations about AI accountability in consulting.

AI Drives Record $63B in Startup Funding — Meet the Billion-Dollar Winners
Q3 saw North American startups raise $63.1B — a massive $20B jump, fueled by giants like Anthropic ($13B), Cerebras, and PsiQuantum. The AI gold rush is just heating up.

Meet the 27-Year-Old Billionaire Behind the $8B Prediction Market
Polymarket founder Shayne Coplan just became the world’s youngest self-made billionaire after ICE’s $2B investment — and he’s betting big on the future of blockchain prediction markets.

Binance Founder’s New $1B Fund Is Betting on AI, DeFi, and the Future
Changpeng Zhao’s YZi Labs launches a $1B “Builders Fund” to back ambitious projects in AI, trading, and decentralized science — fueling the next wave of blockchain innovation.

Sequoia Capital Expands Its European Powerhouse
Luciana Lixandru confirms Sequoia’s growing push into Europe — a sign that the VC giant is doubling down on the continent’s thriving startup ecosystem.

⚡ Base Power Raises $1B from Top Silicon Valley Investors
The energy tech startup just secured $1B from Addition, CapitalG, Lightspeed, Thrive, and more — signaling massive confidence in next-gen infrastructure solutions.

Reflection AI Skyrockets 15x in 7 Months — Now Worth $8B
Born just last year, Reflection AI has stunned the tech world with a $2B raise led by top investors, marking one of the fastest valuation jumps in AI history.

Automation Startup n8n Raises $180M, Hits $2.5B Valuation
Berlin-based n8n just joined the unicorn club as investors bet big on AI-driven automation workflows reshaping how industries operate.