# Runtime Ventures

> Runtime Ventures is an operator-led venture firm investing exclusively in pre-seed and seed-stage B2B cybersecurity companies. Founded in 2023 by longtime security builders David Endler and Michael Sutton, the firm closed a $32 million debut fund in 2025 and pairs checks of $250,000 to $2 million with product, hiring, customer-introduction and fundraising help from a security-heavy investor network.

- **Founded:** 2023
- **Headquarters:** Arlington, Virginia and Austin, Texas, United States
- **Founders:** David Endler (General Partner & Co-Founder), Michael Sutton (General Partner & Co-Founder)
- **Team size:** 2-10 employees on LinkedIn; the public team page lists four core team members as of 2026.
- **Products:** Pre-seed investment, Seed investment, Operator support, Security expert network
- **Notable:** Closed a $32 million debut fund in April 2025., Made 11 investments from Fund I by the time of the final-close announcement., Built an LP base reported to include 26 founders, 61 cybersecurity operators, 18 CEOs and three public companies.

## Products & services

- **Pre-seed investment** — Initial checks of $250,000 to $1 million for B2B cybersecurity companies with a strong team and at least a credible MVP or design-partner signal.
- **Seed investment** — Checks of $750,000 to $2 million, with the ability to lead a round, negotiate a term sheet or co-invest.
- **Operator support** — Tailored help with early adopters, product development, recruiting, fundraising, prioritization, board preparation and leadership.
- **Security expert network** — Access to a fund investor base concentrated in cybersecurity founders, CEOs and operators who can contribute diligence, market feedback and mentoring.

## Achievements

- Closed a $32 million debut fund in April 2025.
- Made 11 investments from Fund I by the time of the final-close announcement.
- Built an LP base reported to include 26 founders, 61 cybersecurity operators, 18 CEOs and three public companies.
- Portfolio company SPLX was acquired by Zscaler in November 2025.
- Named among the 2025 Washington Business Journal and DC Inno Fire Awards recipients.
- Michael Sutton was named to Business Insider's Seed 100 for a third consecutive year, according to Runtime's 2026 LinkedIn update.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — David Endler appeared on the CyberBytes podcast to discuss early-stage founder mistakes, cybersecurity investing, AI and go-to-market execution.
- **2026-03** — Runtime announced Ruoting Sun as an operating partner focused on positioning, narrative and repeatable growth while he remained CMO of GreyNoise.
- **2026-01** — AiStrike announced a $7 million seed round led by Blumberg Capital with participation from Runtime Ventures and Oregon Venture Fund.
- **2025-11** — Zscaler acquired Runtime portfolio company SPLX, an AI security company focused on discovery, automated red teaming, guardrails and governance.
- **2025-07** — RunReveal announced a $7 million seed round with participation from Runtime Ventures to build an AI-native security data platform.
- **2025-04** — Runtime formally closed its $32 million debut fund after making 11 investments.

## Links

- Website: https://runtime.vc
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/runtime-vc

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/runtime-ventures
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-16