early-stage-investment
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TAP Angel Partners bets on the work between funding rounds
The Korean accelerator puts specialists, corporate partners and public programs around young companies. Its proposition is simple: help founders get the next piece of the business working.
Globalive sold WIND for C$1.6 billion. Then it kept building.
Anthony Lacavera’s investment company turned a bruising telecom adventure into a business-building practice. Its next tests run from a Canadian bank to a mobile network in Bermuda.
Pioneer Group wants your biotech to outgrow its first lab
The science-campus operator pairs laboratory space with business coaching and early investment. Its bet: helping tenants build better companies makes better property, too.
Capital Factory Put a Price on the Right Introduction
The Austin venture firm grew from five software startups into a network connecting founders with investors, customers and the military. Its next chapter separates the investment business from the community that feeds it.
FEA Angels turns the alumni reunion into a funding round
Born at the University of São Paulo, FEA Angels puts founders in front of people who can write checks and ask difficult questions. Its real asset is what happens between the introductions and the investment.
ISSF’s bet: fund the investors, bring the money to Jordan
Jordan’s ISSF started with $98 million and a practical wager: backing venture funds could bring more capital to local founders. Its next chapter tests how far that approach can travel.
Plug and Play Indonesia Knows Who You Need to Meet
The Jakarta accelerator pairs startups with corporate problems worth solving. Its early lesson: a promising product means little when the founder is juggling several ventures.
MSU Research Foundation puts a cancer discovery back to work
Royalties from a Michigan State cancer breakthrough helped build a lasting research fund. Today, the MSU Research Foundation turns that financial head start into startup capital, lab space and a practical answer to the question: what happens after discovery?
IIMA Ventures backs the awkward years of a startup
Before the customers, the growth charts and the big funding round comes a much messier job: making the business work. IIMA Ventures has built an institution around that stretch.
Social Tech Trust Wants Good Businesses to Outgrow the Wrong Money
After years of backing technology for social good, Social Tech Trust is tackling the funding itself. Its answer combines founder support, grants and a separate revenue-first investment fund.
WOW Makes Its Investors Do the Homework
The Brazilian accelerator puts angel investors to work selecting and mentoring startups. Its bet: a useful introduction can matter as much as the money in the bank.
BUBA Ventures: A good idea still needs a way in
An alumni angel network grew into a meeting point for founders, investors, banks and even orchard technology. BUBA’s history shows what startup support looks like when the introductions come with homework.
The Firm Indiana Built to Fund Its Own Future
For 15 years, Elevate Ventures has written the first check for Indiana startups from Gary to Evansville. In 2025, the state that helped create it started asking hard questions about the books.
The Newport Beach Holding Company Quietly Running Labs, Call Centers and a Mental-Health Machine
Upfront Inc doesn't pick one lane. From a Newport Beach office it runs mental-health programs, diagnostic labs, call centers and a PR shop as parts of the same growth engine.