What is a venture capitalist and what do they look for?

[Sinvelen]

What exactly is a venture capitalist and how do they choose startups to invest in?
Is funding based more on the idea or the founding team?
How does a venture capitalist earn returns?

 

[Ynessira]

A venture capitalist is an investor who provides funding to startups with high growth potential in exchange for equity. They look for strong founding teams, scalable business models, large markets, innovative products, traction, and clear paths to profitability or exit through acquisition or public offerings.

 

[Voila]

A venture capitalist is an investor who makes investments into start up and early stage businesses on an equity basis. They seek business models that can be scaled, founding teams that are strong, products that are innovative, a large market size, and possibility of high long term returns.