Seattle venture capital firm Ascend is raising its third fund, according to new SEC filings made public Tuesday.
Ascend founder Kirby Winfield declined to comment.
Ascend, which backs early stage tech startups primarily in the Seattle region, raised $25 million for its second fund in 2023.
The firm focuses on companies building vertical AI agents and applications, as well AI model and infrastructure startups.
Ascend typically makes 35-to-40 investments out of a fund. It prefers to be a company’s first institutional round, writing checks in the $250,000-to-$750,000 range. It focuses on Seattle-area founders but does invest in companies based elsewhere.
Notable investments include Overland AI, Fabric, Clarify, and Velou.
After two decades in leadership at four startups, Winfield jumped into venture capital in 2019, raising $15 million for Ascend’s initial fund.
Other Seattle-area firms raising new funds include Founders’ Co-op, Flying Fish, and Graham & Walker.
A lack of liquidity over the past few years — and the recent IPO delays amid tariff chaos — is creating hurdles for venture firms raising cash from limited partners. Fundraising is on pace for its lowest year in a decade, based on Q1 activity, according to a recent report from PitchBook. Emerging managers have faced their own challenges.
Read the full article here
