By now, Term Sheet readers are well aware of the challenges late- and growth-stage companies have been facing to raise money. And startup markets from the U.S. to Europe to tech-heavy Israel have suffered amid the downturn. That’s why I was surprised to hear that Team8, a Tel Aviv-based firm that started as a studio-slash-incubator-type model and since expanded into early-stage VC, is thinking about dipping its toe into growth.
It’s “the next thing in our vision,” managing partner Rakefet Russak-Aminoach told me, referring to what she’s calling “early growth”—or what I’d consider late stage. She says that coming out of the rocky fundraising environment of 2022 and 2023, a lot of companies in the Series B and C stages need to raise more money. “Some companies will not make it to growth in this new ecosystem, but the ones who will, will be amazing companies,” she added. That’s the potential opportunity for Team8, she believes: “I think we could do B, C, [and] get one step further along the line, and leverage this expertise that we have” to “catch these amazing companies that made it."
