AI-Driven Case Study: BNVT Capital - Insights Into The Investor Perspective
A new AI-Driven Venture Capital London Business School Simulation and Case Study
AI is changing how VCs operate and select the best venture deals and it also changes how we teach students about venture capital and entrepreneurship.
Chris Corbishley the Co-Founder and Managing Partner at BNVT Capital joined us for the London Business School Pathways to Startup Success class. Together with his Co-Founder Rory Mounsey-Heysham, they recently announced the closing of their $150m fund, that invests in 'Benevolent Disruptors' with a unique investment thesis that based on the largest private datasets in venture capital history - 40 years, 500 funds, 14,000 companies.
The students had the opportunity to put on the 'Investor Lenses' and take a role as Associates at BNVT Capital for 3 hours having Chris in the room and AI assistants.
The session was based on a new format developed by Gary Dushnitsky - a case-less case study! this format blends canonical and contemporary themes in entrepreneurship.
We asked important questions such as:
- How do VCs source and screen for entrepreneurial opportunities?
- What makes a rigorous investment thesis and how it could make deal-selection efficient and successful?
- What is the importance of data quality and quantity in the selection process?
- Where should we use AI tools, and when we use our human judgement and conviction?
The simulation in class included several parts:
1) VC success - We introduced venture capital success frameworks.
2) Introduction to Chris and BNVT Capital - Chris shared about his journey as a venture capitalist and what led him to build BNVT Capital.
3) AI-Driven Simulation - based on real data sourced of 50+ companies and market overview, the students had the task of selecting top deals to present to the BNVT Investment Committee.
4) Presenting Selections - based on their deal-selection process, students pitched their deals, shared how they used AI and their prompts.
5) Comparing with reality - the class heard from Chris how his team structured their deal-selection, and how the companies they considered performed.
It was fascinating to see how the class applied AI tools and LLMs, and how that impacted investment criteria, deal-selection processes and eventually the output and deal recommendations.
We also learned how to use AI properly with frameworks such as AI Fluency, prompt engineering best-practices and advanced methods to apply discernment and diligence of AI tools as a VC.
If you want to learn more about the case-less case format, the BNVT Capital simulation and case and about teaching entrepreneurship with AI we recently published the case and the Teaching Note here:
The pace of AI is evolving fast, and it unlocks new ways in which VCs and founders operate, invest and build ventures and so is the way we teach with AI.
I will share more about teaching entrepreneurship and venture capital with AI in the future.
👋 Hey there, I’m Illai. I share with readers questions, insights and learnings about building startups, venture capital, Artificial Intelligence and entrepreneurial career paths. You can find more: Follow me on Linkedin| Get updates about workshops and courses | ZIZO Product Course | Between App
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