The Great Correction – Top notes from 2023

Survival of the Fittest

If 2021 was a fever dream and 2022 was the cold shower, 2023 was the year the venture world finally woke up to a new reality. Global startup investment plummeted to $285 billion—a 38% decline from the previous year and the lowest level since 2018. It was a year defined by the Three Cs: Correction, Consolidation, and the rise of ChatGPT.

1. The Global Pullback

The US market, which typically accounts for half of global venture activity, mirrored the global slump with a 37% drop to $138 billion. The growth at all costs mantra was officially buried, replaced by an obsession with unit economics and burn multiples.

2. The AI Exception

While sectors like Web3 (down 73%) and Fintech (down 50%) cratered, Generative AI became the market’s lighthouse. Foundations like OpenAI, Anthropic, and
Inflection AI collectively raised $18 billion. This was the year VCs realized that while the broader market was frozen, the AI arms race was just beginning.

3. Finland’s Resilient “Sisu”

Despite the global gloom, the Finnish ecosystem showed remarkable grit. Total funding reached €871 million. While the mega-rounds of the previous years were absent, the early-stage pipeline remained remarkably healthy. Finnish founders, long accustomed to capital efficiency, found themselves better prepared for a dry powder drought than their more pampered Silicon Valley peers.

4. The Exit Desert

2023 was arguably the toughest year for liquidity in a decade. Over 70% of VCs reported a worsening exit environment. IPOs essentially vanished, and trade sales were often fire sales or quiet acqui-hires. This created massive pressure on secondary markets, which eventually exploded in 2025.