{
  "title": "The Founder Pulse, issue 1",
  "url": "https://sunnyray.com/pulse/",
  "issue": 1,
  "published": "2026-11-02",
  "window": { "from": "2026-08-01", "to": "2026-10-31" },
  "author": "Sunny Ray",
  "method": {
    "source": "conversations Sunny Ray had from 2026-08-01 to 2026-10-31 (pre-interviews, show tapings, debriefs, sales calls and other calls), anonymized before counting",
    "publish_rule": "a number is published only when at least 5 distinct calls support it; for a share, both the numerator and the denominator must be at least 5",
    "n": "n is the number of calls or founders behind each number",
    "excluded": "some calls are excluded for confidentiality; no names, company names or quotes are ever published",
    "founders": "a founder seen on several calls counts once",
    "confidence": "0 to 100, scored from how each founder described their own momentum; medians, not means; only founders who gave a signal are scored",
    "caveats": [
      "buyer objections are reactions to Sunny's own offer, not to the founders' products",
      "asks are recorded at the low end of any stated range",
      "the week of 2026-08-17 to 2026-08-23 had no calls",
      "raising status, stage, ask and booking path are recorded only when stated on the call"
    ]
  },
  "headline": {
    "conversations": { "value": 980, "n": 980 },
    "distinct_founders": { "value": 562, "n": 562 },
    "founders_raising_pct": { "value": 23, "num": 129, "den": 562, "n": 562 },
    "founder_confidence_median": { "value": 65, "n": 104, "p25": 55, "p75": 70 },
    "seed_median_ask_usd": { "value": 2500000, "n": 9, "note": "low end of stated range" }
  },
  "confidence_by_month": [
    { "month": "2026-08", "median": 63.5, "n": 34, "p25": 55, "p75": 68 },
    { "month": "2026-09", "median": 67.5, "n": 36, "p25": 53.75, "p75": 70 },
    { "month": "2026-10", "median": 65, "n": 34, "p25": 60, "p75": 70 }
  ],
  "by_month": [
    { "month": "2026-08", "conversations": 197, "founders": 95, "raising": 26, "raising_pct": 27.4 },
    { "month": "2026-09", "conversations": 414, "founders": 251, "raising": 54, "raising_pct": 21.5 },
    { "month": "2026-10", "conversations": 369, "founders": 216, "raising": 49, "raising_pct": 22.7 }
  ],
  "patterns": {
    "confidence_raising_vs_not": {
      "raising": { "median": 65, "n": 51 },
      "not_raising_or_unknown": { "median": 65, "n": 53 },
      "explicitly_not_raising": { "median": 65, "n": 16 },
      "note": "no difference observed; this is a comparison, not a cause"
    },
    "buyer_objections": {
      "calls_with_buyer_objection": { "value": 94, "n": 94 },
      "timing": { "value": 45, "pct": 47.9, "n": 94 },
      "price": { "value": 26, "pct": 27.7, "n": 94 },
      "note": "buyers here are mostly prospects reacting to Sunny's own offer"
    },
    "raising_status": {
      "raising_of_all_founders": { "num": 129, "den": 562, "pct": 23 },
      "raising_of_founders_whose_status_came_up": { "num": 129, "den": 163, "pct": 79.1 },
      "status_never_mentioned": { "value": 399, "n": 399 },
      "explicitly_not_raising": { "value": 34, "n": 34 }
    },
    "stage": {
      "founders_with_stated_stage": 50,
      "pre_seed": { "num": 15, "den": 50, "pct": 30 },
      "seed": { "num": 25, "den": 50, "pct": 50 },
      "series_a": { "num": 8, "den": 50, "pct": 16 },
      "seed_median_ask_usd": { "value": 2500000, "n": 9 }
    },
    "how_meetings_got_booked": {
      "warm_total": { "value": 43, "n": 43, "note": "referral, podcast invite or event" },
      "referral": { "value": 25, "n": 25 },
      "podcast_invite": { "value": 16, "n": 16 },
      "cold_email": { "value": 20, "n": 20 },
      "note": "recorded only when the call said how the meeting was booked"
    },
    "fund_managers_raising": { "value": 20, "n": 20, "note": "calls with fund managers raising their own funds, counted apart from founders" }
  }
}