By Sara Gilgore

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A year ago, D.C. area startup founders and investors couldn’t fathom what 2020 would have in store.

The same could be said now as we head into 2021. But that didn’t stop us from checking in with some of the region’s founders, experts, investors and connectors about what we should expect to see in Greater Washington’s startup ecosystem in 2021 …

Investment in early-stage and social impact ventures to continue

In 2020, the region saw a collective push for greater investment in early-stage startups, with the growth of groups such as Citrine Angels and Halcyon Angels.

That’s not going away, with more people pursuing investments on both sides of the table. Citrine Angels is seeing more applications for its upcoming funding cycle in the first quarter, as well as increased deal flow from other local organizations “and an increased interest from our members to write checks,” Marshall said.

With that trend came more interest in the mission-driven niche, said Julian Ha, a local angel investor and executive recruiter with Heidrick & Struggles. “There is also a growing appetite for social impact investing which I foresee continuing and strengthening in 2021,” Ha said.

His comments echoed a prediction that Halcyon CEO Kate Goodall made earlier this year. “I consider 2020 the mass adoption year — we are now going to be investing in the things that we want to see in the world, rather than continuing the status quo-investments and hoping that it’ll change,” Goodall said in an August panel discussion.