20VC: USV's Brad Burnham on Co-Founding USV with Fred Wilson, What They Look For In Potential Partners & Whether We Are Entering a Period of Consolidation or Expansion

Union Square Ventures (USV) co-founder Brad Burnham details the firm’s evolution from its 2003 inception to its current status as a leader in venture capital. The firm’s success stems from a disciplined, thesis-driven approach that prioritizes the "application layer" over infrastructure, enabling deeper market insights and stronger portfolio collaboration. By maintaining a single-office, collegial partnership, USV ensures that team members share a common understanding of market dynamics. Burnham highlights the transition from the 1990s infrastructure-focused era to today’s environment of market consolidation, where dominant players like Google and Facebook create significant barriers for new entrants. Ultimately, the firm’s strategy relies on recognizing that while history does not repeat, it rhymes, requiring investors to adapt to shifting technological paradigms while maintaining principled, long-term commitments to entrepreneurs.