Why the Founder Is the Hardest Part of Deep Tech Investing - and How to Navigate It
By James Sanders, Investment Director, QAI Ventures
Content
Coaching isn’t a Bonus. It’s Capital Protection, especially in the Early Stage.
Founders Break Companies More Than Tech Does: Here’s How to Catch It Early
In deep tech, everyone loves to talk about the patents, the physics, the papers. And yes—the tech matters. But after years working with early-stage Quantum and AI companies, I’ve learned this: the tech is just one factor. The real bet is the founder.
At QAI Ventures, we work with brilliant people every day. People who are trying to turn years of research into real businesses. Most of them are first-time founders. Many of them are coming straight from academia. And very few realize how hard that leap really is.
This is my five cents on how to navigate: for investors betting on QuantumAI, and for founders and talents preparing to leap into their startup journey.
The Academic Founder: Brilliant, brave – and not yet a CEO
Founders in Quantum are almost always first-timers. These are researchers, postdocs, professors. People who have built their names in academia but have never built a company.
They’re smart, no doubt. But they haven’t been through what it takes to go from idea to execution. They come to QAI because they know it’s not just about funding. It’s about learning how to become a founder.
I’m not here to throw them into the deep end and hope they swim. I’m here to give them the tools, the support, and the real talk they need to grow into that role. Being a brilliant researcher is not the same as being an investable CEO. And that’s okay – as long as they’re ready to learn.
Coaching isn’t a Bonus. It’s Capital Protection, especially in the Early Stage.
I don’t see coaching as optional. Coaching is part of the investment. It’s how we protect our capital and our conviction.
Founders are often shocked by how long everything takes. They’re shocked by the politics of fundraising, or by how little their technical brilliance matters to a customer who just wants a solution that works.
At QAI Ventures, we coach them through it. Not with theory, but with real-world pressure testing. We put them through investor scenarios, team breakdowns, market pushback. We get them ready.
Sometimes that means pushing them forward. Sometimes it means they realize they’re not ready. Both are valuable outcomes.
Founders Break Companies More Than Tech Does: Here’s How to Catch It Early
When I look at early-stage companies, the founder team is often the biggest unknown—and the biggest risk.
Everything is great at the beginning. You’re in the lab, you’re with your friends, there’s energy and momentum. But what happens when challenges come? Or even when things go well and there's real money on the table?
That’s why, in our programs, we push founder teams into the tough conversations right away.
I remember one coaching session we ran in Canada – this was a real turning point for the team involved. I asked them point blank: “What happens when shit hits the fan? Do you have a plan?” Most teams don’t. They haven’t thought through who owns what, who decides when to pivot, or what happens if someone walks away.
So we go there. We ask:
– What happens when someone wants out?
– Who actually deserves the equity?
– What if your company starts working—who’s earned what?
– What if it falls apart—what’s the playbook?
These aren’t optional conversations. If you’re a founder and you’re not asking your team these questions, you’re not managing risk—you’re storing it. And if you’re not facing it early, you’ll face it under pressure. That’s when cracks turn into collapse.
I’ve said this before and I stand by it: our job as an accelerator isn’t just to accelerate companies up. Sometimes, we accelerate them down. We surface the real issues early—before they turn into emergencies.
Some founders realize they’re not aligned. Some realize they’re not ready to take the risk. That’s not failure—that’s clarity. That’s what we want. Because accelerating a pipe dream doesn’t help anyone.
So when we push teams hard, it’s not just to get their product out the door. It’s to de-risk the foundation. Because if that’s not solid, nothing you build on top of it will last.
What makes QuantumAI Founders different: The collaboration is real. But execution needs an edge, too.
One of the things I genuinely love about working with deep tech founders—especially those coming out of academia—is how naturally collaborative they are. That’s just how they’re wired. In science, you don’t succeed by hoarding knowledge. You publish, you get peer-reviewed, you talk to other experts. That’s how the field moves forward.
And I see that same mindset come through when they join our accelerator. These founders, even when their companies overlap, are incredibly open. They share. They compare notes. They help each other troubleshoot problems. They celebrate each other’s wins. They're fully engaged. It's not competitive in the traditional sense. It’s communal.
You don’t get that vibe in other industries. Go into a finance setting, for example, and it’s the complete opposite. Most people there think they already know it all. They’re not used to sharing because if they do, they think someone’s going to take their lunch. It’s a protect-your-patch culture.
In quantum, it’s the opposite. The collaboration is real. It’s how they’ve been trained to work as scientists. And they bring that with them into the startup world. For me, that’s one of the most brilliant parts of this space.
But of course, collaboration doesn’t replace execution. That openness needs to evolve into leadership. Into building a company. Into making decisions. And that’s where we help them make the shift.
What I Look For: Red Flags and Founder Green Lights
When I’m evaluating a startup, I always start with the founder. Not the deck. Not the product. The person.
Because at this stage, the founder is the business.
And when I sit down with someone, I’m asking myself: can I work with this person? Can others work with this person? Are they open to learning, or just trying to prove they’re the smartest person in the room?
There are a few green flags that show me they’ve got real potential:
They’re coachable. They listen. They ask questions. They’re okay saying, “I don’t know yet.”
They build real teams—people who balance them out. Not just clones of themselves.
They show up to our program ready to share, compare notes, give feedback, and learn from others.
Then there are the red flags:
Founders who want to be sole decision-makers.
Founders who are used to being the best in their academic field and think that automatically translates into business.
Founders who won’t take feedback because they’ve “figured it out.”
People who say, “I did it once in science, I’ll do it again here.”
I’ve seen it more than once—founders walk in thinking they don’t need support. They want to control everything. They don’t want to give up equity. They’ve never built a team, but they’re convinced they’ll figure it out on the fly.
Some might pull it off. But more often, that approach just doesn’t scale.
The coachable ones? The ones who can take a hit, process feedback, and shift gears fast—they’re the ones who actually grow. And those are the people I want to bet on.
So what makes a founder in QuantumAI investable?
Whether you're an investor or a founder, navigating the early-stage deep tech landscape requires discipline, humility, and clarity:
Investors: Don’t just look at the tech. Look at the team. Assess coachability, team dynamics, and execution mindset early. Back VCs and accelerators who coach, not just cut checks.
Founders: Be honest with yourself. Are you ready to lead—not just build? Can you take feedback, share control, and adapt to pressure? If not yet, be ready to learn—and surround yourself with people who can help you grow fast.
Both: Align on what matters most—resilience, clarity, and the ability to build under uncertainty. In deep tech, that’s what separates success from science projects.
Get that right, and the rest can follow.
Are you an investor looking for high-potential founders in Deep Tech?
Learn more about our investment thesis and portfolio on our website or reach out for a 1:1 conversation with James Sanders, QAI Ventures' Investment Director
