Hundreds of investors reviewed pitches from Airbnb, Instacart, and Uber when these companies were nascent startups and chose, ignominiously, to pass. But even great investors can miss big opportunities. It’s part of the profession. Investors can misread the market, misjudge the founders or simply believe an opportunity is overpriced. But often an investor will pass because of biases he or she has developed through experience, from the 'wisdom' of the crowd, or simply from a lack of knowledge.