Version One backs mission-driven founders who are early in new areas — often before a category is obvious, crowded, or even fully formed. They look for founders 'creating categories that don't exist yet,' reasoning that 'when a category is branded and VCs are lining up, it's usually too late' for an early-stage firm like V1. Historically built on network-effect businesses (marketplaces, communities, social platforms), the firm has expanded into AI, robotics/physical AI, deep tech, and biology. They typically lead or co-lead pre-seed and seed rounds globally and partner closely through the earliest, messiest stages.
A specific, urgent, first-hand pain point the founder is mission-driven to solve — framed around the customer whose job is on the line, not an abstract idea.
“Whose 'job is on the line' if they don't purchase your product? And is there buyer desperation?” — Why now? Getting to the core of any investment
“we place high value in backing mission driven founders who have experienced a problem first hand” — Angela Tran
“Who is the product created for and how is the solution solving their urgent problem?” — Angela Tran
A solution that targets the realistic 'low hanging fruit' first and, in hardware/deep tech, is built by founders focused on commercialization rather than technology in search of a problem.
“We're particularly interested in founders who are focused on commercialization, versus a technology solution looking for a problem.” — What We've Learned From Investing in Deep Tech
“Over the past year, we've become more convinced that it's not quite economical to automate everything (at least not yet).” — Angela Tran
“The bottlenecks today — better prompting, smarter verification, novel business models — are where startup teams can win.” — Boris Wertz
Being early into a large, emerging wave with wide-open design space and no natural competitors yet — a category the market hasn't imagined, not a crowded one with branded terminology.
“There are no natural competitors, at least early on, and you've got a chance to define and lead the category.” — An Update on Version One's Thesis
“When a category is branded and VCs are lining up, it's usually too late for an early-stage firm like V1 to invest.” — Angela Tran
“Strawberries are a smart wedge into the market: they're a higher margin food and one of the Environmental Working Group's 'dirty dozen.'” — Angela Tran
Evidence of acute customer urgency and buyer desperation more than headline revenue metrics at pre-seed/seed; the startup journey is non-linear, so signals of pull matter more than a straight-line chart.
“macro tailwinds are often not enough. That's why we also consider urgency (e.g. buyer desperation and pressure).” — Why now? Getting to the core of any investment
“The startup journey is never straight…in fact, some of our best performing companies are pivots” — Angela Tran
“why now for this [specific] customer/user and why not before?” — Angela Tran
Mission-driven founders who are relentless learning machines and problem-solvers; at the earliest stage the firm is underwriting the founder above all, including their willingness to pivot.
“at the earliest stages, it is ALL about the founder and what drives their passion towards solving a specific pain point” — A Reflection on a Decade: 10 Lessons After 10 Years in VC
“Execution matters more than ever, and the quality of founding teams will be decisive.” — Boris Wertz
“Deep tech founders should have a strong hardware/science background if that's core to their business and domain expertise.” — Angela Tran
“Anchored by world-class scientific collaborators from academia or research labs. This is non-negotiable for us.” — Angela Tran
Models that build durable defensibility — network effects in marketplaces/communities, or vertical integration and high barriers to entry in hardware. The biggest disruptions pair a tech shift with a new business model.
“The most powerful disruptions will come when technology shifts align with new business models.” — Three Years of ChatGPT: Where We Are With AI Today
“We love these platforms for many reasons, but the primary one is the power of their network effects and how they create a high degree of defensibility for startups.” — Boris Wertz
“Full vertical integration is the way to go!” — Angela Tran
Genuine, durable moats: being so early there are no natural competitors yet, network-effect defensibility, or hardware barriers that are hard to replicate once scaled. AI moats come from sticky, deeply integrated workflows.
“When you're early into a large wave, there are no natural competitors.” — Five Posts That Define How We Think
“Hardware is hard to start up and scale; but once you scale, you have the opportunity to build a highly defensible company.” — Angela Tran
“Products with sticky adoption and deep integration into workflows” — Boris Wertz
A clear, specific reason the opportunity is viable today and was not before — a market pull or tech shift creating urgency for a particular customer, not just generic macro tailwinds.
“what are the tailwinds that support this new venture? Why is there a market pull today that didn't exist last year or the year before?” — Why now? Getting to the core of any investment
“There's a window here. And we want to be early to it.” — Angela Tran
“macro tailwinds are often not enough. That's why we also consider urgency (e.g. buyer desperation and pressure).” — Angela Tran
Clear differentiation and a unique insight, since capital is a commodity; warm introductions strongly preferred. They typically lead or co-lead pre-seed/seed and commit from Day 1 before the solution is obvious.
“You need to be clearly differentiated: what's your unique insight into a specific opportunity, your unique network that generates deal flow, your unique value proposition that gets you into deals?” — Fundraising Advice for Emerging GPs
“backing exceptional founders early — often before a category is obvious, crowded, or even fully formed” — Boris Wertz
“A warm intro is even more important for emerging managers” — Boris Wertz
“When you're early into a large wave, there's so much more design space for a startup and founding team.”
“why now for this [specific] customer/user and why not before?”