Distributed Ventures
Venture capitalChicago · Seed–Series A · 14 people tracked
Investment thesis
Distributed Ventures backs early-stage founders at the frontier of risk, investing in the health, insurance, and wealth verticals where it believes risk can be transformed into opportunity with the right capital. It leads Seed and Series A rounds across the United States, writing $1-5M checks with a 15-20% ownership target and taking board seats or observer rights. Beyond capital, the firm emphasizes helping founders with enterprise distribution channels and focused go-to-market strategies, leveraging its network and expertise to connect startups with customers, guidance, and access to accelerate growth and reach product-market fit.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 25, 2026.
Team · 14 people
from the firm's website & curated & public directoriesWhat they invest in
from 21 of 28 portfolio companiesSaaS ×9Fintech ×8Healthtech ×8AI & Machine Learning ×7InsurTech ×7Digital Health ×6HR Tech ×4Consumer ×2
HQs:United States×13
Who they back
founder profiles across 12 portfolio companiesFounding team size:solo founder×72 founders×33 founders×14+ founders×1
Investments · 28 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathBy year:2023 · 12022 · 12021 · 12019 · 25 dated
Clarksville, US
Matan Slagter(Executive Officer, Director)
BoardLansdon Robbins(Director)
Board seatAdam Blumencranz· per SEC Form D · $5M raise · filed Dec 2024
New York, US
Stuart Winchester(Executive Officer, Director)
BoardAndrew Lerner(Director)Tiffine Wang(Director)
Board seatAdam Blumencranz· per SEC Form D · $4.2M raise · filed Nov 2022
Ascend is a financial operations platform purpose-built for insurance agencies, wholesalers, MGAs, and carriers, combining AI-powered accounting automation, payments, and premium financing.
AI & Machine LearningInsurTechSaaS
Praveen Chekuri(Founder)in
Co-investorsBoxGroupFinancial Venture StudioMGV.VCNFPNycaNyca Partners+3 more
CVRD provides a SaaS platform and administration services for managing fringe benefits and ICHRA (Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements) for government contractors.
GovTechHR TechSaaS
Co-investorsNFPUpfront Ventures
CoverTree provides insurance exclusively for manufactured homes, offering plans that can be purchased online with potential savings.
FintechInsurTechSaaSDetroit, US
RISHIE MODI(Executive Officer, Director)DIVYANSH SHARMA(Executive Officer, Director)ADARSH RACHMALE(Executive Officer, Director)Adarsh Rachmale(Founder)
Co-investorsAV8 VenturesEverywhere VenturesNFPThe Fund
End-to-end fringe dollar optimization and benefits administrator for federal contractors.
Cylinder Health is a data-driven digestive health organization that develops value-based care programs, products, and payment models in the gastrointestinal space.
Digital HealthHealthtech
Co-investors7wire VenturesBig Pi VenturesCorewell Health VenturesFCA Venture PartnersHealth Catalyst CapitalSemperVirens Venture Capital+3 more
Real estate insurance company offering customized policies via a digitally native, AI-enabled platform.
Honeycomb offers property insurance for condo associations (HOAs), building owners, property managers, and developers, using an AI-powered Inspector App that lets customers get quotes by taking property photos instead of arranging in-person inspections.
AI & Machine LearningInsurTechPropTech
Indio is a cloud-based software platform that automates the insurance application and renewal process for agencies, brokerages, and insurers.
Cloud ComputingInsurTechSaaSSan Francisco, US
Matthew Watson(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Adam Bratt(Executive Officer)Michael Furlong(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)
BoardAlex Kolicich(Director)in
Co-investors500 Global8VC9Mile LabsBetter Tomorrow VenturesMenlo VenturesMerus Capital+2 more
Kai Health offers an AI platform for "Autonomous Performance Improvement" that helps healthcare organizations reduce diagnostic errors and documentation gaps across clinical, operational, and financial performance, using real-time analytics, personalized training, and clinical decision support based on the RSQ clinical methodology.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtech
Co-investorsNFP
Marble is a digital platform that consolidates, monitors, and manages consumers' insurance policies (home, auto, life, and others) in one dashboard, and automatically scans the market for lower-priced quotes on existing coverage.
ConsumerFintechInsurTech
Co-investorsBlue CollectiveFinTech VenturesMS&AD Ventures
Origin provides in-home pediatric speech, occupational, and physical therapy, connecting families with local licensed therapists and offering insurance-covered sessions.
Digital HealthHealthtechMarketplaces
Co-investorsNFPThe MBA FundAcadian Ventures Management, LlcFELIX CAPITALNotion Capital
Automates back-office operations to help pediatric therapists build and grow private practices.
Interview intelligence platform helping enterprises make better, more equitable hiring decisions.
AI Interview Companion (formerly Pillar, now part of Employ) is an AI tool that assists interviewers with transcription, summarization, interview guides, structured question generation, and interviewer coaching.
AI & Machine LearningHR TechSaaSIndianapolis, US
Mark Simpson(Executive Officer, Director)
BoardEric Tobias(Director)inScott Dorsey(Director)in
Co-investorsElevate VenturesHigh Alpha
PlanFees offers fee benchmarking tools for retirement plan advisors, including Prism for investment, recordkeeping, administrative, and advisor fee benchmarking, Prism365 for advisor fee and service benchmarking, and RFP Express for generating custom quotes from recordkeepers.
Enterprise SoftwareFintechSaaS
HealthtechCentennial, US
Pamela Joy Pure(Chief Executive Officer)Barrett Edward Cowan(Director)Donald A Holzworth(Director)Dylan Lawrence Pure(Director)
BoardKyle Maierhofer(Director)Gerald M. McCarthy, Jr.(Director)
Co-investorsFCA Venture PartnersNFPSteelSky Ventures
Presta is a platform that provides end-to-end loan process management, enabling users to originate, underwrite, close loans, send disbursements, and receive monthly payments.
FintechCleveland, US
Peter Truog(Founder)in
Co-investorsMatchstick VenturesTechstarsZeal Capital PartnersThe Fund
RxSaveCard offers a service that lets large self-insured employers and their employees access lower cash and discount card prices for prescription drugs without switching Pharmacy Benefit Managers, while maintaining ERISA fiduciary compliance.
Digital HealthFintechHealthtechHR TechChicago, US
Chris Crawford(CEO & Founder)inChristopher Crawford(Executive Officer)Jace Mouse(CTO & President)inWilliams Evans(Director)
BoardShawn Ellis(Director)in
Sage provides care solutions designed to improve the lives of people needing care and their caregivers.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtechNew York City, US
Ellen Johnston(CPO & Co-founder)inMatt Lynch(Founder)in
Co-investorsIVP (Institutional Venture Partners)MaveronMerus CapitalP101 VenturesPLUS Capital
TrustLayer offers a platform that automates the collection, storage, and verification of vendor compliance documents such as certificates of insurance (COIs), providing centralized tracking and audit trails.
AI & Machine LearningFintechGovTechInsurTechSaaSBrandon, US
John Fohr(Executive Officer)Vincenzo Acinapura(Founder)in
Co-investorsAbstract VenturesPropel Venture PartnersPruVen Capital PartnersSuffolk TechnologiesCraft VenturesGraham+3 more
Customizable hearing benefit providing employees with holistic hearing health care.
HealthtechNew York, US
Ofer Raz(Executive Officer)Danny Aronson(Executive Officer, Director)
BoardShawn Ellis(Director)in
Wellth helps individuals with chronic diseases develop positive behavioral habits that improve health outcomes and quality of life.
Digital HealthHealthtech
Matthew Loper(CEO)
Co-investorsComcast VenturesFCA Venture PartnersNew York Life VenturesPortfoliaAtlantic Vantage PointCD-Venture+2 more
Wingspan provides a platform for businesses to automate the full lifecycle of managing flexible workforces, including onboarding, invoicing, payments, compliance, and benefits.
FintechFuture of WorkHR TechSaaSNew York, US
Anthony Mironov(Co-founder)inGreg Franczyk(Co-founder)in
BoardShawn Ellis(Director)inDavid Ulevitch(Director)inPriya Saiprasad(Director)in
Co-investorsAndreessen HorowitzSwift Ventures186 VenturesAsymmetric Capital PartnersGood FriendsLong Journey Ventures+3 more
Rows marked “SEC filing” are inferred from directors named on the company's SEC Form D — public regulatory data, not a portfolio list published by the firm.
Portfolio news
latest coverage across their companiesCylinder · fiercehealthcare.com · Aug 5, 2026
Origin · finance.yahoo.com · Jul 26, 2026

Sage · healthcareittoday.com · Jul 14, 2026
Presta · wearepresta.com · Jan 5, 2026
Wellth · latimes.com · Sep 15, 2025
Wingspan · techcompanynews.com · Aug 1, 2025
Frequently asked questions
- How many investments has Distributed Ventures made?
- Distributed Ventures has 27 tracked investments.
- What stage does Distributed Ventures invest at?
- Distributed Ventures invests at the Seed, Series A stages.
- What is Distributed Ventures's typical check size?
- Distributed Ventures typically writes checks of $1M – $5M.
- What sectors does Distributed Ventures focus on?
- Distributed Ventures focuses on Digital Health, Enterprise Software, Fintech, Healthtech, InsurTech, Mental Health, SaaS.
- Where is Distributed Ventures located?
- Distributed Ventures is headquartered in Chicago, US.
- Does Distributed Ventures lead rounds?
- Yes, Distributed Ventures leads investment rounds.
- Who does Distributed Ventures co-invest with?
- Distributed Ventures most often shares deals with NFP, FCA Venture Partners, Merus Capital, among 53 tracked co-investors.
Media · Podcasts & interviews
featuring the teamShawn Ellis from Distributed Ventures!
Digital Health Heavyweights · Shawn Ellis
Episode 11 : Shawn Ellis, Managing Partner at Distributed Ventures
Digital Health Heavyweights · Shawn Ellis
Co-investors · 14
Craft Ventures is a venture capital firm run by a team of former founders, operators, and investors who partner closely with founders to help build and scale technology companies.
Menlo Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in transformative, early-stage AI companies across every layer of the modern AI stack, from applications and middleware to data infrastructure and foundation models.
Everywhere Ventures is an early-stage venture firm, backed by a community of founders and operators as LPs, that writes early checks (including pre-seed) into startups across many sectors and geographies.
Propel Venture Partners is an early-stage venture capital firm that backs founders building companies for the new economy.
Zeal Capital Partners is an early-stage venture firm backing founders building companies across fintech, healthcare, and the future of learning and work, with a focus on closing gaps in wealth, health, and skills.
GV (Google Ventures) is a venture capital firm that has invested in artificial intelligence and machine learning since its early days, building a global portfolio of more than 100 AI companies across infrastructure, life sciences, and applications.
ACME Capital is a venture firm that backs deep-tech founders combining technical ambition with decisive execution, supporting companies through every phase of growth.
Lightbank is a Chicago-based venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies and provides operational support to portfolio companies. The firm was founded by Eric Lefkofsky and Brad Keywell, entrepreneurs behind Groupon, Mediaocean, InnerWorkings, Echo Global Logistics, and Uptake.
Fin Capital is an investment firm that backs B2B technology companies serving the financial services industry across the full company lifecycle.
SuperAngel.Fund is an early-stage venture fund investing in Consumer, PropTech, and Future of Work companies, typically writing first checks. It also operates SuperAngelSyndicate.com.
Stage 2 Capital is a venture capital firm backed by a network of go-to-market and revenue executives, focused on helping B2B software companies scale their revenue.
American Family Ventures (AFV) is a venture capital firm focused on insurance and insurance-adjacent innovation, backed by an ecosystem of limited partners, founders, and innovators across major insurance lines.
▶2 more co-investors
Firms observed investing alongside Distributed Ventures, from public investor directories. Shared companies are the overlap with Distributed Ventures's recorded portfolio.
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