Geodesic Capital

Cross-border VC strengthening US-Japan alliance through investment in critical technologies

ActiveVenture Capital

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Updated: Dec 5, 2025 ·

About

Cross-border VC strengthening US-Japan alliance through investment in critical technologies

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Investments Made

Date	Company	Round	Lead Investor(s)	Co-Investor(s)
Feb 10, 2026	Trener Robotics	$32.0M Series A	Engine Ventures, IAG Capital Partners	Cadence Design Systems, Emergent Ventures, Fitz Gate Ventures, Radius Capital, Raisewell Ventures, Shanda Group, Techable VC
Feb 2, 2026	Fieldguide	$75.0M Series C	Goldman Sachs Alternatives	8VC, Bessemer Venture Partners, Thomson Reuters
Sep 1, 2025	Kin Insurance	$50.0M Series E	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Chad Nitschke, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi
May 1, 2025	Sprinter Health	$55.0M Series B	—	1984 Ventures, 7wire Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Forerunner Ventures, Freestyle Capital, General Catalyst, Krishna Yeshwant, Kinnevik, The General Partnership, Threshold Ventures, Wave Capital
Aug 1, 2024	PayZen	$32.0M Series B	—	7wire Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, Haymaker Ventures, Kinnevik, Mohamad Makhzoumi, New Enterprise Associates, Picus Capital, SignalFire, Threshold Ventures, Transformation Capital, Viola Ventures
Aug 1, 2024	Companion Protect	$20.0M Series A	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Chad Nitschke, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi
Jul 1, 2024	Spring Health	$100.0M Series E	—	7wire Ventures, General Catalyst, IDInvest Partners, Kinnevik, Northzone, Quadrille Capital, RRE Ventures, Sapphire Ventures, Threshold Ventures, Tiger Global Management, Work-Bench, Alexis Bonillo
Jul 1, 2024	Freshpaint	$31.0M Series B	—	7wire Ventures, Allos Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, AV8 Ventures, Fuel Capital, General Catalyst, High Alpha, Intel Capital, Kinnevik, Moxxie Ventures, SignalFire, SNR, The House Fund, Threshold Ventures, Ade Olonoh, Bradley Horowitz, Curtis Lee, Leah Busque, Peter Sonsini, Tim Kendall
Jul 1, 2024	Lekko	$5.0M Seed	—	Addition, Founders Fund, General Atlantic, Greylock, Sangeen Zeb, Lux Capital, Spark Capital, U&I Ventures
May 16, 2024	Vercel	$250.0M Series E	—	8VC, Accel, Bedrock, Cedar Capital Group, CRV, GV, Notable Capital, SV Angel, Tiger Global Management, 2xN, Andreessen Horowitz, C2 Investment, Forerunner Ventures, FPV Fund, Menlo Ventures, Resolute Ventures, S28 Capital, The Hit Forge, Adam Marchick, Christian Bach, Tom Williams
May 1, 2024	Transcarent	$130.0M Series D	—	7wire Ventures, BDC Venture Capital, Flint Capital, General Catalyst, Frederique Dame, Ingeborg Investments, Innospark Ventures, Kinnevik, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Lux Capital, Maveron, McCarthy Capital, OMERS Ventures, Red Swan Ventures, SuperAngel.Fund, The Food Loft, Threshold Ventures, Tiffany, Town Hall Ventures, Vouch Insurance, XFactor Ventures, Alison Pincus, Amar Varma, Brian Sugar, Elliott Cohen, Fidji Simo, Henry Davis, Jason Starr, Jon Stein, Lev Ekster, Michelle McBane, Nik Sharma
Sep 1, 2023	Kin Insurance	$33.0M Series D	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Chad Nitschke, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi
Aug 1, 2023	Rockset	$44.0M Series B	—	Addition, Adjacent, AirAngels, Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, General Atlantic, Greylock, Sangeen Zeb, Kleiner Perkins, Lux Capital, Next Frontier Capital, Pareto Holdings, Sequoia Capital, Spark Capital, U&I Ventures, Antoine Martin, Jared Leto, Julie Zhuo, Mike Krieger, Rahilla Zafar
Aug 1, 2023	Companion Protect	$27.0M Series A	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Chad Nitschke, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi
Jun 1, 2023	Primer	$69.0M Series D	—	Addition, Founders Fund, General Atlantic, Greylock, Sangeen Zeb, In-Q-Tel, Lux Capital, Spark Capital, Ten Eleven Ventures, U&I Ventures, Len Findlay
May 1, 2023	Cognosys	$2.0M Seed	—	Active Capital, Addition, AIX Ventures, Alt Capital, Bloomberg Beta, C2 Investment, Darren Liccardo, Rouz Jazayeri, Comal Ventures, Jenny Fielding, Scott Hartley, Founders Fund, General Atlantic, Greylock, Erik Nordlander, GV, Kickstart Fund, KRM Interests LLC, Lux Capital, Saga, Spark Capital, SparkLabs Global Ventures, SuperAngel.Fund, The Hit Forge, U&I Ventures, Untapped Capital, Akshay Kothari, Amjad Masad, Ben Silbermann, Biz Stone, Guillermo Rauch, Luke Sherwin, Neil Parikh, Spencer Kimball
Mar 1, 2023	Kin Insurance	$15.0M Series D	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Chad Nitschke, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi
Jan 1, 2023	Chronosphere	$120.0M Series C	—	Accel, Addition, Altimeter Capital, Alumni Ventures, Arbor Ventures, Avalanche VC, Bessemer Venture Partners, Blockchain Capital, Blossom Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, Felicis Ventures, FirstHand Alliance, Founders Fund, General Atlantic, Greylock, Sangeen Zeb, GV, Initialized Capital, Innovation Endeavors, Lux Capital, Modern Venture Partners, Operator Collective, SoftBank Investment Advisers, Spark Capital, Sutter Hill Ventures, Tiger Global Management, True Ventures, U&I Ventures, Wasabi Ventures, Amjad Masad, Bob Young, Catherine Lu, Jeff Hammerbacher
Jan 1, 2023	TrueBiz	$2.0M Seed	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Chad Nitschke, Clark Landry, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi
Dec 1, 2022	Complif	$3.0M Seed	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Latin Leap, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Magma Partners, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Alexander Torrenegra, Arash Ferdowsi, Chad Nitschke, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi, Tom Blomfield
Nov 1, 2022	Better Trucks	$15.0M Series A	—	Alex, Avanta Ventures, Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bora&Sons, Commerce Ventures, Flourish Ventures, Hercules Capital, Infinite Niches, JLL Spark, Ligature, Lobby Capital, Picus Capital, QED Investors, Runway Growth Capital, Sandalphon Capital, Vouch Insurance, Chad Nitschke, Francisco Larrain, John M. Mueller, Jonathan Gheller, Sahin Boydas, Sung ho Choi
Nov 1, 2022	PayZen	$20.0M Series B	—	7wire Ventures, Cambrian Ventures, General Catalyst, Haymaker Ventures, Kinnevik, Mohamad Makhzoumi, Picus Capital, Portage Ventures, QED Investors, SignalFire, Threshold Ventures, Viola Ventures, White Star Capital
Jul 1, 2022	Whipz	$2.0M Seed	—	Equity Alliance, M25, Matchstick Ventures, Tribe Capital, True Ventures, Daren Cotter, Theresa Johnson
Jun 1, 2022	Opaque Systems	$22.0M Series A	—	Afore Capital, Asymmetric, Intel Capital, Race Capital, Solana Ventures, super{set}, Visionaries Club, Walden Catalyst Ventures, Alison Engel, Harris Barton, Howard Charney, Marc Stilke
Mar 1, 2022	Tenderly	$40.0M Series B	—	Accel, Addition, Andreessen Horowitz, AngelList Syndicator, Balderton Capital, Coatue, Founders Fund, General Atlantic, Greylock, Sangeen Zeb, Innovation Endeavors, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Locus Ventures, Lux Capital, Mango Capital, Pareto Holdings, Spark Capital, U&I Ventures, Christian Henschel, Luca Ascani, Ott Kaukver, Shane Neman, Guillermo Rauch

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Leadership Team

Key people at Geodesic Capital.

Leadership Team

Key people at Geodesic Capital.

Deep Dive

High-Level Overview

Geodesic Capital is a venture capital firm dedicated to strengthening the US-Japan alliance by investing in early-stage and growth-stage technology companies that operate at the intersection of critical technologies such as deep tech, national security, space, AI, and digital transformation. Their mission is to support globally minded founders by providing not only capital but also strategic guidance and access to the Japanese and broader Asian markets, helping startups scale internationally. Geodesic focuses on sectors including AI infrastructure, fintech, healthcare, advanced manufacturing, robotics, and space technologies, aiming to foster innovation that enhances the US-Japan partnership and drives transformative technological progress. Their impact on the startup ecosystem is significant, as they leverage deep relationships and operational expertise in both Silicon Valley and Japan to accelerate market entry and growth for portfolio companies[1][2][4].

Origin Story

Founded around 2013 by John Roos, former US Ambassador to Japan, Geodesic Capital was established to bridge Silicon Valley and Japan through venture investments. The firm has evolved from a growth-stage investor to also include early-stage investments via its Alliance Fund, which targets deep tech, space, and national security sectors that reinforce US-Japan collaboration. Key partners include Jon Rezneck, a founding member with a background in investment banking, and Neb Mela, who focuses on deep technologies. The firm’s evolution reflects a broadening vision to not only invest capital but also actively support startups in navigating the Japanese market and fostering bilateral technological cooperation[1][2][3].

Core Differentiators

Unique Investment Model: Combines senior-level Japanese relationships (built by founder John Roos) with a Tokyo-based operator team experienced in helping startups build in Japan.
Network Strength: Deep connections in both Silicon Valley and Japan, enabling portfolio companies to access critical markets and decision-makers.
Track Record: Approximately $1 billion in assets under management across five funds, with investments in leading companies like Databricks, Figma, ScaleAI, and Writer.
Operating Support: Provides strategic guidance beyond capital, including market entry strategies, executive team building, and regulatory navigation in Japan.
Focused Sectors: Emphasis on AI infrastructure, fintech, healthcare, advanced manufacturing, robotics, space, and national security technologies.
Investment Philosophy: Focuses on “picks and shovels” approach in AI—investing in fundamental infrastructure and tooling that enable enterprise AI adoption[1][2][4].

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Geodesic Capital rides the wave of digital transformation and the rapid evolution of AI technologies, positioning itself at the forefront of enterprise AI adoption and critical technology sectors that are strategically important to US-Japan relations. The timing is crucial as AI and deep tech innovation accelerate globally, and the geopolitical importance of US-Japan technological collaboration grows. Market forces such as increasing demand for secure AI infrastructure, national security concerns, and space technology development favor Geodesic’s investment focus. By facilitating cross-border technology transfer and market expansion, Geodesic influences the broader ecosystem by enabling startups to scale internationally and by fostering innovation that aligns with strategic geopolitical interests[1][4].

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Looking ahead, Geodesic Capital is poised to deepen its role as a key investor in AI, space, and national security technologies, leveraging its unique position to support startups that can drive secure and scalable digital transformation. Trends such as domain-specific AI models, enterprise AI security, and space tech commercialization will likely shape their investment trajectory. Their influence is expected to grow as they continue to bridge US and Japanese innovation ecosystems, helping companies navigate complex markets and regulatory environments. This cross-border alliance will remain critical as technology becomes increasingly central to economic and national security strategies, making Geodesic a vital player in the evolving global tech landscape[1][4].

Sources

High-Level Overview

Origin Story

Core Differentiators

Unique Investment Model: Combines senior-level Japanese relationships (built by founder John Roos) with a Tokyo-based operator team experienced in helping startups build in Japan.
Network Strength: Deep connections in both Silicon Valley and Japan, enabling portfolio companies to access critical markets and decision-makers.
Track Record: Approximately $1 billion in assets under management across five funds, with investments in leading companies like Databricks, Figma, ScaleAI, and Writer.
Operating Support: Provides strategic guidance beyond capital, including market entry strategies, executive team building, and regulatory navigation in Japan.
Focused Sectors: Emphasis on AI infrastructure, fintech, healthcare, advanced manufacturing, robotics, space, and national security technologies.
Investment Philosophy: Focuses on “picks and shovels” approach in AI—investing in fundamental infrastructure and tooling that enable enterprise AI adoption[1][2][4].