A new survey of US startup founders by Angel Investment Network (AIN), the world’s largest online angel investment platform, reveals that the process of seeking external capital has become a debilitating time sink for many entrepreneurs.

The AIN Founder Survey 2025 included 610 US founder interviews and finds that for many founders, fundraising is consuming the equivalent of a second full-time job, severely impacting their ability to run their core business.

• Nearly half (46%) of respondents are spending 30% or more of their week actively engaged in fundraising.
• More than 1 in 4 (25%) are spending over half their week solely focused on fundraising.
• Crucially, 45% of founders say this time commitment is impacting their ability to run their startup.

Despite the significant time investment, the survey suggests founders are rushing the due diligence process on their potential investors. Less than a third (30%) are conducting serious due diligence, which includes founder reference checks or industry fit analysis, while 43% are doing nothing or just a cursory search.

Founders more middle aged and rely on external employment

The survey also challenges the pervasive stereotype of the twenty-something entrepreneur working from their parents’ garage. The AIN data confirms that the median founder is now middle-aged, often relying on external employment and personal savings to keep their ventures afloat.

• 65% of founders surveyed are over the age of 45, with more than 1 in 3 (38%) over the age of 55.
• 1 in 2 (50%) are working part or full time to support their startup, and 91% have funded their business with their own savings.
• 70% of those seeking funding are male, versus 29% female, indicating a gender gap in fundraising.

Looking ahead, US startups remain upbeat about their prospects, 42% are very optimistic and a further 22% quite optimistic. However cashflow is the biggest potential risk, cited by 84% of startups. Second is inflation, named as a concern by 37% of startups, followed by high interest rates, 34%.

Action in response to H-IB visa policy

Meanwhile 34% of startups polled said they were taking action in response to the  US H-1B visa policy imposing a $100k fee for new international applicants. Top measures being taken included shifting to remote foreign hiring, only focusing on hiring domestically and exploring alternative working visa pathways.

When asked about the most significant non-financial sacrifice in running a startup, sleep (23%) topped the list, followed by mental health (19%) and family (17%).

“Angel investment can be a crucial source of funding as startups scale, but fundraising is eating into a huge amount of US Startups’ time,” says Mike Lebus, founder of Angel Investment Network. “By investing time in the groundwork and following best practice, founders can more efficiently boost their chances of raising the capital investment to grow their business, and reclaim critical time for running their business.”

He continued: “The idea that all successful startups are launched by 22-year-olds with immediate angel investment is a fantasy, often ignoring the hard-earned experience and financial stability required to take a calculated risk,” Lebus continued. “Our data shows entrepreneurship is often a second-act career, requiring founders to pay their own bills while they build, using personal savings or salary as their primary initial funding source.”

On the back of the findings, AIN is launching a new content series dedicated to improving the efficiency of fundraising, giving founders back time to focus on their business.

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