I think this is the most probable explanation. And the candidates needn't even be a tie. Maybe they have one candidate that's less experienced or a significan

I think this is the most probable explanation. And the candidates needn't even be a tie. Maybe they have one candidate that's less experienced or a significantly less expensive hire but that is sufficient enough for what the role requires. It can be really difficult to make a call like that, but at the end of the day, the smaller the company is, the more tightly controlling runway and burn rate could increase chances of survival. I think this matters less once a company passes a sufficient headcount threshold. It's hard to draw a specific line in the sand, but perhaps ~75–100 people.