Level Up Ventures

What an incredible evening at AFROTECH! To close out what was an inspiring week, Level Up Ventures teamed up with South Loop Ventures and Gunderson Dettmer to host a networking mixer that celebrated the talent, drive, and vision of those leading the charge in the shifting age of tech and venture capital. The room was filled with brilliant minds exchanging ideas, building connections, and paving the way for the next wave of progress in our industries. This event was a true reflection of what happens when we come together with purpose and passion. A heartfelt thank-you to everyone who joined us and made the night so special. Here’s to more moments that spark collaboration and fuel growth! #Afrotech #NetworkingMixer #VentureCapital #LevelUpVentures #Hearst

✨ Founders, are you ready to elevate your pitch? Last week, I teamed up with Level Up Ventures Venture Partners Kange Kaneene and Gary Stewart to host Pitch Perfect: Mastering the Startup Pitch—a master class for early-stage founders. We explored what it takes to craft a standout pitch and build meaningful connections with investors. Here’s what we covered: - Approaching your pitch with an investor’s mindset - Demystifying venture math and funding dynamics - Navigating the “Valley of Death” - Tailoring your pitch for different funding rounds - Avoiding common pitching pitfalls 📌 Watch the full session here: https://bit.ly/4eRvodF 💡 Know a founder who could use these insights? Tag them below! P.S. If you’re a Black and/or Latino founder in the U.S. or Canada with a seed stage tech startup and some product-market fit—and looking for a $300K–$500K check—Level Up Ventures would love to hear from you. No warm intros needed—visit our site for full criteria and to submit your startup. #StartupSuccess #VentureCapital #LevelUpVentures #FounderTips

Final call! PEERLESS applications close Friday, December 6th! We're supporting AlleyCorp as they search nationwide for early-stage tech founders bold enough to build businesses no one else can. The journey culminates in a $1M pitch competition at Google’s NYC headquarters, but it’s so much more than that. All applicants gain access to exclusive programming, including fireside chats with founders who’ve scaled to the very top. Submit your application now to secure your spot in these extraordinary conversations... 🔥 Wendy Tsu Founder of Branch Care - Breaking into uncharted markets. 🔥 Lisa Lewin Partner at Primary, Ex CEO General Assembly - The power of inspirational leadership to motivate and guide your team. 🔥 Jeffrey De Flavio, MD Founder of 10+ healthcare companies - Accelerating growth with high-impact GTM strategies. 🔥 Norma Chu Founder of DayDayCook - Concept to IPO from one of the 40 women to achieve it. 🔥 Cesar Herrera Founder of Yuvo Health - The art of building an influential network from scratch. 🔥 Gil Addo Founder of RubiconMD - Navigating different acquisition pathways. Apply at www.peerlesspitch.com

🚀 We’re thrilled to continue supporting Sunthetics as an investor in their Seed Round. Daniela Blanco and the Sunthetics team continue to impress us with their bold vision and dedication. Their AI solutions are driving innovation in chemical and pharmaceutical R&D, creating meaningful impact through technology. We are proud to join this round alongside L'ATTITUDE VENTURES, alongside S3 Ventures, The Global Good Fund (Global Impact Fund II), and OneSixOne Ventures. As they shape the future of the industry, we look forward to seeing all that’s ahead for Sunthetics! ✨✨✨ #AIInnovation #SustainabilityTech #LatinaFounder #VentureCapital 🔗 Read more: https://lnkd.in/gV6ZyGuj

Calling all visionary founders: Ready to level up your pitch game? 🚀 At Level Up Ventures (a Hearst investment vehicle), we're on a mission to uncover the next wave of groundbreaking startups. Our upcoming webinar, "Pitch Perfect: Mastering the Art of the Pitch", is your golden ticket to capturing investor attention and accelerating your journey to unicorn status. Join us for an exclusive deep dive with our all-star panel: Shashi Srikantan: Head of Level Up Ventures Kange Kaneene:  Venture Partner, former VP of SAP.iO North and Latin America and Caribbean (SAP's Startup Accelerators). Angel Investor at The RainMakers Collective. Gary Stewart: Venture Partner. Founder of MyCofoundr.AI. Former MD of Techstars NYC and Inaugural Lecturer of Entrepreneurship at Yale Law School. We're cutting through the noise to bring you actionable insights on: Decoding Investor Psychology: Understand what makes VCs tick and how to align your vision with their investment thesis. Navigating the Funding Landscape: Learn how to tailor your pitch for seed and Series A. Crafting Your Narrative: Master the art of weaving a compelling story that turns skeptics into believers. Avoiding Pitch Deck Pitfalls: Sidestep common mistakes that can sink even the most promising startups. Q&A: Ask us anything and get real-time feedback from seasoned investors who've been in your shoes. When: November 20th at 5 PM EST (2 PM PST) Where: Virtual (because great ideas know no boundaries) RSVP now to secure your spot: https://lu.ma/seikjcjm This isn't just another webinar – it's your launchpad to joining the ranks of the next generation of tech titans. Don't miss out on this opportunity to supercharge your startup's trajectory. See you there, future unicorns! 🦄 #StartupPitch #VentureCapital #TechInnovation #FutureOfTech

We believe in being the best in the world. If you have ever won a championship, got first place, had a team victory of any kind, you know that the real work is all of the time spent beforehand. We are looking for the world's best who enjoy's that process and want to join a mission of innovation in a space that needs it more than ever right now. If you value: Extreme Ownership Entrepreneurial Spirit Extreme Execution Creativity Creating Impact Willing to do whatever it takes to Win all while having fun doing it. Then please apply to one of the positions below and come join us in building the next industry defining technology. Also please pass along to someone you know would be an awesome fit to the team! #startupjobs #Smartwiz #hiring #growth

Excited to announce that applications for PEERLESS 2025 are now open! Curated programming will culminate in 5 founders pitching at Google's NYC headquarters in April, where one winner will receive a $1M investment from AlleyCorp. For Level Up Ventures, partnering with AlleyCorp and Management Leadership for Tomorrow on PEERLESS is about more than just a collaboration—it’s about supporting the next generation of exceptional founders poised to shape the future. We’re proud to support this impactful program, which continues to generate excitement across both founders and the broader venture ecosystem. Applications open on October 15th and close on December 6th, 2024. While we welcome all early-stage founders with exceptional ideas, AlleyCorp is encouraging applications from startups that: - Have raised less than $2M - Are technologically innovative - Have a strong go-to-market advantage - Have identified a large market opportunity - Are led by Black, Latine, Native American, or female founders All applicants will be invited to various ecosystem events with top founders and VCs. Learn more and start your application at peerlesspitch.com

This was such an amazing WE@HH session! 🌟 It was incredibly inspiring! Thank you to Shashi Srikantan and the founders for sharing their time with us! Special shout out to Young Yim (who joined from Japan!) and Hannah Pearson, MBA, MHSM, PMP for being Hearst Health Scouts for Level Up Ventures and sharing their experiences too! 🙌👏 #Inspiration #LevelUpVentures #WEatHH

Big congratulations to Level Up Ventures portco SmartWiz.io for taking home first place 🥇 at Venture Atlanta Conference’s Seed Stage Pitch Competition.

Exciting news to share from the Level Up Ventures portfolio! 🎉 Our very first investment, Options MD, has been acquired by Resilience Lab! Options MD has been at the forefront of leveraging AI and data to address severe and treatment-resistant mental health conditions, offering life-changing solutions to those who need it most. This acquisition marks a huge step forward in expanding access to comprehensive, high-quality mental health care. A big congratulations to founders Kyle Pierce and Morgan Hewett—your dedication to improving mental health treatment has been inspiring. We're incredibly proud of the entire Options MD team for their relentless commitment to transforming care for severe mental illness. A big congratulations also to Marc Goldberg, Christine Carville, and the Resilience Lab team. We're excited to see how this partnership evolves and the impact it will have on improving mental health outcomes. Lastly, a special thanks to our fellow investors whom we’ve had the opportunity to work alongside in supporting Options MD, with a particular shoutout to Mary Grove at Bread and Butter Ventures. Onward and upward! 🌱 #mentalhealth #venturecapital #AI #investment #mentalhealthcare #LevelUpVentures #OptionsMD https://lnkd.in/d2pz27nJ