“I review 30 40 applications not a single one is like something that we can actually invest in like that is a real bummer you're not often doing 95 to one or something like that it weighs on you for sure”

Open application = high volume inbound, but pre-filter copy does the heavy lifting

Tringas swapped the warm-intro VC model for an open application form. Volume is high but conversion is brutal — 30-40 applications can pass without a single fit. The funnel only works because the pre-filter copy ('here's what we don't fund') does heavy lifting before submission. Same applies to any inbound channel: explicit anti-criteria save more time than glossy yes-criteria.