Scott Denne has covered the intersection of technology and capital markets for his entire career. In late 2023, Scott began his second tour at 451 Research, the technology research arm of S&P Market Intelligence, where he covers acquisitions, valuation trends and private equity investments. His research explores changes in dealmaking and shifts in valuation. His reports cover broad movements in the tech M&A markets, private-equity investments, analysis of specific deals and forecasts of deal activity in multiple sectors of the software industry. Previously, Scott spent two years as Director of Technology Research for BWG Strategy. In that role, Scott provided primary research to buyside equity investors through a mix of surveys and moderated group discussions. The coverage was built around collecting spend intention, sentiment and budget outlook from customers and channel partners across a universe of 50+ enterprise software tickers. Prior to an eight-year stint as an M&A analyst with 451 Research, Scott was a reporter covering startups and venture capital for several Dow Jones publications, including VentureWire, Private Equity Analyst and The Wall Street Journal. He has been quoted by financial and technology publications, including TheStreet.com, Wired, CNBC.com, AdExchanger and CMSwire.
Projections for the AI infrastructure market keep gaining momentum, as Wall Street bumped up its long-term revenue expectations for the major cloud computing companies following a couple of rosy earnings reports last quarter. At the same time, the nature and scope of the applications that will consume all that infrastructure remain, at best, vague.
Venture capitalists are going all in on the next new thing while they struggle to sell the last new thing. Investors are pouring money into AI startups, pushing VC activity to a record. But as they make historic outlays, liquidity from past funds has stalled, impeding the industry's ability to raise money to back the next round of tech startups.
The venture capital industry needs the new new thing — AI — to paper over lackluster returns from the last new thing. Competition for those deals, however, is pushing up prices, creating a hurdle for outsized returns. Join us for our upcoming webinar, All in on AI: Strategies for a Rapidly Expanding Market, where we will unpack AI's impact on venture investments and liquidity.
The main driver of tech M&A's rebound is also a drag. Heightened demand for AI engineers and offerings has propelled much of the renewed activity, particularly among US-listed strategics. But it has also kept key cohorts of buyers on the sidelines.
Venture capitalists are putting more money into fewer companies. The ongoing trend was on full display this week when Anthropic nabbed $13 billion in series F funding — the second-largest venture round for a software vendor by our reckoning. The push for fewer and larger bets on late-stage businesses is just as pronounced among the youngest and smallest startups.
Upon closing, Thoma Bravo intends to merge the target with workforce engagement management vendor Calabrio. The combined company could emerge as a leading player in the customer experience space, with a comprehensive portfolio and resources to keep pace with its rivals as well as AI innovations.
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