It's been a rough year for startups, but it's getting better

The tech startup world has faced a hard year, with bankruptcies, layoffs, and a challenging funding environment.

Exits for tech startups - that is, acquisitions or public offerings, which are the main ways startups return money to investors - are also down from last year.

According to a new report from CB Insights, the number of exits in the first half of 2016 is down 17% compared to the same period last year, although the trend is upward - up 6% between Q1 and Q2.

The decline has hit both IPOs and M&A, with 300 fewer companies bought compared to the first half of 2015, and 19 fewer IPOs.

The price tags of these companies are also small. While there have been some splashy billion dollar exits like Cruise Automation and Jasper Technologies, 53% of tech company exits were for less than $50 million - meaning companies are being bought early for talent or technology.

Here's CB Insights' full report on what the tech exit landscape has looked like so far in 2016: