First things first, avoid investing in competing startups having the same solutions and going after the same market share as it may lead to portfolio conflicts. In a situation where one of your portfolio startups wishes to pivot and get into the exact same thing as another, try to recognize and acknowledge the conflict early. Help them carve out distinct niches or address different customer segments to minimize direct competition. If there are complementing startups in your portfolio overlaps, find ways to get them married i.e. work on their strengths to shoot for bigger projects and capture the opportunities together in a joint venture. Offer neutral advice but step down from your role/ board seat if necessary.

Start by avoiding conflict! We always start by asking what two or three companies in our portfolio can be synergistic to each other; not how we can make three similar bets where only one can win at the others’ expense.

Balancing the success of multiple startups when they clash can be quite challenging.Here are some strategies to navigate this dilemma: Prioritize alignment with vision:Evaluate how each startup fits into your overall investment thesis & long-term goals,prioritizing those that align best. Encourage collaboration:Foster a culture of collaboration between startups,encouraging them to share resources and insights that can benefit both. Regular performance reviews:Implement a structured review process to assess each startup’s progress,allowing for timely pivots or resource reallocations if necessary. Transparent communication:Maintain open lines of communication with founders,ensuring everyone is aware of each other's challenges & successes.

To start with, avoid investing in startups that have identicial or near-identical products with similar markets, strategy etc. Even if they end up competing with each other, very directly, this topic is a bit moot - simply because a VC, almost never, has the operational power to constrain the growth of one startup to the benefit of another. If one does try to stymie the growth of a lesser invested portfolio company at the expense of another, it is clearly morally adverse if not illegal and such tactics should be avoided altogether. Instead, VCs should just focus on maximizing returns on both investments by adding value whenever needed and not being unduly opportunistic in any aspect of portfolio management.

1. The investment decision was conscious to begin with. What was the objective back then? Did you foresee synergies? Collaborations? Explain this to the founders and ensure everyone is in balance for your portfolio give higher returns, 2. One strategy is working and other strategy isn't, can that be corrected? 3. Have you given any unfair advantage to one firm over the other? for eg. a critical business connect, spending more time with them, taking personal care etc? Can you make it a level playing field (I'm not talking about the capital invested at X valuation but post that)