Funding in 2025: Securing Capital for Your Tech, EdTech & Gaming Startup đź‘ľ

#20— All things StartupsGCC Series #3! Need funding for your SaaS, EdTech, or gaming startup? Get the 2025 playbook from my fireside chat with Xoogler founder Christopher Fong — capital-efficient metrics, pitch-deck tricks, and warm-intro tactics — plus how my 5-Week Funding Sprint can fast-track your raise.

Author

Ahlem Mahroua
April 30, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

On 20 March 2025 I sat down with Christopher Fong — founder of the 33 000-strong Xoogler community & General Partner at Xoogler Ventures — for a live session titled “Insights on Getting Funded.” More than 120 founders registered via Key.ai to decode what investors want in the year ahead.

If you lead a VC-backed startup and your runway clock is ticking, these notes are for you. Even without the recording (RIP, Google Meet!), the learnings below will sharpen your next raise.

The 2025 funding landscape at a glance

  • Global VC hit $314 B in 2024, edging past 2023 as AI deals exploded. SourCrunchbase News

  • Generative-AI alone drew ~$45 B—nearly double 2023. MintzEdge

  • Q1 2025 opened with $121 B in new funding even as deal count kept sliding. CB Insights

Translation: money is there, but every dollar is interrogated.

Key takeaways for getting funded in 2025

  1. Capital-efficiency is the first filter
    Investors want a burn multiple ≤ 1.5× and 18-24 months of runway. Bring scenarios that hit breakeven without a mega-round. LinkedIn

  2. Kill “narrative debt”
    Features don’t raise money—category vision does. Open your deck with a status-quo pain → 10× future → why-now slide. LinkedIn

  3. Warm intros > cold outreach
    74 % of Xoogler-backed deals start with alumni referrals; the community’s Investment Syndicate counts 2 000+ angels. Map every target fund to a warm connector. LinkedIn

  4. Master the “30-10-3” rule
    30-word elevator, 10 slides, 3-minute story. Refresh the data room monthly (deck, KPIs, cap table). LinkedIn

  5. Angels bridge the valuation gap
    Late-stage mark-downs mean specialised angels are filling rounds and opening domain doors cash can’t buy. Show a clear angel layer in your cap table. LinkedIn

  6. GCC edge: impact slides matter
    Sovereign funds weigh local job creation heavily. Quantify direct & indirect jobs—and lead with MoUs. LinkedIn

The Funding Sprint Checklist âś…

Step

Your litmus-test question

1. One-liner stress-test

Can a non-tech friend repeat it after 30 s?

2. Traction triangle

Do I show two of three: revenue, retention, referrals?

3. Moat slide

Data network effects, licences, or cap-ex barriers?

4. Pipeline heat-map

Named warm-intro owner for every fund?

5. 24-month model

Base, conservative, aggressive scenarios ready?

6. Data-room hygiene

Deck, model, demo, KPI sheet, legal docs up-to-date?

Beyond the event: partner with me

If your raise is stalling, my 5-Week Funding Sprint audits your deck, model & outreach flow, then plugs you into hand-picked intros across MENA and the Xoogler network. Only 5 founder seats per quarter—book a call here.

What’s your biggest fundraising blocker? Hit reply or leave a comment—I answer every founder personally.

Favourite quotes

“Your valuation isn’t a trophy—it’s an IOU on execution.” 

Christopher Fong

“Intros are currency; spend them where the conversion rate is highest.”

Christopher Fong

Ready to scale your SaaS or EdTech startup? Visit https://www.ahlemmahroua.com to learn more and schedule a consultation.

Let's build a sales engine that fuels your growth.

See you in the comments — and good luck closing that round!

Reply

or to participate.