I don't understand venture capital, but from my understanding, this startup cycle has hardly been futile. - The founders made money - The employees made money

I don't understand venture capital, but from my understanding, this startup cycle has hardly been futile. - The founders made money - The employees made money - The customers made money in the form of steeply discounted products and services So really, the only people to lose out were VCs, especially since a lot of these startups haven't really had a chance to IPO and grift out the little guy (at least in my market).