Approach
How we invest, written out.
Founders spend too many hours decoding what a firm actually wants. This page is our attempt to remove that work, including the parts that make us look narrow.
Thesis
Where we spend our time
We are generalists by charter and specific in practice. If your company sits outside these, write to us anyway. Some of our best investments started that way.
- 01
Software that does the work
Models became useful faster than companies became ready. The interesting businesses now are the ones absorbing real workflows, not the ones adding a chat box to an old product.
- 02
Infrastructure under the boom
Every platform shift makes a handful of boring, essential companies. Evaluation, data movement, permissioning, cost control. We look for the layer everyone will need and nobody wants to build.
- 03
The industries nobody demos
Logistics, insurance, clinical operations, energy markets. Slow to sell into, hard to displace, enormous once you are in. These take a decade, which is the point.
- 04
Founders with an unfair reason
The best pitch we hear is usually a small, specific thing the founder knows that we do not. Domain scar tissue beats a polished narrative every time.
Stage and check size
Where our money fits
We are usually among the first two or three investors. Occasionally we are the only one.
- Pre-seed · $250K to $1M
- Often the first money in. Sometimes before there is a company.
- Seed · $1M to $4M
- We lead about half of these and are happy to co-lead.
- Series A · $4M to $10M
- Reserved for companies we already know well.
- Follow-on · Up to $25M
- Roughly half the fund is held back for the ones that work.
Process
From first call to decision in two weeks
You will always know where you stand. If we need longer, we say so rather than going quiet.
- 01
First conversation
Thirty minutes with a partner, no deck required. We would rather hear how you think about the problem than watch slides.
- 02
A working session
We spend two hours on the hardest open question in your business. You will learn whether we are useful. So will we.
- 03
Diligence, in the open
We talk to your customers and share what we hear, including the parts that sting. No back-channel process you never see.
- 04
Decision
Yes or no inside two weeks of the first call, with the reasoning written down. A no now is not a no forever.
Terms
Plain paper, no surprises.
You should be able to read your own cap table without calling a lawyer. Everything below is the same for every company we back.
- Standard documents
- A post-money SAFE at pre-seed, or the standard series seed set for priced rounds. We do not draft our own paper.
- One page of business terms
- Amount, valuation, pro-rata, board. Anything that does not fit on that page probably should not be in the deal.
- No side letters that surprise you
- If we ask for information rights, you will see the same language every other investor sees. Nothing appears at the Series B that was not visible at the seed.
- Board seats only where useful
- We take a seat when we lead and observer rights otherwise. If the board stops being useful, we will say so and step back.
- Pro-rata we intend to use
- Roughly half the fund is reserved for follow-on. When we do not follow, we tell you why before the round, not after.
After the wire
What we actually do
Four things, done properly, rather than a longer list done occasionally.
Recruiting
The first ten hires decide the company. We keep a live bench of operators and run your search alongside you rather than sending a list.
Customers
Introductions to buyers who have budget and a reason to answer, made by the partner who knows them. We do not spray your deck across a network.
The next round
We build the story, pressure-test the numbers, and tell you honestly when the round is not ready. That last part saves companies.
The quiet months
Most of the work happens when nothing is being announced. A call on a Sunday about a co-founder problem is the job, not a favor.
Questions
The ones founders ask most.
What stage do you invest at?
Pre-seed and seed, with a smaller number of Series A checks in companies we have followed for a while. Cheques run from $250K to $10M, and about half the fund is reserved for follow-on.
Do I need a warm introduction?
No. Cold applications are read by a partner, and a meaningful share of our portfolio came in that way. A referral tells us someone vouches for you, which helps, but it has never been the filter.
How long does a decision take?
Two weeks from the first conversation, usually less. If we pass, you get the reasoning in writing. If we need more time, we say so rather than going quiet.
Do you lead rounds?
Often. We lead roughly half our seed investments and are comfortable setting terms, taking a board seat, and doing the work that comes with it. We are also happy to follow a lead we respect.
Is the accelerator separate from the fund?
Same firm, same partners, same money. The accelerator is a structured twelve weeks with a cohort. Direct investments have no program attached. Founders choose the format that fits where they are.
Do we have to move to San Francisco?
No. Our companies are in forty-one countries and we have never required relocation. Accelerator companies spend a handful of weeks with us in person, and we cover the travel.
What do you do that other firms do not?
Fewer companies per partner, which means fewer polite check-ins and more actual work. Each partner carries around six active boards. That is the constraint everything else follows from.
Can we apply again after a pass?
Yes, and many of our best companies did. Come back when something has changed materially. We keep our notes, so you will not start from zero.
Still the right fit?
Send us the company. A partner reads every application and you will hear back either way.