PitchVault / Glossary

Startup & pitch deck glossary

Plain-English definitions of the terms every founder needs to know — from ARR to VaultScore™ — with context for how each one shows up in investor conversations.

A B C I M P R S T U V

A

ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue)

The annualized value of a company's recurring subscription or contract revenue.

B

The rate at which a startup spends its cash reserves each month.

C

A spreadsheet or record showing who owns equity in a company and in what amounts.

Convertible Note

A short-term debt instrument that converts into equity at a future funding round, typically used in early-stage fundraising.

I

Investor Criteria

The dimensions investors evaluate when deciding whether to fund a startup.

M

The total revenue opportunity in a given market, used to determine whether a startup can become a venture-scale business.

MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue)

The predictable revenue a company expects to receive every month from active subscriptions.

P

A short presentation founders use to communicate their company's opportunity to investors.

Pitch Deck Analysis

A structured evaluation of a pitch deck against the criteria investors use to make funding decisions.

The earliest formal funding stage, typically raised to build an MVP and validate initial assumptions.

Product-Market Fit

The degree to which a product satisfies strong market demand — the key milestone every early-stage startup is chasing.

R

The number of months a startup can operate before running out of cash at its current burn rate.

S

A Simple Agreement for Future Equity — a convertible instrument used in early-stage fundraising that converts to equity at a future priced round.

An early funding stage used to prove product-market fit and build initial go-to-market momentum.

A growth-stage funding round raised after demonstrating repeatable product-market fit and early revenue.

T

TAM / SAM / SOM

The three-layer market sizing framework: Total Addressable Market, Serviceable Addressable Market, and Serviceable Obtainable Market.

Evidence that a startup's product or service is gaining real customer adoption and market demand.

U

The direct revenues and costs associated with a single customer or unit, used to assess the fundamental profitability of a business.

V

The maximum company valuation at which a SAFE or convertible note converts to equity, protecting early investors from dilution.

PitchVault's proprietary 0–100 score rating a pitch deck against real investor criteria.

See how your deck scores

Get a VaultScore™ and detailed analysis across all 8 investor criteria — free.

Analyze my pitch deck →