Forum Ventures

Announcing the Launch of Our 3rd Annual “State of the Pre-Seed and Seed Market 2024-2025” Report! https://lnkd.in/eb8Fkf_6 The fundraising landscape continues to shift where 2024 funding levels are down across the board, falling below those of 2016. What does this mean for founders and investors as we move into 2025? We surveyed 150 active VCs and analyzed 300+ pre-seed and seed deals to uncover the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities in early-stage venture capital. Here are a few highlights from this year’s findings: 🔹 AI’s New Era: Investors are shifting their focus from general AI to vertical applications, AI agents, and infrastructure that solve real-world problems beyond the AI hype. 🔹 Emerging Hubs: Texas and Toronto are becoming hotbeds for innovation, challenging traditional tech hubs like San Francisco and New York. 🔹Traction Is Essential: Investors are prioritizing tangible proof points like ARR, beta testers, and early customer validation before writing a check. 🔹 Capital Deployment: With an LP liquidity crunch that is impacting fund managers’ ability to raise their next fund, 82% of investors expect fundraising to become significantly more challenging for founders in 2025. 🔹 Extended Runway: The path to Series A has become increasingly challenging in a slowing market, stretching the average time between seed and Series A fundraising rounds to more than two years. founders should prepare to extend their runway to account for slower deployment rates and meet the heightened requirements for their next raise. Whether you’re an investor planning your next move or a founder gearing up to fundraise, this report is packed with actionable insights to help you succeed. 👉 Access the report now and stay tuned for our launch event in NYC #StartupFundraising #PreSeedFunding #SeedFunding #VCInsights #AI #TechHubs #FounderJourney

In a recent article, Bocar Dia writes about how the initial excitement surrounding AI is giving way to a stronger focus on real-world applications and return on investment. As spending in this category continues to grow, and retention for technology increases, enterprises need a practical framework to ensure they are integrating AI where it will have the most impact. A proposed framework: 1️⃣ Identify which tasks the proposed AI solution is most suited for. 2️⃣ Evaluate the potential impact of each of the ‘more suitable’ areas. 3️⃣ Evaluate the risk of the proposed AI solution getting it wrong. 4️⃣ Experiment until you prove the value before scaling. This 4-step framework not only tests AI’s real-world applicability but also aligns key stakeholders to the project’s goals, ensuring a smoother transition to operational use and scaling AI solutions effectively across the enterprise. 👉 Read more: https://lnkd.in/eiRXj6e3

Congratulations to Vikram Chopra and the entire team at Shabodi on this recognition!

Congratulations to Elio Narciso and the Team at Scalestack on their $3M Seed Round, from new investors including Exor Ventures, Geek Ventures, Launch Factory, and more. 🚀

This month, we onboarded 11 new companies into our portfolio of category-defining B2B SaaS companies from industries across AI, Travel, HealthTech, Manufacturing, Marketing, Climate, and more. These companies are joining a community of 400+ best-in-class B2B SaaS startups, changing how we work, live, and operate. Stay tuned as these companies build, and scale throughout the Accelerator Program! 🎉 We're excited to welcome: Tripsby.AI: Jonathan McClure Authorship: Nils Tracy, Christy Hayashi Ponderosa: Adam Tazi, Scott Elder, and Hari Kaushik FabriSight: George Trofimov, Amin Ghasemazar, Ph.D. SelfMachines (Backed by Forum Ventures): Mohammad Sanatkar, PhD Soverin: Dennis Kardonsky Calliope: Alex Mehregan, Cathleen K. Herd Security: Brandon Min, Gregory Bates Eve: Yasser Boumenir, ivan wicksteed Jump Labs AI: Tela Andrews, Anthony DiMarco, Kareena Macasaet, and Eithiriel DeMeré ♡ Language-Market Fit ♡ Notika AI: Ajay Sohmshetty, Andrew Kim

10 years ago, Michael Cardamone founded Forum Ventures with a clear mission: to empower B2B SaaS founders at every stage of their journey. I spoke with Partner and COO Olivia O'Sullivan about the firm and how they invest in startups. I'm also interviewing her live in January for our Inside:VC series, request an invite with the link in the comments The firm operates through three innovative investment vehicles: 💡 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝:: Where ideas meet execution. Forum partners with entrepreneurs who have a compelling vision and market expertise but no product yet. Founders receive hands-on support to validate their idea, build an MVP, and secure initial traction. ⚡ 𝐏𝐫𝐞-𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: Perfect for post-product startups refining go-to-market strategies. With 85–90 investments annually, Forum helps founders gain traction, connect with investors, and scale efficiently. 📈 𝐏𝐫𝐞-𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝: Designed for startups with early customer traction, this fund provides traditional investments to fuel growth. While Forum is a generalist within B2B SaaS, they dive deep into healthcare, fintech, supply chain, e-commerce enablement, applied AI, and vertical SaaS . What sets Forum apart? They’re more than just an investor—they act as a collaborative partner. From offering a $250K investment in their Studio Fund to facilitating 25+ investor meetings through their Accelerator, Forum is deeply committed to founders’ success. More details in the video and writeup

🎉 Forum Wrapped 2024 🎉 As we reflect on the past year, we want to celebrate some of the milestones, memories, and growth across our community. 🚀From celebrating our 10th anniversary 🎂 to welcoming 75 incredible new portfolio companies, launching 7 AI startups, and hosting 45 Founder events in NYC, SF, Austin Toronto, and more, 2024 has been one for the books. ⬇️Check out our #YearInImpact as we highlight some key moments that made 2024 unforgettable. Thank you to our community for being part of our journey. Looking forward to an even more impactful 2025!

The NYC early stage ecosystem is putting in the work 💪 Another successful FoundersBoost demo day - a continued demonstration of talent across the software and hardware founder communities, motivated by clear passion 💫 A huge congrats to the founders presenting - you all crushed it! Govify Plurall AI Wristline Inc. ChargeSafe One Invest AI GoRaqt, Inc Baz AI Thank you for having me Spencer Chandlee and Gene Murphy! Always a fun time chatting with and learning from Jeremy Kagan (Textbook Ventures), Laurent Span (SPANVentures.) and Bryanna S. (Chai Ventures). #preseed #demoday #earlystage #earlystagevc

☕ #Tulsa B2B SaaS Founders and Funders! Draper Sturdivant from the Forum Ventures team and Darrel Frater ✝️, Senior Associate at Serac Ventures, are co-hosting a coffee meetup on Tuesday, December 17th. After successful meetups in NYC, Boston, Chicago, and Toronto, we are bringing the energy to Tulsa’s thriving tech scene! If you’re a B2B SaaS founder or investor, join us for coffee, great conversations, and networking with fellow founders and funders in the tech space. 🔗 RSVP here - https://lu.ma/af598g6c

We’re at a pivotal moment in tech where Agentic AI is redefining the rules of corporate innovation. VKTR.com's latest article featuring Jonah Midanik dives deep into how this new wave of AI capabilities empowers teams to operate autonomously, unlock creativity, and drive value in ways we couldn’t imagine just a few years ago. At Forum Ventures, we’re constantly inspired by how our founders and portfolio companies embrace these shifts to build impactful B2B SaaS solutions. From AI-driven workflows to intelligent decision-making tools, we see the potential for founders to not only keep up with innovation but lead the charge. Key Takeaways: 🔹 Agentic AI shifts from traditional user-driven clicks to autonomous task execution, enhancing productivity by automating complex workflows 🔹 CIOs are advised to foster human-AI collaboration, establish robust governance frameworks, and invest in training to effectively integrate agentic AI into business operations 🔹 Implementing agentic AI requires a solid data infrastructure, advanced foundation models, and thoughtful deployment strategies, including considerations for user interface design and system integration 🔹 The evolving agentic AI landscape presents startups with chances to develop innovative solutions that address emerging challenges and leverage new business models 🔹 The autonomous nature of agentic AI necessitates stringent security measures and privacy protocols to prevent misuse and ensure ethical deployment. We’re here to support founders building with AI at their core, offering unmatched expertise and a community dedicated to tackling the challenges and seizing the opportunities of this new frontier. Ready to build the future with us? Let’s talk. 👉 Read the article and share your thoughts: https://lnkd.in/eSD53T36 #AgenticAI #CorporateInnovation #B2BSaaS #AIInfrastructure #AppliedAI #InnovationLeadership