Andreessen Horowitz's Speedrun Bets $180 Million on Newly Hatched Startups

The celebration in SoCal signals a new approach for Andreessen Horowitz, often called a16z. The firm has traditionally waited until startups had some traction before writing checks. With Speedrun, it’s making a foray into pre-seed investing, positioning itself as a cool younger sibling to Y Combinator, the two-decade-old Silicon Valley institution that helped launch companies like Stripe Inc., Airbnb Inc.