Key Takeaways
- • Five venture and corporate investors, Anzu Partners, Hitachi Ventures, Myriad Venture Partners, SkyRiver Ventures and The Steele Group, launched venx (ven^x), a shared collaboration hub in downtown Boston focused on deep tech.
- • venx provides member firms with a shared office for day-to-day collaboration, a venue for hosting startup community events, and a pathway to bring in additional local firms.
- • Hitachi Ventures, the corporate venture arm of Hitachi, reports $600 million in AUM, and Myriad Venture Partners describes its focus as AI, clean technology and B2B software.
- • The founders position venx as a way for deep tech startups to access a larger pool of capital and expertise, with the stated goal of de-risking technology and reaching product-market fit.
- • The announcement does not disclose a fund size, capital commitment or launch funding for venx itself.
Summary
A group of venture capital firms has launched venx (ven^x), a hub in downtown Boston designed to let venture firms collaborate, share knowledge and build synergies around the deep tech ecosystem, according to a Business Wire announcement. The founding members are Anzu Partners, Hitachi Ventures, Myriad Venture Partners and SkyRiver Ventures, joined by the commercial real estate consultancy The Steele Group. Each firm has ties to Boston's deep tech heritage and to local universities that regularly spin out science- and engineering-based startups. Member firms will have access to a shared office for daily collaboration, host events for the local startup community and invite other local firms to join.
The initiative is framed around the funding needs of deep tech companies, which develop paradigm-shifting technologies aimed at major global problems such as climate change, global health and the green energy transition. Hyuk-Jeen Suh, General Partner at SkyRiver Ventures, said these advances require investment in breakthrough science and physical technologies, noting that deep tech startups often begin at universities, receive venture funding and scale through industry partnerships.
Tim Chiang, Co-founder and Partner at Myriad Venture Partners, pointed to corporate demand for decarbonization tools that remain nascent or unavailable, and said venx would foster dialogue among member funds while investing in founders working on hard-to-abate sectors. John Ho, Partner at Anzu Partners, said deep tech founders need more than capital, particularly help de-risking technology and establishing product-market fit in the early stages, and that the ven^x firms bring complementary perspectives and connections.
The release describes Anzu Partners as investing in clean tech, industrial and life science technology, and Hitachi Ventures as the corporate venture arm of Hitachi with $600 million in AUM. Myriad Venture Partners focuses on AI, clean technology and B2B software, and SkyRiver Ventures describes itself as a deep tech venture firm investing in early-stage technologies. The Steele Group provides full-lifecycle commercial real estate services, including support for early-growth deep tech companies moving from prototyping to commercial manufacturing. venx welcomes additional deep tech startups and venture firms and directs interested parties to contact a member firm. The release does not disclose a combined fund size or capital commitment for the collaborative.
The initiative is framed around the funding needs of deep tech companies, which develop paradigm-shifting technologies aimed at major global problems such as climate change, global health and the green energy transition. Hyuk-Jeen Suh, General Partner at SkyRiver Ventures, said these advances require investment in breakthrough science and physical technologies, noting that deep tech startups often begin at universities, receive venture funding and scale through industry partnerships.
Tim Chiang, Co-founder and Partner at Myriad Venture Partners, pointed to corporate demand for decarbonization tools that remain nascent or unavailable, and said venx would foster dialogue among member funds while investing in founders working on hard-to-abate sectors. John Ho, Partner at Anzu Partners, said deep tech founders need more than capital, particularly help de-risking technology and establishing product-market fit in the early stages, and that the ven^x firms bring complementary perspectives and connections.
The release describes Anzu Partners as investing in clean tech, industrial and life science technology, and Hitachi Ventures as the corporate venture arm of Hitachi with $600 million in AUM. Myriad Venture Partners focuses on AI, clean technology and B2B software, and SkyRiver Ventures describes itself as a deep tech venture firm investing in early-stage technologies. The Steele Group provides full-lifecycle commercial real estate services, including support for early-growth deep tech companies moving from prototyping to commercial manufacturing. venx welcomes additional deep tech startups and venture firms and directs interested parties to contact a member firm. The release does not disclose a combined fund size or capital commitment for the collaborative.
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