Startup Failure Post-Mortems 2022 Third Update (07/16/22)

The Startup Failure Post-Mortems 2022 Third Update documented a critical information gap emerging in mid-2022 as global venture funding collapsed 23% quarter-over-quarter to $108.5B in Q2—the steepest quarterly decline in nearly a decade. Founders and investors faced an acute problem: they lacked real-time visibility into *why* companies were failing during this unprecedented downturn. Early-stage founders experienced this most acutely, unable to learn from peer failures as funding dried up. The problem was measurable through funding data and observable through mounting layoffs and shutdowns. Alternatives like traditional business school case studies or consultant reports existed but lagged months behind actual events. The post-mortem project missed critical warning signs by publishing retrospectively rather than providing concurrent analysis. Its delayed insights meant founders couldn't apply lessons quickly enough to navigate the rapidly shifting capital environment, reducing its practical utility during the crisis when guidance mattered most.