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REF: HOT-C04 · PRELIMINARY INVESTMENT MEMORANDUM

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PRELIMINARY INVESTMENT MEMORANDUM — CYCLE 04

You have an idea. You believe in it enough to be here, which already places you in a specific percentile of people who considered submitting and then did not. What follows is ten questions designed to determine whether your idea deserves to exist as a permanent page on HorseOnTap. Your rejection letter will be published regardless of the outcome. You understood this before you clicked the button below.

What is the company called?

Two-word portmanteau combinations will be returned for reconsideration by the committee without further explanation.

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Which sector does this operate in?

The committee does not fund "general technology." Select the most honest answer available, even if it is uncomfortable to name.

select a sector to continue

Describe the startup in one sentence, as if you believe in it completely.

This is an internal voice test. If you cannot hold the deadpan here, the page will not hold it either. One sentence. The committee will count.

Shift+Enter for new line · Enter to continue

What is this actually about?

This field is for internal due diligence only and will not appear on the page. Be specific. "People are lonely" is not specific. "The US Surgeon General's 2023 advisory states that loneliness carries health risks equivalent to smoking fifteen cigarettes a day" is specific.

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Give us one real number.

Not "billions." Not "a lot." One number, with a source. A number that exists in the world and can be confirmed by a reasonably motivated person in under four minutes.

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When did this idea occur to you?

This is for internal calibration and will not appear on the page. The committee finds it useful to understand the conditions of origin.

On a scale from fully considered to completely unhinged, where does this fall?

Move the slider until the description feels honest. The committee responds well to self-awareness about the nature of the thing being submitted.

Concerning

50%

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What emotion does this idea evoke in you?

Select the description that comes closest to the feeling. You are allowed to be specific. In fact, you are required to be.

Now write your rejection letter.

You are a junior analyst at a firm that has seen everything. You have thirty seconds. Why does this not get funded? Write it now, before you submit. This answer will be published regardless of the outcome — write it as if it will be read by the person who submitted the idea, because it will be. That person is you.

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Finally, your email address.

You will receive the outcome of the committee's review regardless of what that outcome turns out to be. The newsletter is a separate matter and will require a separate subscription. We will not conflate the two without your explicit instruction.

press Enter ↵ to submit

REF: HOT-C04-PENDING

Your memorandum has been received.

Self-assessed position on the consideration spectrum: Concerning.

Your rejection letter is now part of the public record.

You will hear from us regardless of the outcome. The committee convenes in eleven days. We appreciate your conviction.

REVIEW TIMELINE: 3 WEEKS · ALL SUBMISSIONS ENTER THE PUBLIC RECORD IMMEDIATELY · OUTCOME DELIVERED VIA EMAIL