Fundraising Fox
Exceptional Capital
Venture capitalSan Francisco · Pre-Seed–Series A · 6 people tracked
Also known as EXCEPTIONAL CAPITAL, LLC
Find your way into Exceptional Capital
Each arrow is one introduction. Sign up to fill in the first one.
Ask Simon Segars to introduce you to Marell Evans
You →Simon · together at SoftBank Group →Marell
Ask Jamie Chen to introduce you to Andrew
You →Jamie · together at Crunchyroll →Andrew
Ask Sam Okafor to introduce you to Melissa Morano Aurigemma
You →Sam · together at Williams-Sonoma, Inc. →Melissa
- Shane Bates126 people can intro you
- Graham Stoddard99 people can intro you
- Ladislao Zichy Thyssen1 person can intro you
Sign up to find every way you can get introduced to Exceptional Capital
- Your email: who you already know at Exceptional Capital, and who your contacts know
- 2nd- and 3rd-degree connections: people you know who worked, studied or invested with the Exceptional Capital team
- Your LinkedIn: the connections who can make the intro for you
We rank every route by how warm it is, so you raise on warm intros instead of cold emails.
Investment thesis
Exceptional Capital invests in enterprise software companies, emphasizing a hands-on, founder-first approach. The firm markets itself as a relentless advocate and champion for the founders it backs, drawing on deep industry experience to guide companies through both the highs and lows of building. Its stated mission is to help engineer an exceptional future by partnering closely with entrepreneurs.
Source: firm website, verified Sep 29, 2026.
Team · 6 people
from the firm's website & public directoriesWhat they invest in
from 33 of 45 portfolio companiesAI & Machine Learning ×20Enterprise Software ×19SaaS ×13Developer Tools ×11Fintech ×8Cybersecurity ×6Cloud Computing ×4Data & Infrastructure ×4
HQs:United States×20United Kingdom×2Argentina×1Israel×1
Who they back
founder profiles across 18 portfolio companiesFounding team size:solo founder×52 founders×63 founders×44+ founders×3
Where their founders studiedfrom 30 founders with education data
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev ×3Cornell ×2Grand Valley State University ×2Massachusetts Institute of Technology ×2Oakridge International School ×2Stanford University ×2University of Michigan ×2University of Pennsylvania ×2
What their founders studiedfrom 29 founders with field-of-study data
Computer Science ×15Engineering ×9Business & Management ×5Economics ×2Finance & Accounting ×2Mathematics & Statistics ×2
Where their founders worked beforefrom 33 founders with career history
Microsoft ×3Monzo Bank ×3Figma ×2Google ×2Meta ×2Miro ×2Reforge ×2Salesforce ×2
Accelerator rootsportfolio companies that came through a program
3 founders hold a PhD · 3 hold an MBA (of 32 with degree data)
Investments · 45 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathBy year:2026 · 22025 · 22024 · 32023 · 22022 · 211 dated
LastMile AI is building what it calls a "cognitive computer," an AI-native system designed to maintain context about a person, team, and organization, connect to authorized tools, and orchestrate tasks alongside humans and AI.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechEnterprise SoftwareFuture of WorkNew York City, US
Andrew Hoh(CPO & President)inSarmad Qadri(CEO)inBill Peterson(CTO)in
Co-investorsGradient Ventures10x FoundersAME Cloud VenturesBlack Angel GroupFirsthandVC
Monterey AI builds an AI-powered product analytics platform designed to extract insights from qualitative user data and feedback.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSaaSSan Francisco, US
Chun Jiang(Founder)inBen Kramer(Co-founder, CTO)in
Co-investorsSancus VenturesSoma CapitalY CombinatorAlumni VenturesHat-Trick CapitalAmplify Partners+6 more
A1 Mobile offers mobile service bundles including texts, calls, and 5G data alongside AI reception capabilities for businesses.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise Software
Co-investorsPerceptive Ventures Management Company, LlcStreamlined Ventures
AccessGrid provides an API that lets organizations issue and manage digital credentials—such as corporate IDs, house keys, and car keys—stored in users' phone digital wallets instead of physical badges or fobs.
Cloud ComputingCybersecurityDeveloper ToolsHardwareSaaSMiami, US
Auston Bunsen(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)in
Co-investorsEx/AnteHarlem Capital PartnersSpice CapitalTranspose Platform Management
Afriex provides a remittance service enabling immigrants to transfer money to over 25 countries at low costs with rapid settlement.
FintechSan Francisco, US
Tope Alabi(Founder)inJohn Obirije(Founder)in
Co-investorsAdaverseBrightstone Venture CapitalDragonflyFoundersFuture AfricaMetastable+10 more
Agency provides outsourced security and compliance operations for enterprise companies, combining forward-deployed U.S.-based compliance engineers with proprietary AI.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareSaaSNew York City, US
Amir Tarighat(Founder)inTyler Carbone(Founder)in
Co-investorsBBQ CapitalCatalyze AdvisorsLeonis CapitalManchesterStory Group, LLCPhoenix FundSoma Capital+8 more
AngelList's investor management platform provides tools for venture capital and private equity firms to streamline LP interactions, automate fund operations, and deliver reporting and portfolio updates through a branded digital experience.
Enterprise SoftwareFintechSaaS
Avlok Kohli(CEO)in
Co-investorsAccelerator VenturesAccompliceAgman PartnersAltra VentureAngel Collective Opportunity FundAtacama Ventures+52 more
Bunkyr provides an API that lets applications implement zero-knowledge encryption and password recovery without requiring users to manage seed phrases or backup codes.
Crypto & Web3CybersecurityDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSaaSDenver, US
Co-investorsSoma CapitalY CombinatorAgrolimen VenturesFAST — by GETTYLABGoat CapitalProtocol Labs+1 more
CloudEagle.ai is a SaaS management platform that gives enterprises a single command center to discover, secure, govern, and optimize their SaaS and AI applications, identities, access, licenses, and renewals.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareSaaS
Nidhi Jain(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinatorf7 VenturesTSVC
Coactive develops machine learning and AI systems, with a focus on data-centric AI and content intelligence for the media and advertising industries.
AdTechAI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureMedia & Entertainment
Cody Coleman(Co-Founder and CEO)inWill Gaviria Rojas(Co-Founder and Field CTO)in
Co-investorsAndreessen HorowitzBessemer Venture PartnersCherryrock CapitalGreycroftLittlejohnSV Angel+4 more
Conntour provides a platform that allows security teams to search, monitor, and query video footage from thousands of cameras using natural language commands, enabling features like historical footage search, real-time alerts, and data extraction without requiring pre-configured detection rules.
Advanced ManufacturingTel Aviv-Yafo, IL
Matan Goldner(Co-Founder & CEO)inTomer Kulla(Co-Founder & CTO)in
Co-investorsAnD VenturesGeneral CatalystOlive Tree CapitalTrue VenturesY Combinator468 Capital+7 more
.png)
Ellis is a platform for private credit fund managers that ingests, structures, validates, and reconciles data from disparate sources such as loan tapes, general ledgers, and fund admin reports.
AI & Machine LearningFintechSaaS
Co-investorsFirst Round CapitalWilshire Lane Capital20VC645 VenturesAdapt VenturesDay One Ventures+2 more
Embedder is an AI platform that automates firmware development for embedded systems and hardware, serving semiconductor, IoT, medical device, automotive, aerospace, and industrial automation teams.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareHardwareSan Francisco, US
Ethan Gibbs(Chief Executive Officer)inBob Wei(Chief Technology Officer)in
Co-investorsThe E14 FundTranspose Platform ManagementY CombinatorBlast.ClubBoxGroupCory Levy+8 more
Eudo is an AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes meetings in real time, then produces structured recaps covering decisions, action items, and open questions.
AI & Machine LearningFuture of WorkSaaS
Foundation Health offers an AI operating system for pharmacies that automates prior authorizations, refill authorizations, financial assistance enrollment, 340B compliance, and patient communications, along with a white-labeled digital pharmacy front door and a healthcare API.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtech
Umar Afridi(CEO & Founder)
Co-investorsBoxGroupCalm/Storm VCIntermountain HealthPage One VenturesTranspose Platform ManagementDefine Ventures
Gradient AI provides a fleet of agents that research, build, and deliver digital content and applications—including apps, websites, documents, and video—using the customer's data, tools, and style.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise Software
Co-investorsAnsa CapitalStonewater VenturesWingCommerzVenturesOctopus VenturesRedpoint Ventures
Gradient Labs builds AI agents that automate customer support and operations for financial services institutions.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFintechLondon, GB
Dimitri Masin(Co Founder & CEO)inDanai Antoniou(Co Founder & Chief Scientist)inNeal Lathia(Co Founder & CTO)inSandra J. Smith(Executive Officer)Jason T. Simmons(Principal)
Co-investorsLocalGlobeCommerzVenturesOctopus VenturesRedpoint VenturesVentures TogetherPuzzle Ventures
HUD builds evaluation tools and reinforcement learning environments for computer-use AI agents, helping frontier AI labs test and train agents across diverse tasks at scale.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Jay Ram(Founder)inLorenss Martinsons(Founder)inParth Patel(Founder)in
Co-investorsStandard CapitalY CombinatorAndreessen HorowitzBatch VenturesLiquid VenturesPioneer+4 more
Keycard provides infrastructure for AI agents to operate safely and securely in production environments, enabling developers to connect agents to services across multiple clouds while maintaining identity, policy, and audit controls.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingCybersecurityDeveloper Tools
Ian Livingstone(Founder, CEO)inMatthew Creager(Founder, Product & Marketing)inJared Hanson(Founder, Technology)in
Co-investorsAcrew CapitalAndreessen Horowitzboldstart venturesEssence Venture CapitalModern TechnicalTapestry VC+2 more
Knowtex provides enterprise clinical AI infrastructure that automates documentation, coding, and administrative workflows across healthcare systems by processing clinical dialogue and unifying fragmented EHR data.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareHealthtechSan Francisco, US
Caroline Zhang(Founder)inJocelyn Kang(Founder)in
Co-investorsDG Daiwa VenturesPioneerSoma CapitalTranspose Platform ManagementY CombinatorFundament Syndicate+7 more
Lumu provides a Threat Detection and Response platform that gives visibility across network, endpoint, identity, and cloud, integrating with existing security tools to automate threat response.
CybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareSaaSDoral, US
Ricardo Villadiego(Executive Officer, Director)inMaria Christina Delgado(Executive Officer)
BoardJulian Arguelles(Director)
Co-investorsAVP VenturesBIP VenturesCorteza CapitalFlorida Opportunity FundForgePoint CapitalOpen Opportunity Fund+3 more
Octopus Ventures is a venture capital firm that backs founders across seven sectors — B2B software, bio, climate, consumer, deep tech, fintech and health — investing from pre-seed through Series A.
Sector Agnostic
Co-investorsoctopus investmentsAENUAuxxoCherry VenturesCommerzVenturesLocalGlobe+1 more
.jpeg){kind=logo}
Paid provides an API that automates accounts receivable processes, allowing businesses to programmatically create, issue, and send invoices to customers while tracking payment status and reconciling accounts.
Enterprise SoftwareFintechSan Francisco, US
Ryan Jackson(Founder)in
Co-investorsLightspeed Venture PartnersY CombinatorAvlok CapitalCambrian VenturesEQT VenturesFounder Collective+5 more
Paid is a billing and monetization platform for companies that build and sell AI agents, offering usage-, credit-, outcome-, and hybrid-based pricing configured through a no-code dashboard.
AI & Machine LearningFintechSaaS
Manny Medina(Co-founder)inManoj Ganapathy(Co-founder)inRaj Dosanjh(Co-founder)inArnon Shimoni(Co-founder)in
Co-investors49 Palms VenturesFUSEGTMfundSequoia CapitalEQT VenturesLightspeed Venture Partners
Payload is an open-source Next.js backend platform serving developers and marketers who need flexibility beyond traditional content management systems.
Cloud ComputingDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSaaSGrand Rapids, US
James Mikrut(Founder)inElliot DeNolf(Founder)inDan Ribbens(Founder)inRyan Rybolt(Executive Officer, Director)inIan Halpern(Executive Officer, Director)
BoardPatricia Felts(Director)
Co-investorsGradient VenturesGrand VenturesY CombinatorAndreessen HorowitzBaillie GiffordBlackRock+9 more
Pixeltable is an open-source (Apache 2.0) Python data infrastructure for building multimodal AI applications, unifying storage, compute, embedding indexing, and serving in a single declarative table abstraction.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsSan Francisco, US
Aaron Siegel(Founder)
Co-investorsSerenaZero KnowledgeGeneral PartnershipSouth Park Commons
Exceptional Capital is an emerging venture capital manager that backs pre-seed and seed-stage founders building enterprise software companies.
Enterprise SoftwareSaaS
Rebill is a payment infrastructure platform designed for Latin America that enables businesses to accept payments using local methods across major markets with minimal integration time.
Enterprise SoftwareFintechSaaSBuenos Aires, AR
Nahuel Candia(CEO & Founder)inAriel Diaz Ailan(Founder)in
Co-investorsMagma PartnersSoma CapitalY CombinatorAccelAlt CapitalAnthony Pompliano+16 more
Restate is a lightweight runtime that turns AI agents, workflows, and backend services into durable processes with durable execution, consistent state, and reliable communication.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingDeveloper ToolsSanta Clara, US
Igal Shilman(Co-founder)inTill Rohrmann(Co-founder)inStephan Ewen(Co-Founder)inAhmed Farghal(Co-founder)in
Co-investorsEssence Venture Capitalfirstminute capitalRedpoint VenturesCapital One VenturesCusp CapitalESSENCE VC+3 more
.jpeg){kind=logo}
Rovi provides members with access to clinician guidance for navigating healthcare, finding quality doctors, managing benefits, and coordinating care.
Digital HealthHealthtechNew York City, US
Santosh Vallabhaneni(Founder)inTarun Vallabhaneni(Founder)in
Co-investorsPioneerY CombinatorDigital Health VenturesGradient VenturesLightspeed Venture PartnersLiquid Ventures+5 more
Stairs Financial operates a home search platform for first-time homebuyers that matches properties to individual financial situations and facilitates access to public funding programs including grants, loans, and tax incentives.
FintechPropTechNew York City, US
Malcolm-Wiley Floyd(Founder)inScott Fritz(Founder)in
Co-investorsAntlerY CombinatorCresset CapitalGoodFin VenturesGoodwater CapitalPhoenix Fund+1 more
Sweep builds AI coding tools for JetBrains users, including autocomplete and agent features with an emphasis on speed, accuracy, and privacy.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
William Zeng(Founder)inKevin Lu(Founder)in
Co-investorsY CombinatorAgrolimen VenturesBalderton CapitalBessemer Venture PartnersClocktower VenturesGoodwater Capital+2 more
Trajectory builds a platform for continual learning that lets companies observe, direct, and deploy AI models that improve from real user behavior, with data governance controls and approval workflows before model updates reach production.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Arjun Karanam(Founder)inMichael Elabd(Founder)inRonak Malde(Founder)in
Co-investorsConvictionAntiBoxGroupDesigner FundEssence Venture CapitalBessemer Venture Partners+1 more
.jpeg)
.jpeg){kind=logo}
Zipline operates a drone delivery service for rapid order fulfillment, with a focus on maintaining product temperature integrity during transit.
CleantechLogistics & Supply ChainMobility & TransportationRoboticsSan Francisco, US
Keller Rinaudo Cliffton(Founder & CEO)inKeenan Wyrobek(Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer)inRyan Oksenhorn(Co-Founder)inWill Hetzler(Co-Founder and Former Chief Operating Officer)in
Co-investorsAndreessen HorowitzBallistic VenturesBoxGroupEvolution VC PartnersFelicis VenturesGrishin Robotics+33 more
Other
Tracked investments with no reachable website or further public details — typically companies that wound down, renamed, or were absorbed.
DeeplineGlidepathGrapheneMelroseNellNeosigma
Portfolio news
latest coverage across their companies
Restate · restate.dev · Sep 30, 2026
Trajectory · thesaasnews.com · Aug 18, 2026
Gradient Labs · thesaasnews.com · Jun 4, 2026
Conntour · techcrunch.com · Mar 26, 2026
Zipline · finsmes.com · Mar 24, 2026
Embedder · finance.yahoo.com · Mar 10, 2026
Sweep · ycombinator.com · Nov 7, 2025
Rovi Health · ycombinator.com · Oct 28, 2025
Frequently asked questions
- How many investments has Exceptional Capital made?
- Exceptional Capital has 45 tracked investments, 2 of which have exited, including 5 dated in the last 24 months.
- What stage does Exceptional Capital invest at?
- Exceptional Capital invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages.
- What is Exceptional Capital's typical check size?
- Exceptional Capital typically writes checks of $100K – $1M.
- What sectors does Exceptional Capital focus on?
- Exceptional Capital focuses on Advanced Manufacturing, Cybersecurity, Enterprise Software, Fintech, Robotics, SaaS.
- Where is Exceptional Capital located?
- Exceptional Capital is headquartered in San Francisco, US.
- Does Exceptional Capital lead rounds?
- Exceptional Capital typically participates in rounds rather than leading them.
- Who does Exceptional Capital co-invest with?
- Exceptional Capital most often shares deals with Y Combinator, Transpose Platform Management, Soma Capital, among 59 tracked co-investors.
From the blog
visit blog ↗Media · Podcasts & interviews
featuring the teamAndrew Van Nest, MP at Exceptional Capital: B2B SaaS & AI Investments
Grace Gong · Andrew
Similar investors
Khosla Ventures is a venture capital firm that backs bold, early-stage, technology-driven companies across deep tech and other sectors, providing hands-on 'venture assistance' to help founders build category-defining businesses.
A globally recognized venture capital firm designed to provide access to highly competitive venture deals to individual investors, consistently recognized for top-decile DPI performance and as one of the most active US venture firms.
Alumni Ventures (AV) is a venture capital firm that co-invests alongside lead VCs in startups, backing founders with capital and access to a large investor and operator community.
The Global Startup Acceleration Program (GSAP) is a JETRO initiative, run with Japan's Cabinet Office and top overseas accelerators, that helps Japan-based startups pursue international business development through tailored, equity-free accelerator courses.
Presidio Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Sumitomo Corporation, providing financial backing and business development support to help emerging technology companies enter the global market.