Author: Samyu Ravi, BRV Fund Manager
Welcome to this exciting conversation with Chris Millisits, a venture capital professional at Antler, a global early-stage venture capital firm that builds and invests in hundreds of startups and thousands of entrepreneurs across six continents. Chris shares his journey from scaling teams at a fintech startup to leading investments in early-stage companies. We’ll explore what makes a great founder, trends shaping the startup landscape, and practical advice for breaking into venture capital. Let’s dive in!
Samyu: Could you tell us about your journey into venture capital? What led you to join Antler, and how does it align with your professional and personal goals?
Chris: My first exposure to high-growth startups was as an early hire in the Sales Operations team at GoCardless, a London-based fintech. After my boss left the business early in my tenure, I helped build the team out to 11 members to support a growing sales organization—GoCardless scaled from 150 to 500+ employees during my time there. It was a great learning experience, being thrown into the fire and constantly adjusting to the challenges of hypergrowth. That’s where I first developed an appreciation for venture capital.
I later moved back to the U.S. and pursued my MBA at NYU Stern with the goal of transitioning into venture capital. During my time there, I led the Venture Capital Club and interned at Company Ventures and Antler. When a spot eventually opened up at Antler, I was offered a full-time position because I had already been working on live deals as an intern and had built trust with the team.
I was excited to join Antler because of its global perspective and the fact that it’s a startup itself. There’s significant room for growth in the platform, and it felt great to be part of that journey. The venture industry is moving earlier and earlier to secure the best deals, and Antler is set up to enter high-quality deals at the earliest stages.
Samyu: What qualities do you look for in founders or early-stage startups when considering an investment at Antler? Are there any specific characteristics or backgrounds that tend to catch your attention?
Chris: Antler accepts less than 0.5% of applicants—we’re looking for truly exceptional founders. This can take many forms, from backgrounds at talent-dense high-growth startups to unique academic experiences or any distinctive skillset or vision. The main factor we overindex for is repeat founders.
That said, these criteria are not always the biggest predictors of success. What we truly seek are founders with the grit, resilience, and work ethic required to build a generational company.
At Antler, we bring founders into a two-month residency program in our offices in New York, Austin, and Boulder—or in one of our other 25+ global locations. This allows us to see firsthand how founders operate—how quickly they ship products, acquire early customers, and focus on the customer.
To clarify, I don’t work directly on Antler’s pre-seed fund. My fund, Antler Elevate, provides early growth capital to breakout companies within the Antler portfolio. The data and insights gathered by Antler’s pre-seed fund over two to three years are invaluable. This longitudinal data allows us to make much more informed investment decisions compared to outside funds.
Samyu: How does Antler support founders beyond providing capital? Can you share examples where Antler’s resources or mentorship made a pivotal difference for a startup?
Chris: Antler is typically the first institutional check into a startup, often replacing the friends-and-family round that not all founders have the network to secure. This early capital is critical, but we don’t stop there. During the residency program, we actively work with founders—whiteboarding ideas, coaching them through go-to-market strategies, hiring, and fundraising. We also connect them with our network for customer acquisition and additional funding.
Antler’s global team of 300+ employees across 20 countries provides startups with a significant advantage in terms of talent and customer introductions.
A great example is Airalo, a portfolio company from Antler’s second cohort in Singapore. The founders, Bahadir and Abraham, were telecom experts with a strong vision but struggled to secure funding in a smaller VC ecosystem. Antler saw their potential and invested in them early. Today, Airalo is the world’s leading travel eSIM provider and is used by over 10 million users.
Samyu: Antler operates globally with a presence in many markets. How does the firm approach identifying talent and adapting its investment strategy across diverse regions?
Chris: Antler operates on a global scale by giving our local investment teams significant ownership over how they run their funds. These teams consist of local talent with the networks and context needed to succeed in their respective regions.
Of course, these teams don’t operate in isolation. Antler has a core playbook for running accelerators, but it’s constantly evolving as best practices are shared across geographies.
Samyu: What trends or sectors excite you the most in the current startup landscape? Are there any emerging technologies or industries that you believe will shape the next decade?
Chris: I’m particularly excited about the AI at the application layer and the potential of AI-native software to replace legacy SaaS platforms burdened by over a decade of tech debt. AI lowers the barrier to software adoption, especially for non-technical users, and expands what products can do by incorporating services into software. This creates new opportunities to disrupt incumbents and expands total addressable markets for software. AI also enables entirely new user experiences, which fuels innovation.
Samyu: The past few years have been challenging for startups and VCs alike. What lessons have you learned from recent market changes, and how have they influenced your approach to investing?
Chris: It’s been tough for startups to balance extending runway with positioning themselves as attractive candidates for downstream investors. Extending runway is critical to navigating market dynamics, but it’s left some startups in an awkward middle ground—weathering the storm but overshadowed by newer, faster-growing startups.
AI has further complicated matters for older startups, as newer ventures are often better positioned to leverage emerging technologies.
Samyu: For students and young professionals interested in venture capital, what skills or experiences would you recommend they focus on to break into the industry?
Chris: Read extensively about technology and startups. Talk to founders and investors. The job requires ongoing learning.
Also, don’t rush to get into venture capital immediately. One of the biggest mistakes I see is people being overly anxious to break in. Your value as a VC comes from your accumulated knowledge of business, startup operations, and your network—all of which take time to build.
Samyu: As a VC, you meet many founders and see numerous pitches. What are some common mistakes founders make during the pitch process?
Chris: The most common mistakes involve unclear communication—failing to articulate product differentiation, founder-market fit, and product-market fit. If you can’t demonstrate why you’re the best team to build the business, it’s hard to stand out in such a competitive tech landscape.
Another pet peeve is not having a clear use of funds. If you’re raising $10 million, you should have a well-thought-out plan for how to allocate it.
Samyu: Any final thoughts?
Chris: If you haven’t worked at a tech startup before, I highly recommend doing so before pursuing a career in venture capital. It’s a fantastic way to build skills quickly, test your passion for the tech space, and understand how you perform under pressure.