First In is a venture capital fund led by former Marine Corps officers, CIA operatives, and defense-tech operators who apply military systems thinking to invest in early-stage security technologies across cyber, defense, data, and critical infrastructure. The firm targets founders comfortable building at the intersection of national security and commercial markets, backing companies like Anduril and Shift5 that directly shape national defense capabilities rather than typical enterprise software tools.
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Video Interview
On the most overlooked slide in a pitch deck
"A campaign is a thoughtful approach to like, by doing this next thing, it's going to unlock this next thing, and it's going to unlock this other thing. And having seen a founder kind of think through that in sequence and also having shown that whatever the first one or two steps are that they're either completed or they're in progress, that's a great signal."
Arthur Karell | First In
On why market sizing slides are overrated
"If you can dominate a small market, that puts you in a position to make a whole series of decisions and being able to open a number of doors to much larger markets from there, even though that initial market may have struck you or struck another investor as fairly small."
Arthur Karell | First In
On what clarity in a pitch deck actually means
"A clear pitch deck is what matters. I would absolutely index the clarity of thought... that pitch deck could be black text on white, if it's a clear argument for making the investment, nailed it."
Arthur Karell | First In
On the biggest red flag in early conversations
"Time kills all deals. And that is one that's a thousand percent accurate for especially venture capital firms... If it's taking you quite some time to get back to an investor with the materials you said you were going to have, it's not a great look."
Arthur Karell | First In
On the most common mistake right after closing a round
"Speed is your only advantage. If you think that closing that round is kind of like you hit the finish line, like we can coast for a bit, that is absolutely the wrong answer. Closing of the funding, that's the starting."
Arthur Karell | First In
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