Chemistrya latest early-stage VC firm founded by an ex Partners of the Bessemer enterprise, Andreessen Horowitz AND Index ventures investors, announced it launches Wednesday with a $350 million debut fund dedicated to writing checks to early-stage startups.
The company was founded by Mark Goldberg, Ethan Kurzweil AND Christina Shenformerly Index, Bessemer and a16z respectively. The latest company will seek leading investments at the seed and Series A stages.
Trio he told Forbes that their proposition for startup founders is that they provide “the experience and track record they would expect from a bluechip VC firm, with the added attention that may be difficult to consistently obtain from a larger fund.”
Shen has previously invested in Twig, Decagon AND Tooth noamong others. Goldberg was an investor in start-ups, including: Bridge AND Plaidand Kurzweil was previously supported Cramp AND Pager Dutyamong others.
“One thing we were sure of: this new company would strip away the excess and instead focus maniacally on the true essence – working with our founders from the very beginning” – Kurzweil he wrote on a social media platform X. “We each said out loud what was staring us in the face: venture capital is not meant for scale. Full and complete commitment to each of our investments may not be a recipe for rapid growth, but it is our north star, built into the very fabric of chemistry.”
“All three of us will actively support every investment. We are the portfolio services team,” he wrote. “No one else stands between us and our founders. We strive to ensure excellence – one of the core values of our company – at an early stage of investment.”
Seed-stage investment has been relatively solid during the current corporate downturn, in line with Crunchbase data. While seed funding in the first half of 2024 was flat in comparison with the previous yr, it stays above 2020 levels. At the same time, advancing to the Series A round has change into tougher for many startups.