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At TechCrunch Disrupt, three investors took the stage to dissect what makes \u2014 and breaks \u2014 a pitch deck. Jyoti Bansal, a founder-turned-investor; Medha Agarwal of Defy; and Jennifer Neundorfer of January Ventures shared with the crowd their candid views on what works in a pitch deck \u2014 and what doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
Their biggest pet peeve? Buzzword overload.<\/p>\n
The more a founder says AI\u00a0in\u00a0the pitch, Agarwal said, the less\u00a0AI\u00a0the company likely uses.\u00a0\u201cThe people who are doing things that are\u00a0really innovative,\u00a0they\u2019ll\u00a0talk about it, and\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0built in, but\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not the core of their pitch,\u201d she told the audience.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bansal, who built and sold multiple companies before becoming an investor, distilled investor expectations into three core questions. First, he asks whether there is a large enough market to tackle. Does the founder\u2019s idea have the potential to become a huge company? And is the problem he or she is solving actually worth solving?<\/p>\n
The second thing investors want to know is why this<\/em> founder\u00a0is the\u00a0one who\u00a0should be building the company. \u201cThere has to be something unique about you,\u201d Bansal told the crowd, adding that this included having special members on the founding team or having\u00a0special skills. \u201cWhy would you win? If the problem is interesting, there will be 20 other companies trying to solve it, so why would you win and\u00a0what\u2019s\u00a0your opportunity?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The third thing investors want to see,\u00a0Bansal said, is some validation. \u201cTraction with customers,\u201d he said. \u201cValidation could be initial customer feedback, revenue, something, but some kind of validation.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n These three questions, Bansal noted, all lead to the ultimate litmus test: Could this become a billion-dollar company?<\/p>\n Techcrunch event<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco<\/span> The panel also addressed how AI startups can differentiate themselves as the space becomes saturated. Bansal emphasized the importance of domain\u00a0expertise\u00a0and a clear competitive strategy.\u00a0Neundorfer\u00a0said the companies that catch her attention are those enabling new behaviors rather than simply improving an existing process incrementally.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Agarwal offered more tactical advice to founders, saying they should explain how AI technology enables their\u00a0product; articulate clear go-to-market strategies; and demonstrate how their business will be more efficient than incumbents. <\/p>\n It\u2019s\u00a0also\u00a0very important\u00a0to be honest about what competitors are out there, she added.\u00a0Some of you have \u201clost\u00a0some\u00a0credibility\u00a0with me because you didn\u2019t have it on your slide,\u201d she told the founders in the audience.\u00a0<\/p>\n Finally, the investors shared advice for navigating the rapidly evolving landscape. Agarwal urged founders to stay on top of industry developments. Neundorfer recommended staying connected to founder networks to share tools and insights. <\/p>\n Bansal\u2019s advice was simpler: \u201cFocus on building your product.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 13-15, 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n