Debate ensuing in my inbox:
– Raise as little as possible! You can raise more at milestones easily. Too much money correlates to failure. Here is Fred Wilson making that point http://www.avc.com/a_vc/2013/09/maximizing-runway-can-minimize-success.html
– Protect equity above all! It never comes back! Etc.
The other view is:
– Companies die by running out of money
– Money lets you play ball. Look up Ben Horowitz re the Fat Man
But I can tell you the answer here very simply:
Raise enough but not too much.
Know very clearly what milestones will be convincing to investors. Raise enough to get to those plus a bit of error room. That’s it!