Decades of Waiting for Unicorn Exits

According to a recent analysis, if the current trend of company exits continues, it could take up to 30 years for the entirety of the U.S. companies listed on The Crunchbase Unicorn Board to either go public or be acquired. This timeline represents a significant improvement when compared to last year’s estimate of a staggering 49-year backlog.

Exit activity has shown signs of recovery in the past year, with 25 venture-backed startups boasting valuations of $1 billion or more successfully achieving public offerings or acquisitions, as reported by Crunchbase.

Highlighting Noteworthy Exits

Among the recent successes, two particularly large exits have garnered attention:

• CoreWeave: This AI cloud infrastructure provider executed the largest tech IPO in recent years, debuting in March with shares that have surged over 20% since their initial offering.
• Wiz: In a notable acquisition, Google announced plans to purchase the cybersecurity unicorn for $32 billion, potentially marking one of the most expensive acquisitions of a private startup to date, pending regulatory review.

Other significant IPOs from this year include precision medicine firm Tempus AI and home services platform ServiceTitan, both currently valued around $10 billion.

Challenges in Exit Values

Conversely, not all exits have been lucrative. For instance:

• Noname Security: This cybersecurity firm experienced a dip from its peak valuation, raising only $450 million during its acquisition by Akamai Technologies last summer.
• Candy Digital: The digital collectibles startup’s recent sale to metaverse platform Futureverse did not disclose a price, but given Futureverse’s status, it likely did not reach unicorn-level valuation.

The Outlook for Future Exits

The ongoing uncertainty surrounding the tech IPO market has left many anticipating more exits among unicorns. While public markets appear stagnant, optimists speculate a potential resurgence in new public offerings later this year or early next year.

In the M&A sphere, major tech companies continue to hold substantial cash reserves, creating opportunities for substantial unicorn-scale acquisitions, though their willingness to invest remains uncertain.