Startup numbers have surged, and so have VC investments, according to data released earlier this month by Dow Jones VentureSource. But that’s not necessarily good news.
I’ll get to the downside in a minute. First, let’s take a look at the data and the causes for the surge. According to the VentureSource data, in January 2004, there were just 5,350 venture-backed companies in the U.S. By March 31, 2017 that number had ballooned to 16,064. While I expected an increase, the magnitude surprised me.
