Key Takeaways
- • Ballistic Ventures, the cybersecurity-focused VC firm co-founded by former Kleiner Perkins partner Ted Schlein, is seeking to raise $490 million across two new funds, according to regulatory filings reviewed by TechCrunch.
- • The firm filed with the SEC to raise $360 million for its third flagship fund, matching the size of its prior flagship fund raised in 2024, and $130 million for a separate vehicle, Ballistic Ventures Fund B.
- • Neither fund had recorded any sales at the time of filing, and Ballistic declined to comment on its fundraising plans.
- • U.S. cybersecurity startups raised $11.5 billion in 2025, the highest since 2022, per a JPMorgan Chase report citing PitchBook data; AI-enabled companies accounted for about 72% of U.S. cybersecurity venture deals through May, versus 36% in 2019.
Summary
Ballistic Ventures, a San Francisco-based venture capital firm focused on cybersecurity, is seeking to raise $490 million across two new funds, TechCrunch reported based on regulatory filings. The firm filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission this week to raise $360 million for its third flagship fund, the same size as its previous flagship fund raised in 2024. It also seeks $130 million for a separate vehicle called Ballistic Ventures Fund B. Neither fund had recorded any sales at the time of filing.
The firm was founded in late 2021 by Ted Schlein, a former Kleiner Perkins partner who spent more than two decades at that firm, along with former AT&T Cybersecurity president Barmak Meftah and Roger Thornton, who co-founded Fortify Software and AlienVault. Ballistic has backed Talon Cyber Security, later acquired by Palo Alto Networks, and Pangea, bought by CrowdStrike, as well as startups including Armadin, GetReal, Nudge Security and Oligo Security. In 2022 it announced a $300 million debut fund and raised a $360 million second flagship fund two years later. According to PitchBook data cited by TechCrunch, it also raised about $130 million for a separate vehicle, Ballistic Ventures Fund A. Fund B is targeting a similar amount.
According to a cybersecurity investor at another VC firm quoted by TechCrunch, Ballistic's ties to Kleiner Perkins help differentiate it from rivals, although its investment strategy resembles that of other cybersecurity-focused investors such as Forgepoint Capital and Ten Eleven Ventures.
The fundraising comes as sector investment has grown. A JPMorgan Chase report, citing PitchBook data, said U.S. cybersecurity startups raised $11.5 billion in 2025, the highest since 2022, and that AI-enabled companies accounted for about 72% of U.S. cybersecurity venture deals through May this year, compared with 36% in 2019. Microsoft's annual Digital Defense Report, released last month, warned that hackers are increasingly using AI for phishing, social engineering and malware development, allowing faster and larger-scale attacks. Ballistic Ventures declined to comment on its fundraising plans.
The firm was founded in late 2021 by Ted Schlein, a former Kleiner Perkins partner who spent more than two decades at that firm, along with former AT&T Cybersecurity president Barmak Meftah and Roger Thornton, who co-founded Fortify Software and AlienVault. Ballistic has backed Talon Cyber Security, later acquired by Palo Alto Networks, and Pangea, bought by CrowdStrike, as well as startups including Armadin, GetReal, Nudge Security and Oligo Security. In 2022 it announced a $300 million debut fund and raised a $360 million second flagship fund two years later. According to PitchBook data cited by TechCrunch, it also raised about $130 million for a separate vehicle, Ballistic Ventures Fund A. Fund B is targeting a similar amount.
According to a cybersecurity investor at another VC firm quoted by TechCrunch, Ballistic's ties to Kleiner Perkins help differentiate it from rivals, although its investment strategy resembles that of other cybersecurity-focused investors such as Forgepoint Capital and Ten Eleven Ventures.
The fundraising comes as sector investment has grown. A JPMorgan Chase report, citing PitchBook data, said U.S. cybersecurity startups raised $11.5 billion in 2025, the highest since 2022, and that AI-enabled companies accounted for about 72% of U.S. cybersecurity venture deals through May this year, compared with 36% in 2019. Microsoft's annual Digital Defense Report, released last month, warned that hackers are increasingly using AI for phishing, social engineering and malware development, allowing faster and larger-scale attacks. Ballistic Ventures declined to comment on its fundraising plans.
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