What Founders Need to Know in 2025

The AI Eyes Watching Your Pitch Deck ◉◉

Mar 11, 2025

Hey Adopter,

Ever feel like you're pitching to robots these days? Well, you probably are.

While VCs are sipping oat milk lattes and talking about "founder-market fit" on podcasts, their AI tools decide if your deck deserves human eyeballs. Let me break down what's actually happening behind the digital curtain.

The New AI Screening Reality

Here's the documented truth: Tools like DeckMatch and Pitchflow are now scanning pitch decks before any human gets a chance to yawn through your TAM slide. DeckMatch alone has over 60 VC firms in their closed beta across the US, Europe, and Asia.

Let that sink in. Your carefully crafted deck—the one you stayed up until 3 AM perfecting—might be rejected by an algorithm before a human even glances at your logo.

Cue nervous founder laughter

What These AI Tools Actually Evaluate

According to available data on these platforms, modern pitch deck AI evaluates:

Stage and sector alignment with the VC's investment criteria
Business model viability and scalability
Problem-solution fit metrics
Market opportunity size (and whether your numbers match their research)
Founding team experience and track record

Some even aggregate additional data from across the web about your company, competitors, and market to form what they call a "holistic" investment analysis.

The Founder's Guide to Surviving AI Screening

Since you can't charm an algorithm with your winning smile (yet), here's how to optimize for this new reality:

Structure Over Storytelling
The AI needs clearly labeled sections that align with standard pitch deck elements. Your artistic presentation with subtle section transitions? The algorithm just got confused and moved on.
Explicit Data Points > Implicit Value
These tools scan for clear metrics and KPIs. Don't bury your growth numbers in paragraphs—highlight them with charts, graphs, and standalone figures that are easy for machines to identify.
Match Investment Criteria Exactly
Research shows that these platforms flag opportunities that align with a VC's documented investment thesis. Mirror their exact terminology—if they invest in "B2B SaaS," don't call yourself an "enterprise software solution."
Front-Load Your Strongest Metrics
Based on how these tools process documents, put your most impressive traction, team credentials, and market data in early slides where they're more likely to be weighted heavily.
Be Consistent With Terminology
DeckMatch and similar tools struggle with connecting synonyms. If you call it "customer acquisition cost" on slide 4, don't switch to "CAC" on slide 9.

The Silver Lining (Yes, There Is One)

Despite feeling like you're performing for algorithms, this trend offers legitimate opportunities:

Feedback Loops: Some VCs using these tools provide AI-generated feedback to founders, helping you iterate faster
Reduced Initial Bias: Well-trained AI might reduce certain human biases in early-stage evaluation (though it can certainly introduce new algorithmic ones)
Faster Processing: In theory, AI can handle more decks than humans, meaning your pitch won't sit unread for weeks

What Still Matters Most

The documented reality is that humans still make the final investment decisions. AI handles initial screening, not writing checks.

Research confirms that these tools focus on standardized elements like structure, metrics, and market sizing—meaning your story, vision, and founder chemistry are still evaluated by humans during later stages.

The Meta Advantage

Here's an ironic but legitimate tip based on VC patterns: If you're an AI startup, explicitly highlight how your solution could improve investment decision-making. Data shows VCs are actively investing in tools that help them find better deals more efficiently.

After all, VCs using AI to evaluate startups that use AI to help businesses make better decisions is exactly the kind of recursive tech world we now live in.

What's your experience been like pitching to firms in this new AI-screened reality? Have you adapted your approach? Drop a comment—I promise a human will read it.

Adapt & Create,
Kamil