# Riot Ventures

> Riot Ventures is a Los Angeles venture capital firm that backs deep-technology companies modernizing defense, manufacturing, energy, logistics and other critical physical industries. Founded in 2017 by Stephen Marcus and Will Coffield, it grew from a $10 million first fund into a multistage investor that says it manages more than $1 billion and can write checks from roughly $500,000 to as much as $200 million.

- **Founded:** 2017
- **Headquarters:** Los Angeles, United States
- **Founders:** Stephen Marcus (Co-Founder and General Partner), Will Coffield (Co-Founder and General Partner)
- **Team size:** Approximately 10 people listed on the firm's website in 2026; LinkedIn classifies the firm as 2-10 employees.
- **Products:** Early-stage venture investing, Growth-stage investing, Portfolio company support
- **Notable:** Grew from a $10 million first fund to more than $1 billion in assets under management, according to a 2025 interview with co-founder Will Coffield., Built a portfolio that includes public companies Toast, Okta and Desktop Metal, according to Stephen Marcus's firm biography., Backed Shield AI before it became one of the most highly valued private defense-technology companies.

## Products & services

- **Early-stage venture investing** — Institutional pre-seed and seed investments, reportedly beginning around $500,000, in thesis-aligned deep-technology companies.
- **Growth-stage investing** — Follow-on and later-stage capital for selected portfolio companies, with the firm now advertising checks up to $200 million.
- **Portfolio company support** — Hands-on help with executive recruiting, customer introductions, product strategy, business development and later fundraising.

## Achievements

- Grew from a $10 million first fund to more than $1 billion in assets under management, according to a 2025 interview with co-founder Will Coffield.
- Built a portfolio that includes public companies Toast, Okta and Desktop Metal, according to Stephen Marcus's firm biography.
- Backed Shield AI before it became one of the most highly valued private defense-technology companies.
- Led True Anomaly's $100 million Series B and later participated in its $260 million Series C; the firm continued backing the company into its 2026 Series D.
- Led Valar Atomics' $19 million seed financing in 2025.
- Expanded its advertised maximum check size to $200 million by 2026.

## Latest updates

- **2026-07** — A Riot Ventures Select Fund I entity filed a Form D notice, indicating another investment vehicle in market.
- **2026-06** — The portfolio expanded into offshore geothermal energy through Endurance Energy.
- **2026-05** — The portfolio added Satomic, an automated small-molecule synthesis platform.
- **2026-04** — Riot participated in True Anomaly's $650 million Series D after backing the company across multiple earlier rounds.
- **2025-08** — Riot joined Blue Water Autonomy's $50 million Series A for autonomous unmanned ships.
- **2025-04** — Riot participated in True Anomaly's $260 million Series C.
- **2025-02** — Riot led Valar Atomics' $19 million seed financing for mass-manufactured nuclear reactors.
- **2024-11** — A regulatory filing showed Riot seeking up to $150 million for Fund III.

## Links

- Website: https://riot.vc
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/riotvc
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/WillC_5

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/riot-ventures
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-17