This study examines how startups balance power control and resource acquisition during their growth processes. This tension remains contested in entrepreneurship research and is underexplored empirically. Drawing on resource dependence theory and extending it with the concept of dominant logic, the study argues that the presence of heterogeneous investors‒ namely foreign investors and outside corporate directors‒ exerts varying influences on the relationship between founder control and resource acquisition efficiency. Using panel data from 270 startups between 2017 and 2021, the analysis reveals that higher founder ownership is associated with reduced resource acquisition efficiency. However, the involvement of foreign investors and certain external directors attenuates this negative relationship. By incorporating dominant logic, the study challenges the assumption of homogeneous intentions among resource providers embedded in traditional resource dependence theory, offering insights for how startups can strategically navigate tensions between operational control and resource access.