Fundraising Fox

Phil Black

Investor

Investment Team at True Ventures · Board director at Kurtosys Systems · Board director at Inventables · Board director at Sano Intelligence

San Francisco Bay Area

Writes $500K – $3M checks · typically $20M

Find your path to Phil

538 people in our graph share verified history with Phil — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.

Mike VolpiunlockedPhil: together at Stanford University (1984–1988)
×2Phil: together at Stanford University
×6Phil: together at True Ventures
×3Phil: together at Summit Partners

About

Philip Black co-founded an early institutional seed fund, backed Fitbit, Peloton and Automattic at earliest stages, maps companies across four risk categories, and coaches founders on reversible versus irreversible decisions.

Contact· self-published, not guessed

Likely email· guessed from name + firm domain, not firm-published

Invests in

AI & Machine LearningBiotechClimate TechConsumerDeep TechHardwareSector Agnostic

Beyond investing

Founded
Phil Black founded Blacksmith Capital, an early-stage seed investment fund. Phil Black co-founded True Ventures.
Education
Studied at Stanford
Hobbies
Phil Black enjoys art, wine, and travel, and names London as his favorite place outside the San Francisco Bay Area.

From published sources — common ground for a warm intro.

Board director at Kurtosys Systems

Intro paths

In turn, Phil can intro founders to Kurtosys Systems's investors below.

Board director at Inventables

Intro paths

In turn, Phil can intro founders to Inventables's investors below.

Board director at Sano Intelligence

Intro paths

In turn, Phil can intro founders to Sano Intelligence's investors below.

Co-founders at Sano Intelligence

AP
Ashwin PushpalaExecutive Officer, Director

Experience

  1. Kurtosys SystemsChair of the Board of Directorscurrent2006 — presentLondon Area, United Kingdom
  2. True VenturesCo-Foundercurrent2006 — presentSan Francisco, CA
  3. AutomatticInvestor2005 — 2024
  4. InventablesInvestor2009 — 2024
  5. Blacksmith CapitalCo-Founder2003 — 2006
  6. Synchronoss TechnologiesBoard of Director2000 — 2004
  7. ABS VenturesGeneral Partner1999 — 2002
  8. Telogy NetworksBoard of Director1997 — 1999
  9. Weiss, Peck & Greer Venture PartnersGeneral Partner1995 — 1999
  10. Summit PartnersSr. Associate and Associate1988 — 1994

Skills & more

Mergers & Acquisitions7Business Modeling4

From Phil's professional profile.

Investments

Board seats

AutomatticCopperHelpShiftKurtosysStrongDM

Investor

AccessPayCatalyst SoftwareClayStackDesk.comDirectlyDirectusErnestaGoalBased InvestorsHelpshiftKurtosysMessage BusMoneta HealthNeoplantsOrrecoOutboundworksTenkaraThistle TechnologiesTiamat Sciences

Per curated public sources.

Colleagues at True Ventures

Frequently asked questions

Who is Phil Black?
Philip Black co-founded an early institutional seed fund, backed Fitbit, Peloton and Automattic at earliest stages, maps companies across four risk categories, and coaches founders on reversible versus irreversible decisions.
Where does Phil Black work?
Phil Black is Investment Team at True Ventures and Board director at Kurtosys Systems and Board director at Inventables and Board director at Sano Intelligence.
What does Phil Black invest in?
Phil Black invests in AI & Machine Learning, Biotech, Climate Tech, Consumer, Deep Tech, Hardware, Sector Agnostic.
What check size does Phil Black write?
Phil Black typically writes checks of $500K – $3M.
What boards does Phil Black sit on?
Phil Black holds tracked board seats at Automattic, Copper, HelpShift, Kurtosys, StrongDM.
What companies has Phil Black invested in?
Investments tracked here include AccessPay, Catalyst Software, ClayStack, Desk.com, Directly, Directus, Ernesta, GoalBased Investors, Helpshift, Kurtosys, Message Bus, Moneta Health, and 6 more.
Where did Phil Black go to school?
Phil Black studied at Stanford University (A.B., Economics).

Same school

Shared employers