Episode 444 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Laura Rippy, Managing Partner and Board Member at Alumni Ventures.
When you see the rankings of the top VC firms, you often hear the big brands out there like Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, Sequoia, Accel, and others… but did you know that one of the top 20 VC firms, as determined by CB Insights, is based in Manchester, NH? Yes – Manchvegas, where I grew up, so I find that stat of particular interest.
Founded in 2014, AV’s mission has always been to provide individual investors with professional-grade access to elite venture capital investing opportunities. It is a category that they pretty much created and it is not only working, but it is thriving.
AV is continuously listed as one of the most active VC firms with thousands of investments made and over $1.6B in committed capital. Portfolio companies include Groq, the buzzing AI chip startup; Oura, the smart ring wearable company that recently filed for an IPO; Mercor, which was most recently valued at a decacorn status; and Apollo Atomics, a company that you might recognize, as I just had their CEO on The VentureFizz Podcast a few weeks ago.
Laura comes to venture capital with a deep background as a former CEO and operator. In addition to serving on the board, Laura oversees multiple fund families at Alumni Ventures, including their Dartmouth fund called Green D Ventures, their Harvard fund called The Yard Ventures, their Women’s Fund, and US Strategic Tech Fund.
In this episode, we cover:
* Laura’s background as an operator and how she made the transition into venture capital.
* The story and model behind AV, and how they built a $1.6B+ platform that democratizes VC access for accredited investors.
* The current state of the markets in terms of trends in private vs. public markets, and high-profile portfolio stories like Oura and Northwood Space which is founded by Bridgit Mendler.
* Deep dives into the various sectors that Laura concentrates on in terms of making investments.
* How AV leverages its massive network and AI back office to add tangible value to its portfolio companies.
* What she looks for in early-stage founders and the specific deal dynamics that signal a winning investment.
* And so much more!
