What stage does Xfund invest at?

Xfund invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages.

What is Xfund's typical check size?

Xfund typically writes checks of $50K – $500K.

What sectors does Xfund focus on?

Xfund focuses on AI & Machine Learning, Deep Tech, Sector Agnostic.

Where is Xfund located?

Xfund is headquartered in Palo Alto, US.

Does Xfund lead rounds?

Yes, Xfund leads investment rounds.

Xfund

Venture capital

Palo Alto · Pre-Seed–Series A · 22 people tracked

Also known as XFUND MANAGEMENT COMPANY, LLC

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Investment thesis

Xfund backs entrepreneurs who experiment across disciplines, believing that technical talent alone is insufficient to build durable companies. It seeks founders with multidisciplinary abilities and a growth mindset, whether students, faculty, staff, alumni, or self-taught individuals. Born from the networks of Harvard and MIT, the firm invests in transformative technology spun out of leading academic research and labs. Its structure links successful venture capital firms with top research universities, offering portfolio companies access to a network of investors, university faculty, and industry advisors.

Invests inAI & Machine Learning Deep Tech Sector AgnosticGlobalPalo AltoUnited States

Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.

Stage

Pre-Seed–Series A

Check

$50K – $500K

Palo Alto, California, US

Leads rounds

Leads

Instruments

Equity

Founded

2011

AUM

$220M

VC funds

Tracked investments

Team · 22 people

from the firm's website & public directories

Brandon Farwell· General Partner· Menlo Park, California, United Statesin 𝕏

Brandon Farwell leverages two decades of Stanford mentoring and leadership—co-teaching ethics and creating an ethics fellows program informed by a major VC firm's breakdown—and early DFJ work on SpaceX, Tesla.

b•••@xfund.comreveal

Patrick Chung· General Partner· Palo Alto, Californiain 𝕏

Patrick Chung founded ZEFER in the dot‑com era, was Sam Altman's first investor, led a conversation with him at Harvard, and bases work in Boston to tap its university ecosystem.

p•••@xfund.comreveal

Tuan Ho· Partner· Cambridge, Massachusetts, United Statesin 𝕏

Tuan Ho is a Partner at Xfund and a repeat founder. He co-founded Philo, an early live-streaming television company that was Xfund's first investment, and later co-founded and led Raydiant, an AI platform for automating in-store customer experiences, after helping establish the Founder-In-Residence program at Atomic Labs. He holds an A.B. in Chemistry & Physics from Harvard College and an M.P.A. from the Harvard Kennedy School focused on tech policy and national security.

t•••@xfund.comreveal

Prat Mallick· Principal· Cambridge, Harvard Squarein 𝕏

Prat Mallick is a Principal at Xfund, working from the firm's Cambridge office. He previously co-founded and led a YCombinator-backed cybersecurity startup and was the founding go-to-market hire at an AI-focused government contracting startup, and he conducted AI safety and foundation model regulation research with Harvard Professor Daniel Carpenter. Earlier he worked at General Catalyst, where he helped launch the General Catalyst Institute and supported the firm's acquisitions of La Famiglia and Venture Highway; he is a Harvard College graduate.

p•••@xfund.comreveal

Jadyn Bryden· Venture Partner· Boston, Massachusetts, United Statesin 𝕏

Jadyn Bryden is a Vice President at Xfund. Before joining the firm, she served as Chief Strategy Officer and earlier as Chief People Officer of Harvard Student Agencies, a large student-run company, where she worked on strategic development, compliance standards, and launching new business units. While at Harvard, she co-founded the Harvard Giving Pledge and the Harvard College Symphony Society and advised student startups through the Harvard Innovation Labs.

j•••@xfund.comreveal

Alex Pentland· Toshiba Professor of Media, Arts, and Sciences at MIT

Faculty advisor and professor of media, arts, and sciences at MIT.

Andrew Williamson· Managing Partner, Cambridge Innovation Capital

Faculty advisor and managing partner at Cambridge Innovation Capital.

Bob Pozen· Senior Lecturer, MIT Sloan School of Management

Faculty advisor and senior lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management.

Cherry Murray· Benjamin Peirce Professor of Technology and Public Policy and Professor of Physics, Harvard University

Faculty advisor and professor of technology, public policy, and physics at Harvard University.

Deborah Spar· Jaime and Josefina Chua Tiampo Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

Faculty advisor and professor of business administration at Harvard Business School.

Don Wood· Managing Director Emeritus, DFJ

Faculty advisor and managing director emeritus at DFJ.

Elise Bates· Advisor· Boston areain 𝕏

Elise Bates is an advisor to Xfund and Senior Director of the Rock Center for Entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School, where she oversees the School's entrepreneurship courses, faculty, and programs. A repeat founder and operator, she began her career as an HBS research associate, later worked at the Monitor Group leading growth strategy engagements in health care and consumer markets, and founded the nonprofit End Allergies Together and co-founded Attane Health. She holds a BA from Colgate University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

e•••@xfund.comreveal

Habib Haddad· Advisor· Greater Bostonin 𝕏

Habib Haddad is an Advisor to Xfund, an entrepreneur and early stage investor who serves as Managing Partner of the E14 Fund, an MIT Media Lab-affiliated fund backing early companies from the MIT Media Lab community. He previously was founding CEO of Wamda, a platform supporting entrepreneurship across the Middle East and North Africa, and earlier founded Yamli, a computational linguistics company whose technology he sold to Yahoo! in 2012, and was a founding member of the MIT CSAIL spinoff Mok3. He holds a Bachelor's in Computer and Communication Engineering from the American University of Beirut and a Master's in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California.

h•••@xfund.comreveal

Harry Lewis· Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science, Harvard University

Faculty advisor and professor of computer science at Harvard University.

Jim Wilkinson· Interim CEO and CFO, Oxford Science Enterprises

Faculty advisor serving as interim CEO and CFO of Oxford Science Enterprises.

Jonathan Zittrain· George Bemis Professor of International Law, Harvard Law School

Faculty advisor and professor of international law at Harvard Law School.

Michael Smith· John H. Finley, Jr. Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University

Faculty advisor and professor of engineering and applied sciences at Harvard University.

Nicholas Chan· Advisor· New York, New Yorkin

Paul Gompers· Advisor· Boston, Massachusetts, United Statesin 𝕏

Paul Gompers is an Advisor to Xfund and the Eugene Holman Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, with appointments in the Finance and Entrepreneurial Management areas. He earned an A.B. in biology from Harvard College, an M.Sc. in economics from Oxford University as a Marshall Fellow, and a Ph.D. in Business Economics from Harvard, and previously taught finance at the University of Chicago. His research addresses the structure, governance, and performance of private equity funds, financing and incentives for private firms, and the long-run performance of newly public companies.

p•••@xfund.comreveal

Rakesh Khurana· Advisor· Greater Bostonin

Rakesh Khurana is an Advisor to Xfund and the Marvin Bower Professor of Leadership Development at Harvard Business School, as well as a Professor of Sociology in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, where he teaches organizational behavior, leadership, and the sociology of organizations. He taught at MIT's Sloan School of Management from 1998 to 2000, joined Harvard Business School's faculty in 2000, and served as Dean of Harvard College from 2014 to 2025. He holds an S.B. from Cornell University and an A.M. and Ph.D. from Harvard.

r•••@xfund.comreveal

Rhonda Shrader· Executive Director, Berkeley HAAS Entrepreneurship

Faculty advisor and executive director of entrepreneurship at UC Berkeley Haas School of Business.

Suraj Srinivasan· Phillip J. Stomberg Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

Faculty advisor and professor of business administration at Harvard Business School.

What they invest in

from 32 of 45 portfolio companies

AI & Machine Learning ×15SaaS ×13Healthtech ×7Digital Health ×5Enterprise Software ×5Fintech ×5Biotech ×4EdTech ×4

HQs:United States×13Canada×1

Investments · 45 tracked

founders shown can be your intro path

23andMe23andme.comin 𝕏

23andMe operates a research platform that collects genetic data from millions of users to advance genomic research and health discovery.

BiotechDigital HealthDirect to ConsumerHealthtechLongevityMountain View, US

Anne Wojcicki(Co-founder & CEO)Linda Avey(Co-founder)Paul Cheung(Co-founder)Andrew Page(Executive Officer, Director)Esther Dyson(Director)Kathy Hibbs(Executive Officer)

Board seatPatrick Chung· per SEC Form D

Philophilo.com𝕏SEC filingmedium confidence

Philo is a live television streaming service offering flexible entertainment-focused plans with 70+ channels, on-demand content, and an unlimited DVR starting at $25/month.

Media & EntertainmentSan Francisco, US

Andrew McCollum(Executive Officer, Director)Tuan Ho(Executive Officer, Director)Shelley Brindle(Director)Patrick Chung(Director)Thomer Gil(Executive Officer)

Board seatPatrick ChungTuan Ho· per SEC Form D · $4.2M raise · filed Jan 2017

AeroVectaerovect.comin 𝕏

Forerunner is a website template and creative engine designed for brands and creators to build portfolios, agency sites, and project launches with polished design systems and flexible components.

AI & Machine LearningCreator EconomyDeep TechDeveloper ToolsHardwareLogistics & Supply ChainRoboticsSilicon Valley, US

Airair.incin 𝕏

Air provides a content organization and asset management platform for creative and marketing teams.

AI & Machine LearningCreator EconomyMarketing TechSaaS

AirOpsairops.comin 𝕏

AirOps provides AI-powered workflows for content teams to develop and optimize SEO and AI-engine-optimized content at scale.

AI & Machine LearningMarketing TechSaaS

Altitude

Platform for investors and bankers to uncover and act on insights faster.

Barinthusbiobarinthusbio.comin 𝕏

Barinthus Biotherapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing immunotherapies that direct T cells to treat immunology and inflammatory (I&I) conditions, including autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

BiotechHealthtech

BoldVoiceboldvoice.comin 𝕏

BoldVoice provides AI-powered coaching and feedback to help non-native English speakers improve communication clarity and confidence.

AI & Machine LearningConsumerEdTechSaaSNew York City, US

Anada Lakra(Founder)inIlya Usorov(Founder)in

BuildCheckbuildcheck.aiin

Buildcheck provides a web application that scans architectural and construction drawings and specifications to detect errors, omissions, and inconsistencies before they become field problems.

AI & Machine LearningConstruction TechSaaS

Can9

Specialized genetics research focused on canines.

Chalkchalk.aiin 𝕏

Chalk provides data infrastructure and risk modeling for financial services companies.

AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDeveloper ToolsFintech

Marc(Co-Founder & CEO)inElliot(Co-Founder)inAndy(Co-Founder)in

Claimcompassclaimcompass.euin 𝕏

ClaimCompass (presenting as AirHelp) helps air passengers claim compensation of up to €600 for delayed or canceled flights, handling the entire claim process on a no-win, no-fee basis.

ConsumerLegalTechTravel & Hospitality

Cofactr

Crabi Roboticscrabi-robotics.comin

CRABI is an autonomous marine robotic system that cleans and inspects vessel hulls in-transit, removing biofouling to lower hull resistance and improve fuel efficiency.

CleantechClimate TechRobotics

Curebasecurebase.comin

Curebase provides technology infrastructure for clinical trial sites, offering tools to help research centers manage and conduct trials more efficiently.

AI & Machine LearningBiotechDigital HealthHealthtechSaaS

Curebasecurebase.aiin 𝕏

Curebase provides a software platform for clinical trial management, serving contract research coordinators and trial sites.

AI & Machine LearningBiotechDigital HealthHealthtechSaaSFort Lauderdale, US

Storm Stillman(Founder)inThomas Lemberg(Executive Officer, Director)

Delphidelphi.aiin 𝕏

Delphi is an AI-powered assistant platform that helps venture capitalists scale their investment operations by automating deal screening, founder communication, and thought leadership distribution.

AI & Machine LearningCreator EconomyEdTechEnterprise SoftwareFuture of WorkSaaS

BoardKeith Rabois(Investor/Venture Capitalist)

Distributed Spectrum │ Homedistributedspectrum.comin 𝕏

Distributed Spectrum builds software for radio spectrum management that combines machine learning, signal processing, and embedded systems.

AI & Machine LearningDeep TechHardwareNew York, US

Alex Wulff(Founder & CEO)Ben Harpe(Founder & COO)Isaac Struhl(Founder & CTO)

Factorfactor.ioin

Cofactr provides electronics supply chain infrastructure for hardware manufacturers, handling component procurement, supplier management, and ITAR-registered warehousing and kitting.

Advanced ManufacturingHardwareLogistics & Supply Chain

Formaforma.aiin

Forma.ai provides a sales performance management (SPM) system that helps enterprise organizations manage sales compensation, planning, and performance data in a unified platform.

AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareSaaSSales Tech<UNKNOWN>

Nabeil Alazzam(Founder & CEO)in

Fortawesomefortawesome.com𝕏

Fort Awesome provides icon sets and a tool for uploading and managing custom vector icons, loading only the icons a website uses for faster performance.

Developer ToolsSaaS

Guidelineguideline.comin 𝕏

Guideline provides 401(k) retirement plan management services integrated with Gusto payroll, offering employees a self-serve portal and mobile app to track contributions, manage investments, and maintain plan compliance.

FintechHR TechSaaS

Keakea.aiin

Kenshokensho.comin 𝕏acquired by S&P Global

Kensho is an AI innovation division within S&P Global that develops generative and agentic AI systems for financial intelligence and enterprise platforms.

AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareFintech

Bhavesh Dayalji(CEO & S&P Global Chief AI Officer)Daniel Nadler(Executive Officer, Director)

Kudosmykudos.com

Landitlandit.com

Landit provides a platform combining technology, executive coaching, and personalized development tools to help employees and organizations manage career growth and skill development.

Enterprise SoftwareHR TechSaaS

Medical knowledge platformopenevidence.com

Natalistnatalist.comin 𝕏

Everlywell offers at-home and in-person lab tests across categories including daily health, digestive, sexual, and hormone health, paired with virtual care visits and treatment options.

Digital HealthDirect to ConsumerHealthtech

Newtonxnewtonx.comin 𝕏

NewtonX provides expert network and primary research data to enterprises for strategic insights and market intelligence.

Data & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareMarketing TechNew York, US

Germain Chastel(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Rebecca Minguela(Director)Sascha Eder(Founder & CEO)Wes Barton(Director)Jeremy Wood(Co-founder)Sascha Hoffman(Founder & CEO)

Onyxoddsonyxodds.comin 𝕏

Onyx is a mobile app offering social sports predictions and daily fantasy-style player and team picks, plus trading in 500+ crypto tokens and markets on culture and politics.

ConsumerCrypto & Web3Sports Tech

Pomelopomelo.com

Privetryprive.comin 𝕏

Recurly Commerce is a subscription management platform for Shopify merchants that handles billing, dunning, and churn reduction.

E-commerceFintechSaaS

Prospinity in

San Francisco, US

Sam Antonyan(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Aarya Agarwal(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)

BoardAndrea De Berardinis(Director)Andrea Zanon(Director)

Ravellawravellaw.com

Sirona Medicalsironamedical.comin 𝕏

Sirona Medical builds RadOS, a cloud-native platform that reimagines radiology practice in the AI age for physicians and radiology practices.

AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtechSan Francisco, US

Cameron Andrews(Founder & President)Ankit Goyal(Executive Officer, Director)Francisco Gimenez(Director)

Thealtitudethealtitude.appin 𝕏

Thinkversethinkverse.co

Thinkverse offers an AI math tutor and co-teacher for K-12 school districts, providing personalized, adaptive instruction with real-time whiteboard feedback, scaffolded guidance, and learning-gap analysis for students.

AI & Machine LearningEdTech

Tingonotingono.com

Truepreptrueprep.aiin 𝕏

Juno is an AI-powered tax preparation platform that pulls data from W-2s, 1099s, K-1s, and other source documents to build workpapers and review returns for tax professionals preparing 1040s and business returns.

AI & Machine LearningFintechSaaS

Dave Haase(CPA and Founder)

United States United States United Statestonic.aiin

Uvarouvaro.com

Uvaro provides live training, career coaching, and community support to help people build skills for tech sales and other digital careers.

EdTechFuture of WorkSales Tech

Vulcan Elementsvulcanelements.com

Vulcan Elements manufactures rare earth magnets for critical applications in defense, semiconductors, satellites, data centers, and industrial equipment.

Advanced ManufacturingDefense TechNew MaterialsBenson, US

Daniel Aronowitz(Executive Officer, Director)John Maslin(Executive Officer, Director)inDan Aronowitz(Director)

BoardDaniel Borok(Director)

Wagmowagmo.ioin

Wagmo offers employee benefits including wellness programs, insurance products, and veterinary telehealth services.

HealthtechHR TechInsurTechBoston, US

Graham Ober(Director)Christine Ann Horvath(Executive Officer, Director)Alison Foxworth(Executive Officer, Director)Clara Sieg(Director)

Workstreamworkstream.io

Zumperzumper.com𝕏

Zumper is a digital marketplace connecting renters with rental listings and property managers with quality tenants across the U.S. and Canada.

MarketplacesPropTech<UNKNOWN>, US

Russell Middleton(Founder)inMark Davis(Executive Officer)Vishal Makhijani(Executive Officer)Brian Coyne(Executive Officer)Taylor Glass-Moore(Executive Officer, Director)Khaled Alami(Executive Officer)

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.

Frequently asked questions

What stage does Xfund invest at?: Xfund invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages.
What is Xfund's typical check size?: Xfund typically writes checks of $50K – $500K.
What sectors does Xfund focus on?: Xfund focuses on AI & Machine Learning, Deep Tech, Sector Agnostic.
Where is Xfund located?: Xfund is headquartered in Palo Alto, US.
Does Xfund lead rounds?: Yes, Xfund leads investment rounds.

Media · Podcasts & interviews

featuring the team

Investor Series - Brandon Farwell, VC, Xfund - Rebel One Live

Rebel One · Brandon Farwell

Images

Co-investors · 53

Felicis Ventures

Felicis Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that has backed founders for over 20 years, leading or co-leading the majority of its investments across seed and Series A rounds.

Both backed · 3

Chalk Distributed Spectrum │ Home Guideline

$500K – $15M

Future Planet Capital

Future Planet Capital is a UK-founded, impact-led venture capital firm that invests globally in high-growth companies emerging from top universities and centres of innovation.

Both backed · 3

23andMe Curebase Guideline

Notable Capital

Notable Capital is an early-stage venture firm that partners closely with founders, providing hands-on operational support through a platform team of experienced operators across hiring, sales, leadership development, storytelling, and engineering.

Both backed · 2

CurebaseUnited States United States United States

Greycroft

Greycroft is a venture capital firm that partners with founders across multiple industries and geographies, investing in software, sustainability, and consumer brands.

Both backed · 2

ZumperMedical knowledge platform

$500K – $10M

Sequoia Capital

Sequoia Capital is a venture capital firm that partners with founders to build technology companies, with a strong current focus on artificial intelligence.

Both backed · 1

23andMe

$4.4M – $214M

GV (Google Ventures)

GV (formerly Google Ventures) is a venture investment firm that backs founders across many industries, aiming to build long-term relationships and support companies across multiple stages and milestones.

Both backed · 1

Medical knowledge platform

$250K – $50M

Craft Ventures

Craft Ventures is a venture capital firm founded and run by former founders, operators, and investors who provide startups with hands-on support, senior talent access, and proven scaling playbooks.

Both backed · 1

Medical knowledge platform

$50K – $50M

Founder Collective

Founder Collective is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on seed and pre-seed investments across all sectors.

Both backed · 1

AirOps

Uncork Capital

Uncork Capital is a seed-stage venture firm that backs founders at the earliest stage, before their potential is widely recognized.

Both backed · 1

Forma

$3M – $5M

Streamlined Ventures

Streamlined Ventures is an early-stage venture firm that partners with founders and invests at the seed stage to help build large-scale companies.

Both backed · 1

Kea

$100K – $1M

Bling Capital

Bling Capital is a seed-stage venture firm that backs entrepreneurs seeking to find and scale product-market fit, supported by its Bling Product Council of over 100 product leaders.

Both backed · 1

Prive

$1M – $5M

Headline

Headline is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage consumer internet and mobile companies across global markets.

Both backed · 1

Zumper

$661K – $103M

▶41 more co-investors

F-Prime Capital Partners Goodwater Capital Wing Dawn Capital LLP Propel Venture Partners Andreessen Horowitz General Catalyst Khosla Ventures Benchmark First Round Capital BoxGroup DCVC (Data Collective)DST Global Innovation Endeavors Caffeinated Capital Addition Ulu Ventures Next47 Ridge Ventures Harrison Metal QueensBridge Venture Partners Pareto Holdings Costanoa Ventures Betaworks Ventures Management, Llc General Atlantic Notion Capital 23andMe Company Capital Decibel Partners Work-Bench NewView Capital White Star Capital Relay Ventures BDC Venture Capital Construct Capital BIOSPRING PARTNERS Bolt Green Bay Ventures Novo Holdings C3 Ventures North Bridge Venture Partners & Growth Equity

Firms observed investing alongside Xfund, from public investor directories. Shared companies are the overlap with Xfund's recorded portfolio.

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