Nationally, over the past decade, U.S. venture capital soared to record highs, peaking in 2021 with $345 billion invested, before crashing amid rising interest rates and economic uncertainty. By 2023, investment had fallen by more than half. According to Pitchbook and the National Venture Capital Association, today’s market is shifting toward a more disciplined phase: investors are favoring sustainable growth over aggressive scaling, and early-stage deals in AI, climate tech, and life sciences are gaining ground. In 2024, venture secondaries (when a shareholder of a pre-IPE venture backed firm sells their shares to someone else) surged to over $162 billion, a 45% increase from 2023, according to Lazard, a global financial advisory and asset management firm.
Angel investing nationally in 2023 totaled $18.6 billion, down 16.4% from 2022, according to the Center for Venture Research at UNH’s Peter T Paul College of Business and Economics.
The uncertainty surrounding the economy are making many venture capitalists and angel investors more risk averse, which is bad news for startups. “For there to be innovation, there needs to be investment and a full cycle for new companies to reach exit events or liquidity milestones,” says Kyle York, CEO and managing partner of York IE, a Manchester-based advisory and investment firm focused on helping technology companies to grow. (York is a tech entrepreneur who helped grow Manchester-based Dyn into a $600 million acquisition by Oracle.) “Those have been just few and far between because of the economic uncertainty.”
Gary Hirshberg, co-founder of Stonyfield Farm, the world’s leading organic yogurt brand, advocates for and invests in organic food and clean energy startups, but says with tariffs causing prices to spike for building supplies and energy costs, “this is not a time to invest in long shots.”
New Hampshire companies are still attracting investors, but that investment is harder to come by. From 2019 to 2023, more than 200 NH startups across healthcare, IT, and business services drew $1.5 billion in venture funding, according to the National Venture Capital Association. On the angel investing side, the NH Business Finance Authority (BFA) partners with 40 angel investors providing $600,000 a year in early-stage capital and guidance to NH startups through the Millwork II fund.
Individual angel investors like Hirshberg play an important role in NH’s investment ecosystem. Hirshberg invests in agtech, food and beverage, and consumer health sectors, with investments ranging from $25,000 to $500,000. He invests more than money into these enterprises. He also shares expertise. The Hirshberg Entrepreneurship Institute offers a three-day boot camp for entrepreneurs to learn about financing, marketing, and organizational challenges.
In addition to investments made through his firm, York also personally invests in B2B, subscription and Software as a Service (SaaS) startups at the earliest stage through post seed funding. York says he invests for long-term success. “We want to back companies that will last,” York says. “It’s not just about the next acquisition. It’s about building infrastructure, knowledge, and networks that persist.”
The New Reality
The startup landscape itself has changed dramatically. When Dyn was sold in 2016, there were just 35 “unicorns”— privately-owned startup companies valued at over $1 billion—whereas today that number is over 1,000 in the U.S., says Joe Raczka, co-founder, managing partner, and chief investment officer at York IE.
Competition to attract VC and angel investment is fierce, making those homegrown investors willing to take risks in NH essential. Jason Syversen, managing partner at 10X Venture Partners, has watched the NH angel investing scene evolve over more than a decade. His company is a seed-stage angel investment group that writes checks ranging from $25,000 to $250,000 into early-stage companies. His focus areas include cybersecurity, communications, AI, software, government contracting, B2B, SaaS, computer vision, sportstech, and startup innovation.
“When I started, the group was investing all in New Hampshire within an hour drive of Manchester,” he says, but when he took over he scrapped that idea. “There are good companies all over the place. You’re not going to ignore them just because they aren’t within an hour of here. Those days are behind us.”
The past decade has brought big changes, Syversen says. Post-pandemic, NH investors are participating in the national and global economy. “We’ve struggled to get critical mass with just New Hampshire members, so now we have people from Maine, Massachusetts, New York. It’s about creating a stronger, more vibrant group, and that benefits New Hampshire too. The more people we have, the easier it is to get access to capital,” he says.
At York IE, York and Raczka are doubling down on AI, cybersecurity, and B2B software. The company has invested $60 million across 64 businesses in recent years. “AI is transforming everything,” York says.
One of York IE’s current bets is on Boston-based Givzey, a vertical solutions AI driven software platform for nonprofit fundraising. About 80% of York IE’s investments in the last two years have been in vertical AI solutions companies. “Givzey is probably the most practical use case that I’ve seen,” York says.
Syversen’s portfolio has similar investments. “We focus on companies that aren’t consumer-oriented,” he says, explaining this means no fintech, cannabis, drink products, or clothing. “We look at cybersecurity, software, AI or tech driven B2B companies.”
Angel Investing
Angel investing, whereby non-institutional investors back early-stage startups with personal or family funds, remains a critical part of the investing ecosystem. Syversen, who runs a regional Slack group connecting roughly 130 investors across Maine, NH, Vermont, and Massachusetts, notes that motivations vary among angel investors.
“Some angels do it for philanthropic reasons, or just for fun. They want to help minority founders, create jobs, or just talk to smart people and feel special,” says Syversen, who sold Siege Technologies in 2019 and donated most of the proceeds to charity. “Others, like me, take it more like venture capital. I’m looking at rate of return and trying to maximize upside.”
He stresses the risks are real. “The data says that angel investing actually underperformed the S&P 500, so you have to go in with your eyes wide open. Usually, though, if you’re backing companies you understand that knowledge helps mitigate risk,” Syversen says. “Companies are going to perform as well as the people running them.”
Syversen says entrepreneurship and angel investing can be used for the betterment of society. Hirshberg is a prime example of that. Hirshberg’s post-Stonyfield work reflects a belief in mission-driven entrepreneurship that includes clean food, renewable energy, and health-focused businesses.
“The cheapest form of health care there is, is not getting sick,” Hirshberg says, arguing that investment in organics and clean energy isn’t just financial but also an investment in society.
He is betting on solar energy, despite the federal government scaling back. “It’s now the cheapest form of energy and the most profitable and best ROI of any form of energy,” he says, adding that organic dairy is another hopeful area for investors.
NH’s Challenges and Gaps
Despite pockets of vibrancy, NH faces structural challenges. The state has historically provided little support for tech startups. Programs such as Alpha Loft, a business incubator, have faltered due to funding cuts or strategic shifts, Syversen says, contrasting the dearth of programs in NH with Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont, which invest millions of dollars in tech companies and accelerators.
Syversen says the NH Tech Alliance has programs to assist and develop tech startups in NH but those efforts do not receive financial support from the state, while the NH Business Finance Authority, which administers federal money to support small businesses, is largely focused on retail and real estate.
“New Hampshire does literally nothing to help tech startups,” Syversen says. “If you want to open a pizzeria the state will help you get a loan using assets from SBIC [small business investment company] but if you’re a tech startup looking for Angel investing you’re SOL.”
He wants to see the state increase its support of the startup ecosystem in NH. “I’d love to see New Hampshire provide strategic support for startups such as accelerators, mentors, small seed investments. It’s not charity,” Syversen says. “The state could make a business case to make strategic investments. A few hundred thousand dollars a year for a couple of people to help with accelerators to foster startups.”
Even high-profile wins often go underrecognized. Syversen cites Bugcrowd, a global cybersecurity firm that relocated from San Francisco to Beford, NH, raised $100 million in venture capital, and employs hundreds—yet the state barely acknowledged the milestone, Syversen says, explaining there was “no ribbon-cutting” ceremony with the governor in attendance. (The NH Tech Alliance recently named Bugcrowd’s CEO David Gerry as its 2025 Entrepreneur of the Year.)
“I love it here and I built my last company here,” Syversen says. “I’m committed to improving the environment for companies to invest here in New Hampshire. My hope is that there will be some changes in the future that make the state more supportive.”
York and Raczka note that neighboring states provide clearer incentives. Maine offers a 40% refundable tax credit for angel investments; Massachusetts invests in AI initiatives and accelerators. New Hampshire, they say, lacks comparable mechanisms, creating hurdles for scaling local startups.
Looking Ahead
New Hampshire’s small size creates both opportunities and constraints. Investors are realizing there is life beyond the traditional tech hubs. “You don’t need to be in Boston or San Francisco to access capital,” Syversen says. “You need to be smart about building networks.”
And entrepreneurs want more from their relationships with investors than just money. “Founders expect more than money. They want mentorship, networks and strategic guidance. Investors need to provide both.”
Raczka says some of NH’s policies at the state level are actually interfering with innovation and private investment. “Global trends — AI, clean energy, distributed software—can create tailwinds. But at the state level, New Hampshire still has work to do to capture more of that energy. Incentives, infrastructure, and culture all matter.”
If there’s a unifying theme among NH’s investors, it’s tempered risk-taking.However, Raczka says deals are out there. “There’s a lot of New Hampshire money at work in this ecosystem.”
Venture Capital Firms in NH
