We are thrilled to share that we’ve raised an oversubscribed $82M Fund III.

To be exact, we raised $82,048,000 - a number that felt on-brand for a nerdy firm like ours that loves riddles, the future, Morse code, and Easter eggs.

This fund is backed by a world-class group of fund-of-funds, family offices, founders and executives from DigitalOcean, Duolingo, Duo Security, Google, IG Group, Kelso, MongoDB, Reddit, Red Hat, Tiger Global, Twitter, Tempus and others.

We are grateful to the incredible founders and companies we’ve backed as first-check investors, including GlossGenius, Aerodome (acquired by Flock), Laminar, TwoStep Therapeutics, Impilo, Nomic, AirspaceLink, Gorgias, DataCamp, Mantl, BentoBox, Healthie and many others. We are proud to have an NPS score of 100 from our founders, seven years in a row.

2048 Ventures in a Nutshell

At 2048 Ventures, our mission is to be the first-check, highest conviction lead investor in technology startups that have strong data moats.

• We back exceptional, ultra-competitive, visionary founders.
• We lead pre-seed and seed rounds with $500K - $3M checks.
• We invest in Vertical AI, Deep Tech, Healthcare and Biotech.
• We invest primarily in NYC and Boston.
• We seek businesses with strong data moats.

Team

With Fund III, we’re excited to continue growing our team.

Alex, Zann, and Julie return as GPs. Daniella has been promoted to Principal, and Sandra to Senior Associate. Eddie is joining us as an Associate and Alice and Lilly as Analysts. Justine, our Head of Finance & Operations, joined us last year, and Colette recently came on board as an Operations Associate.

How to Engage With Us

While we love getting warm introductions from our community, we have always believed in making it easy for founders to reach us directly.

Last Fall, we launched Pre-Seed Fast Track, one of the industry’s fastest paths for founders raising up to $1.5M. Our entire process - from first meeting to money in the bank - takes no more than 10 business days. Learn more and pitch us here.

We’re also deeply embedded in the NYC and Boston academic ecosystems, including Harvard, MIT, Yale, NYU, and Cornell Tech. In December, we launched our Fellowship Program, a hands-on program designed to give students direct exposure to venture investing alongside our team.

Theses

At the core of our approach is a deep conviction that generational companies unlock moats and scale through data. This belief shapes how we invest. We study business models and mechanics, and invest using a thesis-driven approach. You can read all of our thesis work here.

So, what are we excited to back in 2026 and beyond?

Vertical AI

We’re excited about Systems of Record: products built around core workflows that capture critical customer data and grow into platforms. Even as agents and AI change how work is done and how software is consumed, we believe the strongest moats will accrue to companies that own end-to-end workflows and capture data. In some cases, this means building software that becomes the system of record for existing businesses; in others, it means reinventing the business itself - vertically integrating software, AI, and services/operations from the ground up.

Example companies in this category that we’ve backed include GlossGenius, a platform for the beauty industry; GrowthSignals, a system of record for corporate innovation; Rondah, the next generation infrastructure for dental practices; and Cobalt ID, an API for fraud detection for financial institutions. You can also read our core thesis on Systems of Record.

Deep Tech

We are specifically excited about the emergence of the new type of System of Record: Video. Our thesis is that because of the abundance of low-cost video capture - phones, cameras, and drones - there is an opportunity to amass a new data store that shows evolution through video. We recently invested in two companies in this category: Spruce, which helps landscapers scale the management of their properties, and InfraHub, which helps local governments manage roads and other critical infrastructure.

We’ve also been thinking about how low-cost sensors can help capture data and orchestrate enterprise workflows. Our portfolio company Laminar is a great example. Laminar uses sensors to detect contamination in water, and provides enterprises with real-time visibility that helps them better monitor, control, and orchestrate complex factory operations.

Looking ahead, we’re excited about a set of near-term inevitabilities: more drones (read our Thesis on Drones), more robotics, and more physical AI - software and hardware working hand-in-hand for real-world applications. Aerodome, which was acquired by Flock Safety, is a great example of opportunities we gravitate toward: vertical applications with clear customer use cases, where tightly integrated software & hardware create value.

Healthcare

Our thesis on sensors and data capture manifests in our investments in Impilo, infrastructure for remote patient monitoring; Century Health, a marketplace for longitudinal data; Kascaid, which is pioneering sensors for real-time complex biomarkers; and VO Health, which has developed a way to measure VO2Max through blood biomarkers.

We’re excited about a future defined by real-time measurement and smarter orchestration of care - from clinical systems, to the human body, to even pet health.

Biotech

In bio, we focus on the infrastructure layer and differentiated IP. On the infrastructure side, we’ve backed companies like Nomic, one of the largest protein profiling platforms, and Persist, which provides automation infrastructure for drug formulation. We’re also excited about biobanking and molecular biosensors, where improved sample infrastructure and high-frequency biological measurement create richer, longitudinal datasets and enable more efficient discovery and development.

We are also excited about novel IP platforms - companies like TwoStep Therapeutics, a Stanford spinout focused on drug delivery to solid tumors and Nionyx Bio, which is developing unique genetic medicines targeted at the kidney.

Looking Ahead

As we begin Fund III, we’re deeply grateful to the founders we’ve partnered with and to the LPs who have backed us along the way. Their trust allows us to do what we care most about: working closely with exceptional founders to build enduring companies.

As we look ahead, our focus remains unchanged. If you’re a pre-seed or seed-stage founder in NYC or Boston, building in Vertical AI, Deep Tech, Healthcare, or Biotech, we’d love to meet you and learn more about what you’re building.