Facts
- HQ
- Seattle, Washington, US
- Sectors
- Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
- Founded
- 2016
- Employees
- 16
- Last fund
- Flying Fish Fund III, LP · $49.3M · 2024 SEC Form D
- Funds raised
- 3 funds SEC Form D filings
- Total capital
- $129.7M SEC Form D filings
Seattle VCs Report 28% Women in Senior Roles, Nearly Double U.S. Average of 14.2%
Seattle-area venture capital firms have nearly double the national share of women in senior roles (28% vs. 14.2%), with 25 women among 88 partners across 21 Washington firms, though overall parity remains distant and 61% of U.S. VC firms still have no women in key decision-making roles.
Pioneer Square Labs raises $100M Fund II to back 30+ Pacific Northwest startups with $1–3M initial checks
Seattle-based Pioneer Square Labs raised $100 million for its second venture fund, exceeding its $80 million target due to strong institutional demand, and will invest across more than 30 early-stage Pacific Northwest companies with initial checks of $1–3 million. The firm operates a startup studio (raised $29 million) and a venture fund model that splits capital roughly half to studio spinouts and half to external startups.
Founders’ Co-op raises $50M fifth fund to back 20–25 Pacific Northwest early-stage startups
Seattle venture firm Founders’ Co-op raised a $50 million fifth fund, its largest to date, to invest in 20–25 early-stage startups across the Pacific Northwest. The larger fund reflects growing deal sizes and outside LP interest as the region sees record startup funding and more unicorns.
TiE Seattle VC Panel: 2020 Ended with Record Startup Funding and SPAC Surge, Investors Expect Strong 2021
A TiE Seattle panel of four Seattle-area VCs said despite early pandemic layoffs and valuation fears, 2020 ended with record startup funding, VC capital raises, and strong exits, and they expect continued momentum in 2021 driven by SPAC activity and pandemic-driven innovation. Panelists highlighted increased founding activity, higher valuations, and pandemic-forced business improvements creating investor opportunities.
Wyze names former Nike exec Francis Lee as first CFO; OutSystems raises $150M at $9.5B valuation as CMO relocates to Seattle
Wyze Labs named longtime Nike executive Francis Lee as its first CFO as the Kirkland smart-home startup expands after a Series A; OutSystems closed a $150M funding round valuing it at $9.5B while moving CMO Robson Grieve to Seattle. Additional regional moves include Lisa Nelson joining Flying Fish Partners as a venture partner and Apptio naming Kevin Meeks chief customer officer.
Pioneer Square Labs spins out 25 startups in five years; six launched during pandemic surge
Seattle startup studio Pioneer Square Labs (PSL) spun out 25 startups in five years — six during a six-month pandemic stretch — by rapidly testing ideas, though it has yet to produce a breakout unicorn and faces criticism over founder dilution.
Madrona Venture Group Raises $345M for 8th Fund and $161M for 2nd Later-Stage Fund in Largest Ever $500M Capital Raise
Madrona Venture Group raised over $500 million for its largest fundraise ever, including $345 million for an eighth early-stage fund targeting 35-40 Pacific Northwest startups and $161 million for a second later-stage Acceleration Fund. The firm continues to focus on supporting the Pacific Northwest tech ecosystem while also backing later-stage companies across North America.
GeekWire Podcast: Seattle now home to 10 unicorns — most are enterprise/cloud firms, six have immigrant founders, none have female co-founders or CEOs
Seattle’s tech scene now includes 10 privately held unicorns, with most focused on enterprise software/cloud, six having immigrant founders and six having active co-founders with Microsoft ties; none have female co-founders or CEOs. The GeekWire Podcast discusses these patterns, the region’s tech-community challenges (including tensions with city leadership), and features guest commentator Heather Redman of Flying Fish Partners.
Symbl raises $4.7M led by Crosscut Ventures with Amazon Alexa Fund to expand conversational AI for enterprise
Seattle startup Symbl raised $4.7 million in a round led by Crosscut Ventures with participation from Amazon’s Alexa Fund and several other investors to expand its conversational AI API that transcribes real-time conversations and extracts insights for meetings, customer care, and sales. Founded in 2018 by Surbhi Rathore and Toshish Jawale, the 30-person company says pandemic-driven digital communication growth has increased demand for its services.
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan’s First Term Tried to Reconcile Tech Firms and Critics but Left Her Politically Isolated
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan tried to bridge tech companies and their critics during her first term by courting firms like Amazon, Expedia, and Apple, but her efforts pleased neither business leaders nor progressive activists, leaving her politically isolated and prompting her decision not to seek a second term.
Vouched raises $3M to expand AI ID-verification as COVID-19 drives demand; will expand to Europe
Seattle startup Vouched raised $3 million to expand AI-powered ID verification services as COVID-19 boosts demand for remote identity checks; the company has 80+ customers and has verified over 850,000 people across 50 countries.
2048 Ventures Hires Seattle Investor Minda Brusse to Lead Pre-Seed Sourcing in Seattle and Portland
NYC-based 2048 Ventures has hired Seattle investor Minda Brusse as a venture partner to source pre-seed investments in Seattle and Portland while she remains at First Row Partners; 2048 launched last year with a $27 million fund and has backed 29 companies.
Picnic raises $3M from existing investors to commercialize pizza-making robot producing 300 12-inch pizzas/hour
Seattle startup Picnic raised $3 million from existing investors to accelerate commercial rollout of its pizza-making robot capable of producing up to 300 12-inch customized pizzas per hour, citing increased pandemic-driven demand and plans to use funds for development, hires, and marketing.
Seattle VC Flying Fish files to raise $75M 'Flying Fish Fund II' after $80M debut fund
Seattle venture capital firm Flying Fish, founded in 2018, is raising a second fund called Flying Fish Fund II with an SEC filing showing a $75 million offering; the firm previously raised an $80 million first fund and focuses on AI/ML startups in the Pacific Northwest.
Ignition Partners investors spin out Fuse Venture Partners led by Kellan Carter, Cameron Borumand and Seahawks star Bobby Wagner
A group of investors from Seattle VC firm Ignition Partners, including managing partner John Connors, have launched a spinoff called Fuse Venture Partners led by general partners Kellan Carter and Cameron Borumand and featuring Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner as a venture partner. Ignite will sunset its brand while Fuse focuses on doubling down in Seattle and managing new investments, with Wagner committing to active involvement.
Joe Coffee raises $1.3M in second seed round led by Craft Ventures as mobile orders surge 20x
Seattle startup Joe Coffee raised $1.3 million in a second seed round led by Craft Ventures to expand its mobile order-and-pay and rewards platform, which now serves over 1,000 independent coffee shops and has seen sales grow 20x since March during the pandemic.
Nomad Go launches HealthySpaces to monitor occupancy, mask use and distancing; raised $2.7M
Seattle startup Nomad Go launched HealthySpaces, a computer-vision product that provides real-time occupancy, density counts, and mask and social-distancing compliance for retailers, running models locally to preserve privacy. The four-year-old company has deployments in over 100 locations and raised $2.7 million in September from Flying Fish Partners, Fitz Gate Ventures and Vulcan Capital.
Ex-DeepMind Engineers’ Startup Phaidra Raises $1.5M to Build In-House AI for Industrial Customers, Launches in Seattle
Stealth startup Phaidra, founded by ex-DeepMind engineers Jim Gao and Vedavyas Panneershelvam with industry veteran Katherine Hoffman, raised $1.5 million to build AI tools that let industrial companies develop in-house models while retaining data and IP. The four-person company chose Seattle for its mix of tech ecosystem and industrial roots and is currently building a beta product.
Microsoft’s M12 Leads $700,000 Round for Venture Out, Seattle 12-Week Program Helping Corporate Tech Workers Launch Startups
Venture Out is a Seattle-based 12-week program that helps corporate tech workers launch startups by providing mentorship, requiring 10–20 hours/week commitment, and taking 4% equity. The organization raised $700,000 in a round led by Microsoft’s M12 and is accepting applications for a second cohort starting July 13.
Tomorrow says app traffic rises 200% as COVID-19 drives demand for free wills; company serves 400,000 users
Seattle startup Tomorrow reports a more than 200% increase in traffic to its free legal will–creating app and falling customer acquisition costs as COVID-19 spurs interest in end-of-life planning. The company — founded by Dave Hanley in 2016, built with 52 attorneys and serving over 400,000 customers — offers wills and long-term life insurance options.
Seattle Startup Picnic Raises $5M Seed Funding for Pizza-Making Robot Assembling 300 Pizzas Per Hour
Seattle startup Picnic raised $5 million in a seed round to advance their pizza-making robot, which can assemble 300 pizzas per hour and has attracted global interest. The funding will help develop the next version and expand pilot programs, addressing labor shortages in the food industry.
Fund History
People
See all 4-
Heather Redman Founder, Co-Founder and Managing Partner
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Frank Chang Managing Director, Flying Fish Partners
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Geoff Harris Partner
