San Francisco · Pre-Seed–Seed · 9 people tracked
Investment thesis
Sterling Road backs founders at the earliest point — often before a deck is polished or a round is set — with a typical first check of about $50k. The firm emphasizes hands-on support, offering regular coaching sessions to help teams get to market and grow quickly, specializing in taking companies from zero to one. It builds long-term relationships, making follow-on investments in teams that demonstrate progress and frequently participating in every subsequent round over many years.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team · 9 people
from the firm's website
What they invest in
from 90 of 99 portfolio companiesAI & Machine Learning ×56Enterprise Software ×35SaaS ×28Healthtech ×16Developer Tools ×14Data & Infrastructure ×13Fintech ×13Digital Health ×12
HQs:United States×49United Kingdom×10France×1Nigeria×1Netherlands×1
Who they back
founder profiles across 54 portfolio companiesFounding team size:solo founder×132 founders×253 founders×154+ founders×1
Where their founders studiedfrom 82 founders with education data
Stanford University ×5University of California, Berkeley ×5University of Oxford ×5Massachusetts Institute of Technology ×4National University of Singapore ×4Stanford University Graduate School of Business ×4University of British Columbia ×4Covenant University ×3
Where their founders worked beforefrom 88 founders with career history
Apple ×4McKinsey & Company ×4Goldman Sachs ×3Intel Corporation ×3Stanford University ×3Uber ×3Amazon ×2Armée de Terre ×2
Accelerator rootsportfolio companies that came through a program
10 founders hold a PhD · 12 hold an MBA (of 89 with degree data)
Investments · 99 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathBy year:2026 · 12024 · 32023 · 22022 · 42021 · 22020 · 113 dated
Serve Robotics builds autonomous sidewalk delivery robots, including its robot "Saymo", designed to make short-distance deliveries such as food.
AI & Machine LearningLogistics & Supply ChainRoboticsRedwood City, US
Ali Kashani(CEO)inEuan Abraham(Executive Officer)Brian Read(Executive Officer)Touraj Parang(Executive Officer, Director)Ali Pourdad(Director)April Pannell(Executive Officer)
Co-investorsGood AI CapitalGraph VenturesIndustrious VenturesLong Journey VenturesOne Planet GroupThink+ Ventures Management, Llc+4 more
OneText provides SMS marketing software with text-to-buy functionality, AI-powered product recommendations, and live concierge support for ecommerce brands.
E-commerceFintechMarketing TechSaaSSan Francisco, US
Jonathan Fudem(Founder)inDaniel Brain(Founder)in
Co-investorsY CombinatorCoatue ManagementGood FriendsLobster CapitalCiti VenturesKhosla Ventures
9 Mothers builds counter-drone defense systems that enable rapid deployment of point defense at infantry-mobile scale.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningDefense TechHardwareIoTAustin, US
Russell Smith(Founder / CEO)inRoman Khomenko(Founder)inBogdan Pyzh(Co-Founder, COO)in
Co-investorsY CombinatorDaft CapitalStreamlined VenturesTheory Forge Ventures
Amper is a production monitoring and intelligence platform that uses IoT sensors to automatically track machines, operators, and jobs in real time and integrates with ERP and MES systems.
Advanced ManufacturingIoTSaaS
Co-investorsConvergeCorazon CapitalLewis & Clark Ventures1517Advancit CapitalFoundry+4 more
Co-investorsWedbush Ventures
Aster provides patient management software and agentic AI voice tools for healthcare providers.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtech
Co-investorsCake VenturesCornerstone VCOctopus VenturesCambrian VenturesIVP (Institutional Venture Partners)Sequoia Capital+1 more
Atlas Grid provides data contextualization and access services.
Data & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Oleg Kostour(Founder)inAram Aghababyan(Founder)inAnton Krutiansky(Founder)in
Co-investorsDniproGarage CapitalY Combinator
Aviro builds training environments and simulated spaces for long-horizon agents and frontier AI models to learn complex navigation and tool use.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Aarush Kukreja(Founder)inAyush Karupakula(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Gather is a platform that helps marketing and growth teams create primary-research-backed content designed to rank in answer engines and generative search (GEO/AEO), and to connect that content visibility to business outcomes.
AI & Machine LearningMarketing TechSaaSSan Francisco, US
Mayank Mehta(Co-founder & CEO)Anand(Co-founder & CTO)
Co-investorsMenlo VenturesRidge VenturesTrue Ventures
Botco.ai builds generative AI agents using a Retrieval-Augmented Generation framework to automate tasks such as adverse event reporting, patient referrals, clinical support, and CRM workflows.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Kyle Vogt(Executive Officer, Director)Rebecca Clyde(Founder)inChris Maeda(Founder)in
BoardNabeel Hyatt(Director)Daniel Gross(Director)
Co-investorsPHX VenturesVamosVenturesSpark Capital
Breinify is a personalization platform that enables B2C and D2C brands to deploy AI-powered customer experiences across web, email, SMS, and other channels.
AI & Machine LearningMarketing TechSaaS
Co-investorsAmino CapitalCXO FundStreamlined VenturesGolden SeedsGutbrain Ventures
Breinify offers an AI personalization platform that lets B2C and D2C marketers launch and test coordinated experiences across web, email, SMS, app, and API without heavy engineering involvement.
AI & Machine LearningMarketing TechRetail Tech
Diane Keng(CEO & Cofounder)Philipp Meisen(CTO & Cofounder)Nathan Loveless(Chief Revenue Officer)Tyrell Martin(Chief of Staff)
Co-investorsGolden SeedsGutbrain VenturesAmino CapitalStreamlined Ventures
Browser Use provides AI-powered browser automation infrastructure with anti-detection capabilities, CAPTCHA solving, and custom LLMs designed for web-based agent tasks at scale.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Magnus Müller(Founder)inGregor Zunic(Founder)inGregor Žunič(Co-founder)in
Co-investorsA.Capital VenturesFelicis VenturesFjor FoundersSV AngelTranspose Platform ManagementY Combinator+4 more
Chow Central operates a delivery-focused food service in Nigeria that serves meals quickly at lower cost than traditional restaurants by operating within concentrated local areas.
ConsumerFoodTechLagos, NG
Tosin Onafuye(Founder)inChristopher Obasi(Founder)inAdeyemi Onafuye(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Clarm Atlas is a no-code platform that enables business teams to build and deploy autonomous AI agents from approved internal sources, tools, and compliance rules for operational workflows.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFuture of WorkSan Francisco, US
Marcus Storm-Mollard(Founder - CEO)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Cloud Poker Night runs live-dealer poker tournaments as virtual and hybrid corporate events, using real dealers and cards for team-building and client engagement.
Future of WorkGamingMedia & Entertainment
Co-investorsChampion Hill Ventures
Coop makes the Smart Coop, an automated backyard chicken coop with an AI system (EggsteinAI) that detects predators, dual 1080p live-streaming cameras, an automatic sunrise/sunset door, and app-based controls and alerts.
ConsumerHardwareIoT
Co-investorsChamaeleonChampion Hill VenturesDraper Associates
Cred Protocol provides credit scoring, credit reporting, and real-time monitoring APIs for on-chain wallet addresses across multiple blockchain networks, serving DeFi protocols and Web3 applications.
Crypto & Web3Data & InfrastructureFintech
Co-investorsDigital Currency GroupVery Serious Ventures
CTGT develops a governance layer for AI systems that enables direct intervention at the neural network representation level to ensure reliable, policy-aligned AI behavior for enterprises.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDeep TechEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Cyril Gorlla(Founder)inTrevor Tuttle(Founder)in
Co-investorsGradient VenturesLoup VenturesTranspose Platform ManagementY CombinatorCharacterGeneral Catalyst+2 more
A team communication and collaboration platform that provides monitoring of communication performance through call logs and messaging statistics, along with built-in messaging features for workplace teams.
Cloud ComputingEnterprise SoftwareFuture of WorkSaaSLondon, GB
Nick Browne(Founder)inEdward Clayton(Founder)inLeo Bartle(Founder)Leo George Albert Bartle(Director)
Co-investorsAmino CapitalFjor FoundersGarage CapitalY Combinator
Elyos provides AI agents designed for trades and field service businesses, automating customer service, scheduling, sales, and administrative tasks.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSaaSLondon, GB
Adrian Johnston(Founder)inPhilippa Brown(Founder)inPanos Stravopodis(Founder & Chief Technology Officer)in
Co-investorsBlackbird VenturesEndgame CapitalPi LabsY Combinator
Empower Sleep offers virtual sleep care, connecting patients with sleep doctors for online provider visits, at-home sleep testing, and personalized treatment plans based on continuous sleep tracking data.
Digital HealthHealthtechWellness & Fitness
Sahil Chopra(Co-founder & Chief Sleep Giver)Sahil Chopra, MD(Founder)inSagar Chopra(Founder)in
Co-investorsDorm RoomThe MBA Fund
Federato offers Product Studio, a tool for insurers to define and manage insurance products—rating, forms, endorsements, and eligibility rules—in a single data schema with versioned definitions and audit history.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFintechInsurTechSaaS
William Ross(Founder)inWilliam Steenbergen(Founder)in
Co-investorsCaffeinated CapitalClocktower VenturesEmergence Capital PartnersPear VC
Fitbod is a mobile app that generates personalized strength and resistance training workouts based on a user's goals, fitness level, and available equipment, using a proprietary algorithm applying progressive overload and recovery tracking.
AI & Machine LearningConsumerSports TechWellness & FitnessSan Francisco, US
Jess Venticinque(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Allen Chen(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Jesse Venticinque
BoardJason Calacanis(Director)in
Co-investorsAllied Venture PartnersLAUNCH
Five to Nine offers a platform for planning and managing workplace events and programs, including event creation, communications, budget tracking, and analytics.
Future of WorkHR TechSaaSChicago, US
Denise Umubyeyi(Co-founder)Jasmine Shells(Co-founder & CEO)Heather Hiles(Director)
Co-investorsCleveland AvenueDorm RoomBlack OperatorWestbound Equity Partners
Flex provides telehealth consultations with licensed clinicians to determine eligibility for HSA/FSA-qualified health products and services for customers with various medical conditions.
Digital HealthFintechHealthtechMarketplaces
Sam O'Keefe(Founder)inMiguel Toledo(Founder)in
Co-investorsCameron VenturesCore Venture CapitalHarvest Venture PartnersRethink ImpactY CombinatorAccel+2 more
Foresight provides mental health services including therapy, psychiatry, ADHD assessments, maternal mental health support, and intensive outpatient programs, with care for children, teens, adults, and families.
Digital HealthHealthtechMental Health
Co-investorsAsymmetry VenturesJAZZ Venture PartnersLombardstreet Ventures
Frenzy AI provides AI-powered site search, product recommendations, and personalized collection pages for Shopify stores, adjusting product results based on real-time customer behavior to increase conversion and revenue.
AI & Machine LearningE-commerceRetail Tech
Co-investorsBeresford Ventures
GRU Space develops technology for human habitation on the Moon and Mars.
Advanced ManufacturingDeep TechSpace TechSan Francisco, US
Skyler Chan(Founder)inKevin Cannon(Founding Member of Technical Staff)
Co-investorsEntropy Industrial CapitalGarage CapitalY Combinator
Gather is a content platform that helps marketing teams create primary-research-backed content designed to rank in answer engines and generative search results.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareMarketing TechSaaSSan Francisco, US
Mayank Mehta(CEO)Anand(CTO)
Co-investorsTrue VenturesMenlo VenturesRidge Ventures
Co-investorsHorizon
Glidian offers an all-payor prior authorization platform that lets healthcare providers submit and track insurance authorizations through direct payor integrations, supported by a team of prior authorization specialists.
Digital HealthHealthtechSaaS
Co-investorsBantam GroupCounterpart VenturesFikaGaruda VenturesTau Ventures
Groundfloor operates 24/7 coworking spaces across four locations in California, offering desks, meeting rooms, phone booths, and shared amenities.
Future of WorkPropTech
Co-investors2048 Ventures
Hydra provides analytics query execution for Postgres databases with separated compute resources, automatic scaling, and built-in caching, designed for time series and event data workloads across multiple deployment environments.
Data & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Joseph Sciarrino(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator10x FoundersComcast VenturesEra FundsFlume VenturesFounders Fund+4 more
Hydra develops Brokkr, an operating system that enables independent data centers to operate AI Factories by providing shared infrastructure, customer access, and monetization tools on a unified network.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingMiami, US
Aaron Ginn(CEO)inGarrett Johnson(Executive Officer, Director)inAriel Deschapell(Executive Officer)in
BoardSteve Jang(Director)
Co-investorsAccelerator VenturesComcast VenturesGraph VenturesKindred VenturesLaunchBay CapitalLoup Ventures+8 more
Co-investorsPHX Ventures
Co-investorsIndustrious VenturesSeraph Group
Juno is an AI health assistant that helps people with chronic illness track symptoms, identify patterns, and create reports for medical appointments, based on university research and user feedback from over 1,000 patients.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtechWellness & FitnessSan Francisco, US
Marshall Gould(Founder)inIsaac Tolley(Founder)in
Co-investorsLobster CapitalY CombinatorAda VenturesArtesianEntrepreneur First
Knoetic provides an AI-powered platform for Chief People Officers, combining a curated community of people leaders with AI agents that automate HR workflows and provide personalized insights from anonymized patterns of 3,000+ CPOs.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareHR Tech
Joseph Q.(Founder)in
Co-investorsAccelContraryDig Ventures Management LimitedDorm RoomMenlo VenturesEQT Ventures
Leda provides self-administered DNA testing kits and related services for individuals who have experienced sexual assault, aiming to improve evidence collection and support for survivors.
HealthtechImpact & Social GoodBrooklyn, US
Liesel Vaidya(Executive Officer, Director)Madison Campbell(Executive Officer, Director)
Co-investors2B.VCCalm/Storm VCHypothesisStone Mountain VenturesThe Innovation SpaceGaingels+1 more
Lightsprint is an AI-native platform where developers, product managers, and designers plan, build, and ship software together using parallel cloud agents.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Ben Ong(Founder/CEO)inBenedict Chan(Founder)inHeng Hong Lee(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Loula connects families with doula care services covered by insurance, including Medi-Cal and commercial health plans.
FemTechHealthtechImpact & Social GoodNew York City, US
Lindsey Redd(Founder)in
Co-investorsMeridian Street CapitalY Combinator
Lumari builds an AI-native platform with autonomous AI digital workers that automate procurement and sourcing operations for supply chain and procurement teams.
AI & Machine LearningLogistics & Supply ChainSaaS
Co-investorsY Combinator
Starcloud builds data center infrastructure deployed in space, leveraging continuous solar energy and radiative cooling to enable large-scale compute clusters for AI training.
Data & InfrastructureDeep TechSpace TechRedmond, US
Ezra Feilden(Co-Founder & CTO)inPaul Adrian Oltean(Executive Officer, Director)Philip Johnston(Co-Founder & CEO)inAdi Oltean(Co-Founder & Chief Engineer)in
BoardMorgan Beller(Director)in
Co-investorsAmbush CapitalTaurus VenturesAndreessen HorowitzBenchmarkEQT VenturesEverywhere Ventures+3 more
Luminal provides a compiler-based platform for AI inference optimization that compiles machine learning models into optimized native code for GPUs and ASICs, delivering 2-3x faster throughput than traditional runtime inference engines.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingDeveloper Tools
Co-investorsFelicis Ventures
Menda offers a program to help people manage chronic pain conditions such as knee pain, sciatica, back issues, IBS, and migraines using pain research techniques.
Digital HealthHealthtechWellness & Fitness
Menza is an AI-powered operations platform for ecommerce and DTC brands that automates business workflows across advertising, inventory, customer service, and data analysis.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDirect to ConsumerE-commerceEnterprise SoftwareLondon, GB
Qasim Munye(Founder)inMariam Ahmed(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Metofico builds a no-code platform for analyzing large and complex datasets in life science research, allowing scientists without programming expertise to extract insights from neuroscience, behavioral tracking, and other experimental data.
Developer ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSaaSLondon, GB
Mehdi Boudjadja(Founder)inSalah Boudjadja(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Metreecs provides data science and AI-driven insights to businesses, leveraging client data, external factors, and business trends to help companies operate more efficiently and profitably.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareParis, FR
Martin Dimitrov(Founder)inElie Dufeu(Founder)inThibaut Pellegrin(Founder)in
Co-investorsSonorcapY CombinatorBpifranceFounders FutureKima VenturesMonte Carlo Capital
Minimal AI provides AI agents for e-commerce customer support automation, capable of resolving up to 90% of support tickets across multiple channels without requiring hiring.
AI & Machine LearningE-commerceEnterprise SoftwareSaaSAmsterdam, NL
Niek Hogenboom(Founder)inTitus Ex(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Mundo AI creates a multilingual dataset library to address the scarcity of high-quality training data in languages other than English for AI model development.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Jason Liao(CEO and Founder)inNaijide Anwaer(Founder)inGarreth Lee(Founder)inKenneth Wu(Founder)in
Co-investorsGreatPoint VenturesY CombinatorAugment Ventures
Nanograb develops gene therapy delivery systems using artificial intelligence to identify peptide-nanoparticle combinations that transport genetic medicines to targeted cells and tissues.
BiotechHealthtechSan Francisco, US
Debesh Mandal(Founder)inChristopher Lau(Founder)inShanil Panara(Founder)in
Co-investorsRecode VenturesY Combinator
Nova Credit aggregates global credit bureau data, bank transaction data, and payroll information to help lenders assess borrowers and provide fairer access to credit for underserved populations including international newcomers, gig workers, and others traditionally excluded from the financial system.
Data & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareFintechNew York City, US
Misha Esipov(Founder/CEO)inLoek Janssen(Cofounder)
Co-investorsKleiner PerkinsGeneral CatalystA-Rod CorpAvid VenturesBallistic VenturesBetter Tomorrow Ventures+12 more
novl is an AI-powered project management system for architecture and civil engineering firms.
AI & Machine LearningConstruction TechSaaS
Co-investorsSuffolk Technologies
Nuanced provides a desktop application where AI agents assist software developers by converting preliminary concepts into detailed specifications and maintaining involvement throughout the build process.
AI & Machine LearningConsumerDeveloper ToolsSan Francisco, US
Ayman Nadeem(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Opalite builds language interpretation technology for healthcare, enabling real-time communication between physicians and patients across language barriers.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtechSan Francisco, US
Cathleen Kuo(Founder)inAlex Mehregan(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Oqoqo is an experimentation platform for testing and evaluating agentic AI workflows in production-like, isolated sandbox environments.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsSaaS
Co-investorsNuMundo VenturesBee Partners
Parley builds AI software for immigration law firms that automates visa petition drafting, reference letter generation, and evidence collection.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareLegalTechSaaSSan Francisco, US
Philip Smart(Founder)inIan Edwards(Founder)inJackson Perry(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
PeopleReign develops AI-powered technology using natural language processing and machine learning to automate routine business processes for enterprise employees.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFuture of WorkHR TechSan Jose, US
Dan Turchin(CEO)
BoardJonathan Perl(Director)in
Co-investorsAcadian Ventures Management, LlcBoulder VenturesJC2 VenturesMighty CapitalMoxxie Ventures
Phare develops AI-powered home safety devices that detect fires and carbon monoxide using advanced sensors and machine learning to reduce false alarms and missed detections.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningHardwareHealthtechPropTechLondon, GB
Daniel McBride(Executive Officer, Director)
Co-investorsBritish Design FundClearance Venture PartnersTechstars
Plexe provides infrastructure for deploying machine learning models to production, serving millions of inferences daily.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareLondon, GB
Vaibhav Dubey(Founder & CEO)inMarcello De Bernardi(Founder & CTO)in
Co-investorsY CombinatorMyAsiaVCOxonian VenturesStrategxy Ventures LLCTranspose Platform Management
Precip provides hyper-local rainfall measurement and forecasting using AI, delivering up-to-the-hour precipitation data at 1km resolution without requiring physical weather stations.
AgTechAI & Machine LearningClimate TechData & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareAnn Arbor, US
Jesse Vollmar(Founder)inMichael Asher(Founder)in
Co-investorsY Combinator
Proximitty builds AI agents to automate commercial lending workflows for banks, including document ingestion, financial analysis, covenant monitoring, and loan servicing for C&I, CRE, and SBA loans.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFintechSan Francisco, US
Wye Yew Ho(Co-Founder & CEO)inZi Zhang(Co-Founder & CTO)in
Co-investorsCohen CircleY Combinator
Puzzle builds a modern accounting system for startups and small-to-medium businesses, delivering real-time financial intelligence by reconstructing core ledger and data infrastructure.
AI & Machine LearningFintechSaaSSan Francisco, US
Sasha Orloff(Founder)inJohn Cwikla
BoardHEMANT TANEJA(Director)in
Co-investorsFelicis VenturesFjor FoundersKapor CapitalOn DeckTwo Culture CapitalVillage Global+3 more
Puzzle is a crypto wallet for the Aleo blockchain, available on iOS, Android, and Chrome, that includes a native Arcade offering earning opportunities to users.
Crypto & Web3Fintech
Co-investorsBain Capital CryptoFelicis VenturesGeneral CatalystKapor CapitalS32
Quanto is a sales, marketing, and onboarding platform for accounting and bookkeeping firms that identifies and qualifies ideal clients, books discovery calls, and automates client onboarding into QuickBooks.
FintechSaaSSales Tech
Co-investorsFlair VenturesGood News Ventures
Risely is an agentic AI platform designed for higher education institutions that orchestrates AI agents to optimize campus operations, support student retention, and revenue generation.
AI & Machine LearningEdTechEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Shahryar Abbasi(Founder)inSadia Saifuddin(Founder)in
Co-investorsPathlight VenturesTranspose Platform ManagementY Combinator
Sempre Health provides digital health solutions focused on patient engagement and outcomes management for the healthcare industry.
Digital HealthHealthtechColorado Springs, US
Anurati Mathur(Founder)inRobert S. Spalding(Executive Officer, Director)
BoardTyler Rowe(Director)Benjamin J. Doramus(Director)Kelsey Gorman(Director)
Co-investorsCencora VenturesCerity Partners VenturesEcho Health VenturesLifeforce CapitalRethink ImpactIndustry Ventures
Sepal AI generates training and evaluation datasets for AI models at scale, working with leading AI research labs and enterprises to improve model performance on real-world tasks.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Robi Lin(Founder)inKat Hu(Founder)in
Co-investorsMetaplanetSID Venture PartnersVery Serious VenturesY CombinatorTeam Ignite Ventures
Silimate builds AI-powered EDA software that accelerates chip design workflows by combining fast computation engines, machine learning models, and user-friendly interfaces.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareHardwareSemiconductorsSan Francisco, US
Ann Wu(Founder)inAkash Levy(Founder)in
Co-investorsLifeX VenturesThe MBA FundY Combinator468 CapitalLombardstreet Ventures
Simplex provides automated provider enrollment management for healthcare networks, handling CAQH profile setup, payer applications, and compliance tracking across multiple states and insurers.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareHealthtechSan Francisco, US
Shreya Karpoor(Founder)inMarco Nocito(Founder)in
Co-investorsFundersClubY CombinatorBitmain
Smarty embeds an MIT-trained CTO ("Chief of AI") and senior engineering team into a client's business to identify, build, and maintain custom AI systems and automations.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSaaS
Denzil Eden
Co-investorsAmplify.LAirrvrntVCMotivate Venture Capital
Snout provides infrastructure for veterinary clinics to offer monthly wellness plans, letting pet owners enroll without credit checks while clinics are paid upfront at the time of care.
FintechSaaSLos Angeles, US
Emily Dong(Founder & CEO)David(Chief Operating Officer)Kyle(Chief Technology Officer)Jennifer Yip
Co-investors500 GlobalBread And Butter Ventures, LlcFinancial Venture StudioFootworkMuse CapitalRestive Ventures+1 more
Solve Intelligence provides AI-powered software for patent drafting, prosecution, and claim analysis for legal professionals and corporate IP departments.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareLegalTechLondon, GB
Chris Parsonson(Founder/CEO)inSanj Ahilan(Founder)inAngus Parsonson(Founder)in
Co-investorsAmino CapitalCoho DeeptechFoundersX VenturesOperator CollectiveSAV (Scale Asia Ventures)Team Ignite Ventures+5 more
Sphinx Labs builds AI agents that perform compliance work such as onboarding checks, watchlist screening, risk scoring, and alert resolution by logging into a team's existing systems and clicking and typing like a human analyst.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareFintech
Alexandre Berkovic(Founder)in
Co-investorsCherry VenturesRebel FundY Combinator
Splash9 manufactures autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) for maritime applications including coastal defense, harbor patrols, seabed mapping, and infrastructure security.
Advanced ManufacturingDefense TechHardwareRoboticsLos Angeles, US
Ivan Avanesov(Founder)inMarcell Veszpremi(Founder)in
Co-investorsUbiquity VenturesY Combinator468 CapitalAccompliceAcies InvestmentsVelvet Sea Ventures
Starcloud is a deep-tech company building large-scale data center infrastructure designed to operate in space.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningClimate TechCloud ComputingDeep TechSemiconductorsSpace TechRedmond, US
Philip Johnston(Founder/CEO)inEzra Feilden(Founder)inAdi Oltean(Founder)in
Co-investorsDnx VenturesFUSEGround Up VenturesHarpoon VenturesImagination CapitalIntegra Groupe+22 more
Stockline provides enterprise resource planning software designed for food wholesalers that uses AI agents to automate administrative work like order entry.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSaaSSan Francisco, US
Mariem Ould Ismail(Founder)inMoncef DJAFRI(Founder)in
Co-investorsKima VenturesTranspose Platform ManagementY Combinator
ThinkChain.ai builds AI tools including AI agents that conduct qualitative interviews and surveys at scale for market researchers and academic professionals, and cloud-hosted MCP server bundles that connect AI assistants like ChatGPT and Claude to external tools.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsSaaS
Co-investorsZelda Ventures
Tractive is developing an AI tool for 3D retopology, aimed at helping artists prepare their assets to be game-ready faster.
AI & Machine LearningGamingSaaS
Co-investorsBlue Wire Capital
Swiftly provides a data platform for public transit agencies to track vehicle locations and optimize operations.
Data & InfrastructureGovTechLogistics & Supply ChainMobility & TransportationSan Francisco, US
Co-investors9Mile LabsCongruent VenturesGovtech Fund
Trial Library operates an AI-native platform that integrates clinical trials into routine care, activating providers, identifying eligible patients, and guiding them through the trial lifecycle.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtech
Co-investorsHow Women InvestLux CapitalNext VenturesOverwater Ventures LlcSanofi VenturesSeae Ventures+1 more
Tunic Pay provides banks with real-time payment intelligence and fraud-prevention tools that verify, assess, and investigate transactions to stop authorized push payment (APP) scams while clearing genuine payments instantly.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityFintech
Co-investorsAvid Ventures
Velma provides daily, phone-based cognitive support for older adults with early memory loss, combining a dedicated care team and AI assistants with exercises, routine reminders, and family alerts.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthWellness & Fitness
Lisa(Founder)
Vocode provides open-source and API-based tools for building and deploying voice agents that handle phone calls.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSaaSSan Francisco, US
Kian Hooshmand(Founder)inAjay Raj(Founder)inKian H(Founder)in
Co-investorsGradient VenturesY CombinatorAccelGV (Google Ventures)
Zalos builds computer agents that automate repetitive finance operations tasks like payroll, reconciliation, and form processing within existing enterprise ERP and accounting systems, without requiring system replacement.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFintechSaaSLondon, GB
William Fairbairn(Founder, CEO)inHung Hoang(Founder, CTO)in
Co-investorsActivant CapitalCohen CircleY Combinator14Peaks Capital20VC
Zephyr Fusion develops compact, in-orbit fusion power systems for space-based applications including microgravity manufacturing, data centers, defense, propulsion, and human habitation.
Advanced ManufacturingDeep TechEnergySpace TechSan Diego, US
Edward Hinson(Founder)inGalen Burke(Founder)in
Co-investorsY CombinatorZAKA VC
Exits · 2
IPOs and acquisitions across the tracked portfolioServe RoboticsNASDAQ: SERVAsteracq. by Elation
Portfolio news
latest coverage across their companiesLumen Orbit · cryptobriefing.com · Aug 21, 2026
Foresight · stocktitan.net · Aug 21, 2026
Starcloud · techcrunch.com · Aug 21, 2026
Puzzle · ua.news · Aug 21, 2026
Groundfloor · altstreet.investments · Aug 18, 2026
Oqoqo · beepartners.vc · Aug 17, 2026
Frenzy · newcomer.co · Aug 13, 2026
Frequently asked questions
- How many investments has Sterling Road made?
- Sterling Road has 80 tracked investments, 1 of which have exited via acquisition or IPO, including 1 dated in the last 24 months.
- What stage does Sterling Road invest at?
- Sterling Road invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed stages.
- What is Sterling Road's typical check size?
- Sterling Road typically writes checks of $50K – $150K.
- What sectors does Sterling Road focus on?
- Sterling Road focuses on Sector Agnostic.
- Where is Sterling Road located?
- Sterling Road is headquartered in San Francisco, US.
- Does Sterling Road lead rounds?
- Yes, Sterling Road leads investment rounds.
- Who does Sterling Road co-invest with?
- Sterling Road most often shares deals with Y Combinator, Transpose Platform Management, Cohen Circle, among 164 tracked co-investors.
Media · Podcasts & interviews
featuring the teamAI and the future of work with Ash Rust, former CEO and pre-seed investor at Sterling Road
PeopleReign · Ash Rust
Entrepreneurs@Manchester: Ash Rust, Managing Partner @ Sterling Road
Alliance Manchester Business School · Ash Rust
The Created Economy 018: Interview with Ash Rust of Sterling Road
Created Economy · Ash Rust
Ash Rust | Sterling Road - Retrospective
Peter Saddington · Ash Rust
ASH RUST | Sterling Road - Venture Capitalists are a Mechanism to Stop Failure! | CHARGE MORE - S1E4
Peter Saddington · Ash Rust
Co-investors · 23
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General Catalyst is a venture capital firm operating as a partnership focused on company building and accelerating the growth of the businesses it backs.
Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) is a venture capital firm founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, known for pioneering the platform model with a large team of operators supporting founders across stages.
Streamlined Ventures is an early-stage venture firm that partners with founders and invests at the seed stage to help build large-scale companies.
XYZ Venture Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm that partners with founders from the earliest stages, supporting portfolio companies across fundraising, go-to-market, product, and sales.
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.
Kapor Capital is an Oakland-based venture fund that invests in seed-stage technology companies in education, health, and consumer finance sectors. The firm focuses on companies that create both economic and social value.
2048 Ventures is a thesis-driven early-stage venture capital firm based in New York and Boston that backs founders building future technologies.
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Gaingels is a large venture investor that co-invests alongside lead VCs in companies committed to building diverse and inclusive teams, while advocating for LGBTQ+ representation and equity of access in venture capital.
GutBrain Ventures is an early-stage technology venture capital firm led by investor and former entrepreneur Bob Davoli, who partners closely with founders and management teams to help build and scale high-growth software and technology companies.
Cornerstone VC is an early-stage venture capital firm backing ambitious tech founders from diverse backgrounds, investing from pre-seed through to pre-Series A and following on as companies scale.
Cake Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in companies addressing demographic change and serving emerging internet user populations. The firm focuses on early-stage technology companies in this space.
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.
▶11 more co-investors
SOSVStride VCDN CapitalHustle FundMucker CapitalUnpopular Venturesxfactor venturesAmplo VenturesBECO Capital1984 Ventures Management, LlcConvergence Ventures
Firms observed investing alongside Sterling Road, from public investor directories. Shared companies are the overlap with Sterling Road's recorded portfolio.
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B Capital is a global investment firm backing early to late-stage technology innovators across technology, healthcare, and energy & resilience sectors.