Key Takeaways
- • Base10 Partners, co-founded by Adeyemi Ajao and TJ Nahigian in 2017, became the first Black-led venture capital firm to surpass $1 billion in assets under management in 2022, now managing over $1.3 billion across multiple vehicles.
- • Base10 closed its $460 million Fund III with the California Public Employees' Retirement System as a confirmed limited partner, focusing on automation and software platforms across underserved sectors including food, logistics, retail, healthcare, construction, and operations.
- • Portfolio companies reaching scale include Figma, Notion, and Incredible Health, which achieved unicorn status in 2025, with the firm maintaining recent investment activity as of March 2026.
- • The Advancement Initiative, Base10's growth-stage fund, commits 50% of carried interest to HBCUs for student scholarships and university endowments, demonstrating capital deployment with institutional impact alignment.
- • 645 Ventures, founded in 2014 by Nnamdi Okike and Aaron Holiday, operates at seed and Series A stages using a proprietary Venture Investment Triangle framework to identify emerging software opportunities ahead of broader institutional recognition.
Summary
Black-led venture capital firms continue to establish institutional credibility and scale within the alternative investment landscape. Base10 Partners represents a significant milestone in this sector, becoming the first Black-led venture capital firm to cross $1 billion in assets under management in 2022. Co-founded by Adeyemi Ajao and TJ Nahigian in 2017, Base10 has concentrated its investment thesis around automation and software solutions across fragmented, large-scale sectors of the real economy that remain underserved by technology relative to their economic scale.
The firm's capital deployment strategy centers on concentrated portfolios of approximately 25 companies per fund, organized around three to four core investment trends. Base10's $460 million Fund III closing, backed by institutional limited partners including the California Public Employees' Retirement System, demonstrates sustained access to institutional capital and validates the firm's track record. The firm currently manages over $1.3 billion across multiple investment vehicles, spanning seed through growth stages. The firm made its most recent investment in March 2026, indicating active capital deployment in the current market environment.
Portfolio performance has been marked by multiple successful exits and company valuations. Base10's portfolio includes three companies of significant scale: Figma, Notion, and Incredible Health, the latter reaching unicorn status in 2025. Ajao's recognition on the Forbes Midas List in 2023 underscores individual investor reputation within institutional circles. Beyond traditional venture returns, Base10 operates The Advancement Initiative, a growth-stage fund with a distinctive capital allocation model that donates 50% of carried interest to historically Black colleges and universities for student scholarships and endowment funding, creating a direct conduit between venture returns and HBCU institutional strengthening.
645 Ventures, founded in 2014 by Nnamdi Okike and Aaron Holiday, operates as a complementary player in the Black-led venture ecosystem, focusing on seed and Series A stage software investments. The firm employs a proprietary Venture Investment Triangle framework to build conviction across market conditions and identify emerging software categories ahead of broader institutional recognition. Together, these firms demonstrate that Black-led venture capital operators command institutional capital flows, deploy across multiple stages, generate competitive returns through recognizable portfolio companies, and increasingly integrate impact-oriented capital allocation strategies into their operational models.
The firm's capital deployment strategy centers on concentrated portfolios of approximately 25 companies per fund, organized around three to four core investment trends. Base10's $460 million Fund III closing, backed by institutional limited partners including the California Public Employees' Retirement System, demonstrates sustained access to institutional capital and validates the firm's track record. The firm currently manages over $1.3 billion across multiple investment vehicles, spanning seed through growth stages. The firm made its most recent investment in March 2026, indicating active capital deployment in the current market environment.
Portfolio performance has been marked by multiple successful exits and company valuations. Base10's portfolio includes three companies of significant scale: Figma, Notion, and Incredible Health, the latter reaching unicorn status in 2025. Ajao's recognition on the Forbes Midas List in 2023 underscores individual investor reputation within institutional circles. Beyond traditional venture returns, Base10 operates The Advancement Initiative, a growth-stage fund with a distinctive capital allocation model that donates 50% of carried interest to historically Black colleges and universities for student scholarships and endowment funding, creating a direct conduit between venture returns and HBCU institutional strengthening.
645 Ventures, founded in 2014 by Nnamdi Okike and Aaron Holiday, operates as a complementary player in the Black-led venture ecosystem, focusing on seed and Series A stage software investments. The firm employs a proprietary Venture Investment Triangle framework to build conviction across market conditions and identify emerging software categories ahead of broader institutional recognition. Together, these firms demonstrate that Black-led venture capital operators command institutional capital flows, deploy across multiple stages, generate competitive returns through recognizable portfolio companies, and increasingly integrate impact-oriented capital allocation strategies into their operational models.
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