We will not sign an NDA just to see your pitch deck. We understand you might be sensitive to sharing your idea, but think about the following: requiring us to sign an NDA stops you from getting valuable feedback about the solution to the problem, which most likely will need refinement and criticism. So, instead of focusing on the idea itself, focus on the problem it’s trying to solve.
If we are going to do a deep dive on the technical part of your innovation or the code itself, and there is something completely novel, then you can use an NDA as we’ll be looking at everything you’re doing.
We are a small team of investors, so we can be flexible and proactive depending on mutual interests. However, the less time we have to make a decision, the more certainty about the company’s success we have to have. All in all, the answer varies case by case. There are some basic steps everyone goes through. Here’s what you can expect:
We are currently focused on science-intensive innovations across a variety of verticals, including Artificial Intelligence, FinTech, Robotics, Big Data, Cloud, Consumer Mobile, Advertising, and Autonomous Vehicles. However, we are entrepreneurial in the way we allocate our capital and we are open to exploring opportunities from other industries as well, so don’t get discouraged if your startup doesn’t fall into those categories!
GVA Capital – San Francisco (906 Broadway San Francisco CA 94177)
GVA Capital – Sunnyvale (Plug and Play Tech Center, 440 N Wolfe Road Sunnyvale CA)
You can send pitch decks to [email protected] and general questions to [email protected]. It might take us a while to get back to you, but we’ll do our best!
We value referrals from people leading and employed by GVA Capital portfolio companies, partner VC firms for co-investing, angel investors, industry experts, or other entrepreneurs. It gives us more data to work with.
A direct referral will get a quicker response, but don’t hesitate emailing us yourself (contact details can be found at the bottom of the page). We believe that good ideas can come from anywhere. Our team reviews every investment opportunity regardless of how we received them.
No, we do not value different criteria differently as we look your whole story in its entirety. When going through our decision-making process we will look very closely at the team, the importance and potential of the problem you aspire to solve, and your technology.
However, we put probably the biggest emphasis on the product or service that you are creating. Is it just the raw idea? Do you have a beta version? Do you have customer traction? We highly value entrepreneurs that have rolled up their sleeves to prove the value of their products and have actually built something. Your customers’ feedback is the best feedback!
Yes, we review all the investment opportunities independently of the country of origin.
No. We like to own enough of the company to make sure that we can dedicate meaningful time and resources to help you build.
We don’t necessarily require a lead position. However, if we are interested in the investment opportunity it’s in our best interest to have a meaningful stake in every company in order to be able to spend enough time to assist the founders. We have a long track record of partnering with outstanding VCs and angels.
Most of the rounds we’re a part of range from $1M to $7M, but we’ve gone lower and higher in some cases.
Typically, our initial investment in a startup ranges from $50K to $350K, but we’ve gone higher and lower in some cases, depending on the nature of the startup (hardware vs software), type of round (bridge, seed or series A), company’s potential and investment criteria of the round. We support our companies with follow-on investments. We can also invite other investors on board and help you fundraise.
We are not your daddy’s typical Venture Capital firm. We are a “startup” VC – opportunistic, risk-takers and pretty fearless.
We can find a way to close a $20M deal while managing a microfund. We can open a hedge fund because it’s fun and a great learning opportunity. We can create a landing program for foreign entrepreneurs because we believe in their mission. We can obtain a broker-dealer license because why not. We can travel all the way to Kazakhstan because we heard they were making something cool in transportation. We can negotiate with a whole power plant to cut the costs for our startups to test their product line. We can even buy a an old Catholic church because it looks awesome and save it from demolition. In fact, we did. We can do a lot because we’re different.