Founders Capital Partners

Founders Capital Partners is a Santa Barbara, California-based venture capital angel group that invests in early-stage technology, life sciences, and industrial products businesses. The organization operates as a syndicate of approximately 40 accredited individual investors, including former entrepreneurs and scientists, who pool their resources to provide initial institutional capital. Serving as the first institutional investor beyond friends and family, the firm typically writes initial funding checks ranging from $250,000 to $750,000 to support emerging startups operating primarily within the Central Coast region. Its historical investment portfolio features notable technology companies such as Affinity Biosensors, Seek Thermal Inc., and Indigo Systems, which was subsequently acquired by FLIR. The group focuses on bridging the funding gap by leveraging the domain expertise of its member base. Founders Capital Partners was established in 1988 by founder Bob Johnson.