Countdown Capital

ActiveVenture Capital

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Updated: Jan 22, 2026 ·

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Investments Made

Date	Company	Round	Lead Investor(s)	Co-Investor(s)
Oct 1, 2025	Arbor Energy	$55.0M Series A	—	11.2 Capital, Afore Capital, Aniq Kassam, Lowercarbon Capital, Orca Climate Fund
Jul 1, 2025	Hadrian	$110.0M Series C	—	2048 Ventures, Afore Capital, Also Capital, Alumni Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Atomic, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Daft Capital, Felicis Ventures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, One Way Ventures, Paradox Capital, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Stash Ventures, Stellar Capital, The Hit Forge, Virginia Venture Partners, Austin Ogilvie, Harry Hurst, Joao Otavio Oliverio, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mattia Astori, Rob Meyerson, Sahin Boydas, Sam Altman, Sohila Zadran, Vineet Jain, William Miller
Jul 1, 2025	Rune Technologies	$24.0M Series A	—	Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Floodgate, Founders Fund, Taylor Brandt, Lux Capital, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Stash Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Rob Meyerson
Jul 1, 2025	Ramp	$500.0M Series E	—	8VC, Afore Capital, Alumni Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Bessemer Venture Partners, BoxGroup, Caffeinated Capital, Canvas Ventures, Chemistry VC, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Contrary Capital, Cubit Capital, Diaspora Ventures, FirstMile Ventures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Giant Ventures, Industry Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Launch House Ventures, LGF, Lux Capital, Pareto Holdings, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Sequoia Capital, Seven Seven Six, Stash Ventures, Susquehanna Capital, The House Fund, Thrive Capital, Bradley Horowitz, Catherine Wood, Chafic Kazoun, Eduardo Alcalay, Harry Hurst, Javaughn Lawrence, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Lucas Medola, Mark Casady, Rob Meyerson, Scott Belsky, Teddy Citrin, Zachary Hargreaves
Jun 1, 2025	Ramp	$200.0M Series E	—	8VC, Afore Capital, Alumni Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Bessemer Venture Partners, BoxGroup, Caffeinated Capital, Canvas Ventures, Chemistry VC, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Contrary Capital, Cubit Capital, Diaspora Ventures, FirstMile Ventures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Giant Ventures, Industry Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Launch House Ventures, LGF, Lux Capital, Pareto Holdings, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Sequoia Capital, Seven Seven Six, Stash Ventures, Susquehanna Capital, The House Fund, Thrive Capital, Bradley Horowitz, Catherine Wood, Chafic Kazoun, Eduardo Alcalay, Harry Hurst, Javaughn Lawrence, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Lucas Medola, Mark Casady, Rob Meyerson, Scott Belsky, Teddy Citrin, Zachary Hargreaves
May 1, 2025	Quantum Systems	$180.0M Series C	—	Afore Capital, Alpine Space Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Anthemis Group, Balderton Capital, Browder Capital, CRV, Fireside Ventures, Founders Fund, Global Innovation Fund, Hanabi Capital, HV Capital, Innovation Endeavors, LombardStreet Ventures, Mosaic Ventures, Mucker Capital, Glenn Solomon, Notion Capital, Pareto Holdings, Project A Ventures, Propeller VC, SCOR Ventures, #SecretFund, Sequoia Capital, Spark Capital, Vsquared Ventures, World Fund, Cory Levy, Dwipal Desai, Fritz Demopoulos, Jeff Bezos, Julian Stiefel, Julian Weselek, Richard Laxer, Rob Theis, Rolf Schrömgens, Thijn Lamers
Apr 1, 2025	UbiQD	$20.0M Series B	—	Afore Capital, Builders VC, Costanoa Ventures, Dellin Investments, JetBlue Technology Ventures, Mischief Venture Capital, Scout Ventures, Sam Altman
Mar 1, 2025	Swish Robotics	$3.0M Seed	—	7percent Ventures, Accel, Afore Capital, Alumni Ventures, Black Jays Investments, Boost Capital Partners, Browder Capital, Crosslink Capital, Cyberstarts VC, Exor Ventures, Fireside Ventures, Founders Fund, Maveron, Operator Collective, Pareto Holdings, RTP Global, Shield Capital, Shine Capital, TrueSight Ventures, Y Combinator, Cory Levy, DJ Patil, Jawed Karim, Paul Graham, Rich Miner, Sam Altman, Scott Belsky, Tim Griffin, Venus Williams
Feb 1, 2025	Saronic	$600.0M Series C	—	8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Avalanche VC, Battery Ventures, Bling Capital, BR Capital, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, CVS Health, Kelly Chen, Dunce Capital, Equal Ventures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, High Alpha, Hyde Park Venture Partners, IVP, Lazerow Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Lux Capital, Maven 11 Capital, Not Boring Capital, Picus Capital, Pillar VC, Ravelin Capital, Runa Capital, Saga, Spark Capital, Stash Ventures, Tusk Venture Partners, Union Square Ventures, Village Global, Y Combinator, Bradley Horowitz, Esther Dyson, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Kyle Vogt, Nick Sinai, Rob Meyerson, Trent McConaghy, Yoshua Bengio
Feb 1, 2025	Rune Technologies	$6.0M Seed	—	Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Floodgate, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Stash Ventures, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Rob Meyerson
Jan 1, 2025	Highnote	$90.0M Series B	—	Adams Street Partners, Afore Capital, Alex, Costanoa Ventures, DocuSign, JetBlue Technology Ventures, Mischief Venture Capital, Oak HC/FT, Offline Ventures, Scout Ventures, Renaud Laplanche, Sahin Boydas, Sam Altman
Jan 1, 2025	Castelion	$70.0M Series A	—	Afore Capital, Browder Capital, Fireside Ventures, Founders Fund, Pareto Holdings, Cory Levy
Sep 1, 2024	GALY	$33.0M Series B	—	Afore Capital, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Costanoa Ventures, Draper Associates, JetBlue Technology Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Mischief Venture Capital, Morpheus Ventures, Scout Ventures, WovenEarth Ventures
Sep 1, 2024	Focus Buddy	$500K Seed	—	Y Combinator, David Lieb, Julia DeWahl
Aug 1, 2024	Beacon AI	$15.0M Series A	—	Afore Capital, Alaya Capital, Alt Capital, ArcTern Ventures, Costanoa Ventures, Cottonwood Technology Fund, foobar.vc, Global Founders Capital, Gradient Ventures, Hiro Capital, JetBlue Technology Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Mischief Venture Capital, monashees, Greg Papadopoulos, Saga, Sarona Ventures, Scout Ventures, Union Square Ventures, Y Combinator, Amit Mukherjee, Arash Ferdowsi, Drew Houston, Eric Wu, Mathilde Collin, Sam Altman, Stanley Tang, Tim Griffin, William Hockey
Aug 1, 2024	SAGE Geosystems	$45.0M Series A	—	Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Floodgate, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Stash Ventures, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Rob Meyerson
Jul 1, 2024	Saronic	$180.0M Series B	—	8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Avalanche VC, Bling Capital, BR Capital, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Comcast Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, CVS Health, Kelly Chen, Dunce Capital, Equal Ventures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, High Alpha, Hyde Park Venture Partners, IVP, Lazerow Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Lux Capital, Maven 11 Capital, Not Boring Capital, Picus Capital, Pillar VC, Ravelin Capital, Runa Capital, Saga, Spark Capital, Stash Ventures, Tusk Venture Partners, Union Square Ventures, Village Global, Y Combinator, Bill Ackman, Bradley Horowitz, Esther Dyson, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Kyle Vogt, Rob Meyerson, Trent McConaghy, Yoshua Bengio
Jun 1, 2024	Better Health	$14.0M Series A	—	8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Comcast Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Floodgate, Founders Fund, FPV Fund, General Catalyst, Kapor Capital, Lux Capital, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Section 32, Stash Ventures, Time BioVentures, XYZ Venture Capital, Ash Rust, Ayo Omojola, Gokul Rajaram, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Rob Meyerson
Feb 1, 2024	Biofire	$7.0M Series A	—	14W, 20VC, Adjacent, Afore Capital, Also Capital, Anthemis Group, CapitalX, Matt Ocko, Dreamers VC, Elkstone, First Round Capital, Founders Fund, Greycroft, Greylock, Index Ventures, K2 Global, Liquid 2 Ventures, Night Capital, No Label Ventures, Paradigm, Rajan Anandan, Playground Global, RTP Global, SNR, Stellar Capital, Streamlined Ventures, Taurus Ventures, Trajectory Ventures, Valhalla Ventures, Venture Highway, Village Global, Virginia Venture Partners, Y Combinator, Alexandre Scialom, Ali Moiz, Alison Engel, Andrew Maywah, Arash Ferdowsi, Bradley Horowitz, Casey Neistat, Gokul Rajaram, Ilya Kondrashov, Immad Akhund, James Beshara, Jean Charles Samuelian, Mike Giampapa, Munish Varma, Steve Schlafman, Sumon Sadhu, Thibaud Elziere, Viral Bajaria
Feb 1, 2024	Octomind	$5.0M Seed	—	Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, CVentures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, Picus Capital, Polychain Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Samsung NEXT Ventures, SLVC, Stash Ventures, Balaji Srinivasan, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Nicolas Berggruen, Rob Meyerson
Feb 1, 2024	Hadrian	$92.0M Series B	—	11k Ventures, 1435 Capital Management, 2045 ventures, 2048 Ventures, 305 Ventures, 8090 Industries, 8VC, Afore Capital, Also Capital, Altai Ventures, Alumni Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Atomic, Ballistic Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bolt, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Daft Capital, Drive Capital, E1 Ventures, Felicis Ventures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Goat Capital, Good Growth Capital, Lux Capital, One Way Ventures, Paradox Capital, Picus Capital, Prime Movers Lab, Ravelin Capital, Saga, SpaceFund, Stash Ventures, Stellar Capital, Techstars, The Hit Forge, Tribe Capital, Virginia Venture Partners, Y Combinator, Zigg Capital, Alex Adelman, Austin Ogilvie, Dylan Taylor, Emil Lee, Gokul Rajaram, Harry Hurst, Joao Otavio Oliverio, Joshua Reeves, Justin Mateen, Kirill Silkin, Koen Koeppen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Louis Beryl, Mark Cuban, Mattia Astori, Natasha Ahmed, Rob Meyerson, Sahin Boydas, Sam Altman, Sohila Zadran, Sung ho Choi, Thomas Tull, Vineet Jain, Vivek Patel, William Miller, Zachary Hargreaves
Nov 1, 2023	Augment	$6.0M Seed	—	20VC, Afore Capital, Ascend Vietnam Ventures, Autotech Ventures, BILL, Browder Capital, eFounders, Felix Capital, Fireside Ventures, Founders' Co-op, Founders Fund, Kima Ventures, Leap Forward Ventures, Matrix, Motier Ventures, Pareto Holdings, Point Nine Capital, Seven Seven Six, The Hit Forge, Thirty Five Ventures, Yamaha Motor Ventures, Akin Babayigit, Alex Payne, Austin Walters, Cory Levy, Derrick Li, Dharmesh Shah, Maria Raga, Mario Götze, Nicolas Julia, Robin Sabban, Ryan Chan, Thibaud Elziere, Youcef Es-skouri
Nov 1, 2023	Crisp	$38.0M Series C	—	7percent Ventures, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Buckley Ventures, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Jenny Fielding, Scott Hartley, Fifth Wall, FJ Labs, Floodgate, Founders Fund, Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, NFX, Phenomen Ventures, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Saga, Stash Ventures, Symbol VC, Target Global, Harry Hurst, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Louis Beryl, Mark Cuban, Rob Meyerson
Nov 1, 2023	Aeon	$5.0M Seed	—	8VC, Accel, Afore Capital, Browder Capital, Endeavor Health Ventures, Feenix Ventures, Founders Fund, MaC Venture Capital, Andrew Schoen, Preston-Werner Ventures, Ravelin Capital, SignalFire, Aaron Peterman, David Mytton
Oct 1, 2023	Saronic	$55.0M Series A	—	7BC Venture Capital, 8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Aperture Venture Capital, BootstrapLabs, Caffeinated Capital, Cherry Ventures, Comcast Ventures, Construct Capital, Cubit Capital, Kelly Chen, EVE Atlas, Floodgate, Founders Fund, Gaingels, General Catalyst, Good Growth Capital, Ingeborg Investments, Lux Capital, Picus Capital, Ravelin Capital, Revolution, Saga, Stash Ventures, Two Sigma Ventures, Anthony Pompliano, Bill Ackman, Harry Hurst, Hoda Eydgahi, Justin Mateen, Koen Koeppen, Rob Meyerson, Sam Palmisano, Scot Wingo, Stefan Lindeberg, Will Szczerbiak

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Leadership Team

Key people at Countdown Capital.

Leadership Team

Key people at Countdown Capital.

Deep Dive

High-Level Overview

Countdown Capital was a venture capital firm focused on pre-seed and seed-stage investments in "hard technology" startups, particularly those rebuilding American industrial and manufacturing capabilities. The firm targeted deep tech sectors such as aerospace, defense, hardware, and industrial manufacturing, aiming to back founders innovating in capital-intensive, technology-driven industries. Its mission centered on revitalizing American industry by supporting early-stage companies that tackle complex engineering and manufacturing challenges. Countdown Capital played a role in the startup ecosystem by filling a niche for early capital in hard tech, a space often underserved by traditional venture capital due to high capital requirements and long development cycles[1][2][5].

Origin Story

Founded in January 2020 by Jai Malik, Countdown Capital emerged with a clear focus on backing "titans of hard tech" at the earliest stages. Malik, serving as the solo general partner, positioned the firm to invest in startups that required patient capital and specialized understanding of industrial innovation. The firm closed its first fund at $3 million and later raised a second fund of $15 million in 2022. Despite early traction with investments in notable aerospace and defense startups like K2 Space and Hadrian, the firm announced it would shut down by March 2024, citing challenges in the economics of early-stage hard tech investing and the competitive advantage of larger multi-stage venture firms in this space[1][3][5].

Core Differentiators

Specialized Focus on Hard Tech: Countdown Capital concentrated on capital-intensive, deep technology sectors such as aerospace, defense, and industrial manufacturing, differentiating itself from generalist VCs.
Early-Stage Investment Model: The firm primarily deployed pre-seed and seed-stage checks, addressing a funding gap for startups in the earliest phases of hard tech development.
Founder-Centric Approach: Led by Jai Malik, the firm emphasized backing visionary founders rebuilding American industrial capabilities.
Network and LP Base: Included notable limited partners such as David Sacks (Craft Ventures), Turner Novak (Banana Capital), and Hunter Walk (Homebrew VC), providing strong industry connections.
Track Record: Though relatively small, Countdown Capital invested in about a dozen startups, including recognized names in aerospace and cybersecurity.
Operating Support: While specific operational support details are limited, the firm’s hands-on approach in a niche sector implied tailored guidance for complex technical ventures[1][3][5].

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Countdown Capital was part of the early wave of venture firms focusing on the "American hard tech Renaissance," a trend emphasizing revitalization of U.S. industrial and manufacturing leadership through technology. The timing was significant as geopolitical and supply chain concerns increased interest in domestic production and innovation in aerospace, defense, and manufacturing. However, the firm’s closure highlights the persistent challenges in early-stage investing in capital-intensive hard tech, where longer timelines and higher capital needs complicate returns. Countdown Capital’s early entry predated larger funds like Andreessen Horowitz’s American Dynamism, indicating its pioneering role in this niche. Its influence helped spotlight the need for specialized early capital in hard tech, even as market forces favored larger, multi-stage investors[1][3].

Quick Take & Future Outlook

With Countdown Capital’s planned shutdown in early 2024, the firm’s journey underscores the difficulty of sustaining a small, early-stage hard tech fund amid competitive pressures and capital demands. The broader trend toward supporting American industrial innovation continues, but larger funds with multi-stage capabilities appear better positioned to lead. Future opportunities in hard tech investing will likely require hybrid models combining early-stage support with follow-on capital and operational expertise. Jai Malik’s experience and network may influence future initiatives in this space, potentially through new vehicles or partnerships. The hard tech sector remains critical to national interests and innovation, ensuring continued investor focus despite Countdown Capital’s exit[3].

Countdown Capital’s story reflects both the promise and the challenges of early-stage investing in deep technology, highlighting the importance of scale, timing, and specialized knowledge in this complex ecosystem.

Sources

High-Level Overview

Origin Story

Core Differentiators

Specialized Focus on Hard Tech: Countdown Capital concentrated on capital-intensive, deep technology sectors such as aerospace, defense, and industrial manufacturing, differentiating itself from generalist VCs.
Early-Stage Investment Model: The firm primarily deployed pre-seed and seed-stage checks, addressing a funding gap for startups in the earliest phases of hard tech development.
Founder-Centric Approach: Led by Jai Malik, the firm emphasized backing visionary founders rebuilding American industrial capabilities.
Network and LP Base: Included notable limited partners such as David Sacks (Craft Ventures), Turner Novak (Banana Capital), and Hunter Walk (Homebrew VC), providing strong industry connections.
Track Record: Though relatively small, Countdown Capital invested in about a dozen startups, including recognized names in aerospace and cybersecurity.
Operating Support: While specific operational support details are limited, the firm’s hands-on approach in a niche sector implied tailored guidance for complex technical ventures[1][3][5].