VCs were always 'risk' averse, though this manifested in odd behaviors. Such as the herd signal, whereby one investor decided to invest attracted more capital.

One might argue that the signal indicated lower risk, but this runs at odds with the mission to find potentially large payoffs. That is, derisk enough, and you de-reward. Add to that, that there is no "sure thing", or ultimate de-risk. There are no silver bullets in this process, and signals you think may indicate one thing, actually indicate something entirely different.