From Noise to Signal: Finding the Deals That Matter

The early-stage investing world does not suffer from a shortage of deals—it suffers from a shortage of relevant, high-quality deal flow. In this episode of TCA Crossroads, David Friedman and Dave Berkus talk with Andrew Kaslow, founder of The Diligent Observer, about how investors can separate signal from noise. Kaslow’s newsletter has highlighted more than 200 investments made by over 100 investor communities, using angel-group investment itself as an initial signal that a company has survived a meaningful screening and diligence process. The discussion explores why the future is less about giving investors even more companies to review and more about identifying deals that fit an investor's interests, expertise, risk tolerance, and investment thesis. The conversation then looks forward to a much more connected early-stage investment ecosystem in which angel groups, family offices, accelerators and other investor communities retain their individual expertise while sharing opportunities more efficiently across organizational boundaries. AI can play an increasingly important role by summarizing company information, conducting preliminary research, scoring or filtering opportunities against an investor group's own criteria, and allowing investors to concentrate their time on the companies that warrant deeper human diligence. Friedman emphasizes that collaboration rather than competition can help investors fund larger rounds faster, while Berkus cautions that investors have become increasingly selective as historical returns and risk shape investment behavior. The takeaway: technology can help find the signal, but trusted communities, disciplined diligence and investor judgment still determine which signals are worth following.