WOMEN IN VC
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Dive into our map, featuring the most valuable VC-backed female-founded company, top investors, and remarks from startup founders and venture capitalists across 10 key US metro areas.
These women are leading the uptick in investment for female founders
Boston
New York
Philadelphia
Washington, DC
Atlanta
Chicago
Austin
Los Angeles
San Francisco
Seattle
Click to explore data on 2017 US VC investment, top investors and more.
In 2017, female-founded companies raised $10.5 billion. Meet the women who helped make that happen.
Business software startup founded in 2013 VC raised: $46M Valuation: $88.5M
At the end of the day, exits breed outcome.
Usermind
Co-founder and CEO,
Michel Feaster
You look at Stitch Fix, you look at Diane Greene, you get enough founders driving great exits who are female, eventually people get more blind to that fact. ... If you get to success, no one will care if you're a woman. The numbers speak for themselves. The unconscious bias acts most when there's no data, when you're at the seed or Series A, because what you are asking people to do is bet on you with no data."
FOUNDER IN FOCUS
capital invested in female-founded companies in 2017
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
most active investor in female-founded companies since 2006
(estimated)
highest valued female-founded company
30 deals
$650M valuation
$266M
47% YoY 112% vs. 2012
View profile
15% of all VC invested in metro
HBCU.vc is a student-run VC firm whose investors are enrolled at historically or primarily black universities
Black Founders connects and equips black entrepreneurs and fosters economic growth.
VC IN FOCUS
I've been specifically working in racial equity for seven years now.
HBCU.vc
Black Founders Startup Ventures
Co-founder, Managing director,
Hadiyah Mujhid
It's slow-moving, but there is small movement of the needle. We have more people talking about the need, whereas seven years ago it was one or two people. ... I think what we are going to see [is a] completely new way of VC and funding entrepreneurs in the next two years."
14% YoY 281% vs. 2012
11% of all VC invested in metro
88 deals
$3.5B valuation
$2.8B
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA
Multimedia and design software startup founded in 2012 VC raised: $5M
When I go into any meeting, for a woman, the tricky part is we have to build credibility a lot faster and stronger than our male counterparts.
Enplug
Nanxi Liu
I was the sole person in charge of fundraising. ... I took my co-founder into one VC meeting, and I remember the VC partner kept looking to him for questions, and my co-founder said, 'She is the engineer. You should ask her those questions.'"
117% vs. 2012
7% YoY
$860M valuation
$689M
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
A VC firm focused on women-led companies
We have spent a lot of time as a community over the last several years
True Wealth Ventures
Founding general partner,
Sara Brand
looking at what we need to do to lay the groundwork to make Austin the No. 1 city for women entrepreneurs to start their companies, which is primarily capital and mentoring and role models. We, of course, are raising the True Wealth Ventures VC fund to specifically invest in women entrepreneurs and are proactively looking at companies across Texas."
9% of all VC invested in metro
9% YoY 342% vs. 2012
19 deals
$1B valuation
$104M
Austin-Round Rock, TX
TeacherCare helps families and organizations find teachers for childcare and educational services.
Women Tech Founders connects women in tech through storytelling and networking events.
*includes Outcome Health's $500M round
There is definitely a surge of energy that is happening around women in startups,
TeacherCare
Women Tech Founders
Founder and CEO, Founder and CEO,
Terri Brax
both on the founder side and now on the investor side. … We do see the wins happening. … There are better pipelines and better companies. They are being built with stronger support. However, the growth in innovative startups means there are additional funding needs and opportunities. It has absolutely become a better environment for Chicago's women to get funded, but the fight for equal funding is still in force."
32% of all VC invested in metro
517%* YoY 270% vs. 2012
16 deals
$5.5B valuation
$593M
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
Online lending platform founded in 2009 VC raised: $491M Valuation: $1.2B
Most active investor in female-founded companies since 2006:
*Female-founded companies in Atlanta raised $3.06M in 2016
Atlanta needs to start first with improving access to capital,
Kabbage
Co-founder,
Kathryn Petralia
then move on to women- and minority-founded businesses. Atlanta is an incredibly diverse city full of talent, so if funding comes to the city, it will find diversity."
There was a seven-way tie of firms with five deals each, including Canaan Partners and TTV Capital.
28% of all VC invested in metro
10,308%* YoY 272% vs. 2012
$1.2B valuation
$318M
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA
A platform that helps black women entrepreneurs gain access to capital.
At some point, we are going to have to start figuring out how to press this, besides us continually screaming as women saying,
Black Girl Ventures
Founder and CEO,
Shelly Bell
'I'm worthy, I'm smart, I have a good venture.' Locally, from a community standpoint, we are supportive of each other, the women here rally behind each other, [and] they push each other forward. ... At some point, I think we need to figure out how to do that outside of just women. ... Maybe over the course of the next three to five years we will start to see change, because when women want change, we get it."
12% of all VC invested in metro
48% YoY 318% vs. 2012
12 deals
$93M valuation
$187M
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
A group of angel investors focused on early-stage companies in Philadelphia
It does make a difference if there is a woman investor
Robin Hood Ventures
Executive director,
Ellen Weber
in the mix whether women get funded. ... From what I believe is … once women get the initial funding, they do pretty well getting that follow-on funding. You take someone like Dana Donofree—she creates lingerie for women who've had breast cancer. She walks into a room that's all men, well, it's hard for them to understand. When she walked into the Robin Hood room with eight women, it instantly connected."
17% of all VC invested in metro
225% YoY 1,016% vs. 2012
53 deals
$67M valuation
$145M
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
Fantasy sports platform founded in 2009 VC raised: $412M Valuation: $1.1B
My fear is that it's off-putting to women to even try.
FanDuel
Co-founder and former EVP,
Lesley Eccles
I think we need [to] make more of the success stories that are out there, to encourage more women to get into this. There have been so many horror stories in the last year. I generally worry that the upcoming generation is thinking, 'You know what? I am not going to try that because it's way too hard,' and that would be the most disappointing thing in my mind. I think, 'Look at the people with the money. Who are the people with the money and the control?' Until that starts to shift, you aren't going to see that number change."
14% of all VC invested in metro
27% YoY 295% vs. 2012
52 deals
$1.1B valuation
$1.8B
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA
Wondermile is a startup founded last year that hasn't officially launched.
XFactor invests at the pre-seed and seed stage in female-founded companies.
VC/ FOUNDER IN FOCUS
Our ultimate goal is to have women getting 50% of the capital."
Wondermile
XFactor Ventures
Investment Partner, Co-founder and CEO,
Anna Palmer
21% of all VC invested in metro
95% YoY 704% vs. 2012
35 deals
$1.4B valuation
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
Dive into our map, featuring the most valuable VC-backed female-founded company in each metro area, top investors, and remarks from startup founders and venture capitalists across the US.
VC investment in female-founded companies inches upward in US venture capital hubs