0.07 Percent of Startups Reach $1 Billion Valuations?

Software-based startup firms eventually valued at over $1 billion by public or private market investors represent a rather miniscule 0.07 percent of venture-backed consumer and enterprise software startups, a study by Cowboy Ventures finds. 

To be sure, the survey only studied software-based startups started since 2003.

Takeaway: it’s really hard, and highly unlikely, to build or invest in a billion dollar company. 

The odds of creating a $1 billion valuation company is "somewhere between catching a foul ball at an MLB game and being struck by lightning in one’s lifetime."