A partner who answers
One partner owns the relationship and gives you a phone number. Same day on anything urgent, and no scheduling link for a crisis.
For founders
Here is exactly what happens after you email us.
Fundraising is opaque for no good reason. This page is our process written down, so you can hold us to it.
The process
Two weeks, start to finish, in five steps.
No dragging you through six partners.
- 01
You send a note
Two paragraphs and a link. What you are building, why you, and what you need. A deck is welcome but never required.
- 02
We reply within two business days
Either a meeting or a no with the reason. Every partner reads the inbox, so there is no gatekeeper to get past.
- 03
First meeting, 45 minutes
You and whichever partner knows your area best. We spend most of it on the product and the decisions you have already made.
- 04
Second meeting with the partnership
The rest of the team joins. We ask the hard questions here rather than saving them for a surprise later.
- 05
A decision, then a wire
Terms within two weeks of the first meeting. Once signed, money moves in under a week. We have never missed that.
What you get
Beyond the money, which is the easy part.
The support is real, and it is also finite. We would rather be precise about it.
Hiring help that goes past introductions
We write the job description with you, sit in on final interviews when asked, and help close the person you want most.
First customers
Around 200 operators in the network who take our calls. We only make introductions we would want to receive.
Fundraising, honestly
We tell you whether you are ready before we tell anyone else you are. Then we work the list with you.
Founder dinners
Twelve people, no panel, no sponsor. This is where most of the useful advice actually gets exchanged.
Quiet when you need it
No monthly reporting demands at pre-seed. Send us an update when it is useful to you, not to us.
What we ask
Three things in return.
- 01
Tell us bad news early
We have never once been useful after the fact. The founders who call at the first sign of trouble get the most out of us.
- 02
Keep a real cadence
A short update every quarter is enough. It keeps us able to help without you managing an investor relationship.
- 03
Be straight with your team
How you treat the first ten people you hire follows the company for a decade. We pay attention to it.
From a founder
“I emailed them cold on a Tuesday with no deck. We had a meeting Thursday and terms the following week. I still do not fully believe it.”
Priyanka Rao, founder, Latticework
Questions
The ones we get most often, answered properly.
Ask us anything, but start here.
How much do you invest?
Between $500k and $2.5m for a first check, and we can lead or follow. We hold roughly the same amount again for the next round.
Do you need a warm introduction?
No. The form on our contact page goes to every partner. Roughly a third of the companies we have funded came in cold.
How fast will I hear back?
A first reply within two business days, a decision within two weeks of the first meeting, and usually sooner if the answer is no.
Do you invest outside the United States?
Yes. Around a quarter of the portfolio is based in Europe, and we have funded teams in Lagos, Bangalore, and Sao Paulo.
Will you invest pre-product?
Often. We have written checks against a prototype and a clear point of view. What we cannot fund is a market study with no builder attached.
Do you take a board seat?
Only when you want one filled and we are leading. Otherwise we take an observer seat or nothing at all.
What if a competitor is in your portfolio?
We tell you before the second meeting and we do not take the meeting further if the overlap is direct.
What happens if you pass?
You get the real reason in writing, and an offer to keep in touch. Several companies we passed on came back a year later and we invested.
Next step
You now know our process better than we know your company.
Fix that. Send a note and we will come back to you within two business days.