USV’s New $900M Fund: Fred Wilson, Rebecca Kaden & Mike Mignano
Oct 8, 2026 · 1:25:14
Union Square Ventures partners Fred Wilson, Rebecca Kaden and Mike Mignano explain why the firm broke its small-fund discipline to raise $900M, its largest fund cycle ever, as bigger AI outcomes and costlier rounds demand larger checks. Wilson says AI today looks like the internet in 2003: infrastructure is built, but defining applications remain unbuilt. The partners detail 'obliterate, don't automate'—an AI lawyer, accountant or doctor instead of a human one—arguing incumbents can't copy it because it cannibalizes their business. Wilson calls ARR a 'fake metric,' favoring usage retention, and says single-digit-billion exits still return well at USV's fund size. The 'Rebel Alliance' thesis backs open-source AI infrastructure, and Mignano argues chatbots won't replace the user interface.
