Deck Feedback for Sumeria Space - 01/27

This is Second Opinion, a newsletter created by Hustle Fund, where we weigh in (with our second opinion) and give tactical advice on founder situations.

Today’s Edition

When you're a founder, getting feedback on your pitch deck from an actual VC is kinda the dream.

(Well, that and getting a killer term sheet.)

That's why I'm so excited to include today's YouTube episode of Uncapped Notes. We're welcoming Haley Bryant, Partner at Hustle Fund and prolific angel investor, onto the show.

Haley is the kind of investor every founder dreams of having on their cap table: she's helpful, responsive, respectful, and wicked smart.

Today, Haley joins us for a live review of Sumeria Space, a startup founded by Ali, an engineer-turned-business-developer with 15 years in the space and satellite industry. Ali's on a mission to make satellites communicate 100x faster using laser technology - and he's braving the snowy DC weather to share his deck with us.

The episode is below. If you keep scrolling, you'll find some of our favorite takeaway moments from the session. Enjoy!

Our Favorite Takeaways

This is the part where Haley explains why the first slide needs more punch. She talks about how jargon like "space-to-Earth bottleneck" and "RF" might lose investors in the first 30 seconds. Her advice is to lead with the jaw-dropping stats: "100x faster, 50-80% cheaper" - that's it.

This is the part where Haley and Ali discuss the ordering of slides. They dig into why team and traction should come way earlier in the deck, especially at pre-seed when investors are betting on people, not just ideas.

This is the part where Haley explains the "why now" question. She asks Ali to make the urgency crystal clear: why does this need to exist right now? The answer (crossing a critical threshold of laser-equipped satellites, plus dropping hardware costs) is compelling, but it needs to jump off the page.

And this is the part where we talk about showing versus telling. Haley points out how Ali has great analogies (Uber, Mint Mobile) but sometimes the technical complexity still gets in the way. Her suggestion to make it even simpler - "taking space from dial-up to the internet age" - is gold.

Want a second opinion on your deck?

If you want your deck reviewed and featured in Second Opinion, fill out this form.

Or drop a link to your deck in the video comments and the we’ll reply there.

See ya in two weeks!

PS: Trying to create the perfect pitch deck? This is for you.