Pre-IPO investing is considered to be a higher risk investment than investing in a publicly traded company. This is because there is typically more uncertainty surrounding a pre-IPO company. For example, a pre-IPO company may not have a track record of financial performance, making it difficult to predict how the company will perform in the future. Additionally, pre-IPO companies may be more volatile than publicly traded companies, meaning that their share prices may fluctuate more frequently and significantly. As a result, investors in a pre-IPO company may experience greater losses than those investing in a publicly traded company.