No successful company is on top forever. Just take a look at the top companies 20 or 30 years ago: where are they now? Nowhere near the top.

Yup, if you google what founders in those 'failures' did was that they pretty much jumped vc side or founded more companies and have had very successful career. Not mind boggling like Bezos or Brin but still very cool career.

taking the money and running is the dream of the VCs

if you believe the milton friedman approach to economics, a company has no other value in that what it can provide to the owner (shareholder)

take your millions while it burns and, as the parent said, never fly commercial again

For a VC "running" would mean re-invest in the next thing to get more money. What alternative would you prefer? Keep doing the same thing without investing in new stuff?

They don't "take the money", there are other people that believe some things (profits/growth in a field) will last forever and will bring 10x return, so they are willing to give them the money.

You are the one confusing what success is.

If you go by current standings in the market, yes, Yahoo is no longer at the top. Yet Yahoo was one of the most valuable and influential tech companies in the late 90s, early 2000s.