[pcrh]

Evidently, a $10M investment that compounds at 12% p.a. will return $31M after 10 years.

The article however shows that dilution of that initial "round A" investment by subsequent rounds of capitalization needs to be taken into account (as well as when such a "round B" occurred, but that isn't addressed). It is this dilution that reduces the returns, requiring one or more "unicorn exits" to make the hoped for returns from the initial investment