Swan Venture Fund
ActiveVenture Capital
Updated: ·
Financial History
Total Raised
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Valuation
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Leadership Team
Key people at Swan Venture Fund.
Key people at Swan Venture Fund.
SWAN Venture Fund is a Seattle-based seed-stage venture fund focused on providing early-stage capital and active support to startups, primarily in the Pacific Northwest. Founded by a group of angel investors, the fund aims to bridge the funding gap for entrepreneurs facing challenges with inflated valuations and difficult fundraising terms. SWAN typically leads pre-seed and seed rounds, investing between $200K and $1.2M, targeting companies with strong teams, meaningful traction, and competitive advantages. Their investment sectors include B2B software, market-accelerating technologies, capital-efficient hard science, diagnostics & HealthIT, medical devices, scalable IoT, and scalable hardware. Beyond capital, SWAN offers operational guidance in business development, product development, financial management, recruitment, marketing, and exit strategies, thereby significantly impacting the startup ecosystem by nurturing early-stage companies toward growth and successful exits[1][2][3].
SWAN Venture Fund was founded in August 2015 by twenty-four angel investors who recognized a critical need for realistic and supportive early-stage funding in the Pacific Northwest. The founders observed that many entrepreneurs struggled with unrealistic valuations influenced by Silicon Valley trends and faced difficulties raising capital from individual angels who lacked leverage to negotiate favorable terms. By pooling resources and speaking with a unified voice, SWAN was created to bring valuations back to reality and close deals that would otherwise stall. The fund has evolved through successive fundraising cycles every three years, expanding its investor base to around 70 members, many with diverse expertise in AI, data science, startup finance, law, and intellectual property. Key partners include Peter Weiss, a managing member with extensive Wall Street and startup CFO experience, and Nate Doran, who manages daily operations and has been integral since the fund’s inception[1][2].
SWAN Venture Fund rides the trend of regional venture capital growth, addressing the funding gap outside Silicon Valley by focusing on the Pacific Northwest’s burgeoning tech scene. This timing is critical as startups increasingly seek capital and expertise closer to home rather than competing in overheated coastal markets. Market forces favor SWAN’s approach as early-stage valuations have escalated beyond what many angel investors find reasonable, creating a need for funds that can bring discipline and realistic pricing to seed rounds. By providing the first major outside investment and ongoing operational support, SWAN helps startups accelerate growth, attract follow-on capital, and contribute to the region’s innovation economy. Their focus on capital-efficient hard science and scalable technologies aligns with broader industry shifts toward sustainable, high-impact innovation[1][3].
Looking ahead, SWAN Venture Fund is poised to continue expanding its investor base and portfolio, maintaining its leadership role in Pacific Northwest early-stage investing. Trends such as AI, IoT, and health technology will likely shape their investment focus, leveraging their members’ expertise. As valuations and competition for deals evolve, SWAN’s disciplined approach to pricing and active involvement will remain a key differentiator. Their influence may grow beyond regional boundaries as they demonstrate the value of collaborative angel investing combined with operational support. This positions SWAN as a vital catalyst for startup success in a maturing but still dynamic venture ecosystem, fulfilling their founding mission to empower entrepreneurs with realistic funding and expert guidance[1][2][3].
Key people at Swan Venture Fund.
| Date | Company | Round | Lead Investor(s) | Co-Investor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 1, 2024 | Afterlife Ag | $1.0M Seed | — | Tet Ventures |
| Aug 1, 2021 | HTuO Biosciences | $2.0M Seed | — | — |
| Apr 1, 2021 | Automaton | $2.0M Seed | — | — |
| Dec 1, 2019 | Cloudneeti | $300K Seed | — | — |
| May 1, 2019 | Nodesmith, Inc. | $120K Seed | — | Founders' Co-op |
| May 1, 2017 | Accrualify | $600K Seed | — | — |
| Feb 1, 2017 | Utrip | $4.0M Series A | — | Pioneer Square Labs, Unlock Venture Partners, Charlie Songhurst, Gary Rubens, Jeffrey Wilke, Paul Stahura, Rudy Gadre |
| Apr 1, 2014 | Utrip | $750K Seed | — | Richard Galanti |
