The Pitch Deck Is a Vehicle for Emotions, Not Facts
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“The #1 fundraising mistake I see founders make is treating the pitch deck as a vehicle for the delivery of facts, when in fact it is a vehicle for the delivery of emotions.”
What this teaches
Chen's much-quoted maxim: the #1 fundraising mistake is treating the pitch deck as a delivery vehicle for facts when it is actually a delivery vehicle for emotions. It anchored his broader public work on narrative-driven deck design at Runway.
Why it matters
Probably the most-quoted single sentence about pitch decks of the 2020s; Runway's own decks became reference designs for narrative pitching.
Key lessons
- Decks persuade through emotional arc, not data density
- Design each slide around the feeling it should produce
This is an editorial summary. The full thread, and the credit, belongs to Siqi Chen.
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