What’s Hapnin in pre-seed at the start of the new year? One raise on our radar this week: SaaS startup Hapnin raised $59K at a $5.9M pre-money valuation. While still in stealth mode, Hapnin is building a global internet marketplace designed to connect people. Small raise, big ambitions? Is this the next breakthrough in global marketplaces?
Necessary Ventures
Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
San Francisco, California 3,304 followers
Investing in what the world needs. Sign up for the latest in tech and pre-seed: http://necessary.vc/newsletter
About us
Our world has no shortage of challenges. Every day, we continue to struggle against illness and disease, a lack of opportunity, homelessness, violence and oppression, climate change, and hunger. Technology offers powerful solutions to these challenges. We work with the best founders building the most scalable solutions. Founders compelled by their mission. Founders building Necessary Ventures.
- Website
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http://www.necessary.vc
External link for Necessary Ventures
- Industry
- Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
- Company size
- 2-10 employees
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, California
- Type
- Partnership
- Founded
- 2020
Locations
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Primary
San Francisco, California, US
Employees at Necessary Ventures
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Greg Burrell, MD
Chief Medical Officer | Co-Founder at Carbon Health | Investor
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Carlton Robinson
Finance and Administration @ Hivemapper
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Lucy Reynales
Founder @ Health Table | Investor & Advisor
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Adrian James
Health tech entrepreneur | Aspiring food system reformer | Board Director | Strategic Advisor
Updates
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The first week of 2025 has come and gone, and it looks like pre-seed is setting the tone early for the year ahead. Funding snapshot for the last two weeks in December: - $18.9M raised across 10 rounds - Average round size: $1.9M - Estimated valuations: $9.5M-$18.9M AI and data startups dominated the deal flow with 57 closed rounds, nearly 4x more than healthcare, the runner-up. This trend caps a year where AI claimed the largest share of venture dollars nearly every month in 2024. Will 2025 continue this momentum for AI, or will another sector take the lead?
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Want to know how one investor is flipping the traditional venture capital playbook on its head? In this recent episode of Money Moves, Jenny Fielding, co-founder of Everywhere Ventures, shares her firm’s approach to investing in 50 companies a year—and how it’s led to 1000x returns. From raising her first $5M in 2018 to closing a $25M fund in 2022, Jenny breaks down the key tactics that have made her a force in the venture world. Jenny discusses what really makes a pitch stand out, why storytelling is a game-changer, and the untold lessons learned from both the wins and the misses. Catch the full conversation below.
We've previously talked about concentrated venture portfolios on Money Moves, with as few as 10 companies in a single fund. As a sharp contrast, we talked to Jenny Fielding about Everywhere Ventures, where they invest in ~50 companies per year. We also talk about how she's found 1000x (!) returns, what that means for LPs, and how there's more than one way to win in venture capital. Jenny's one of the boldest investors I know, and I learned a ton from this episode. Check out the full episode links in the comments and don't miss the link to her new book "Venture Everywhere: Travel, Entrepreneurship and a Roadmap for Life"
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Are early-stage investments falling out of favor, or just evolving? Last week’s fundraising snapshot: - $6.5M raised across 5 pre-seed rounds - Average round size: $1.3M - Estimated valuations: $6.5M-$12.9M Zooming out, venture capital investments are up in 2024 (Q1-Q3), but not for early-stage. Pre-seed and seed rounds dropped by 5% and 7%, while Series B+ deals surged by up to 105%.
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Successful exits aren’t just about capital—they’re often a result of how founders are mentored and guided throughout their journey. In last week’s Money Moves episode, Shahram Seyedin-Noor opens up about his experiences from Harvard Law to healthtech entrepreneur, and how he built Civilization Ventures, which has already achieved more than 10 successful exits. Shahram is pioneering a new era of “mentor capital” in healthtech, where mentorship is just as critical as funding. He shares how this hands-on approach has been key to his success, why storytelling and resilience are essential in life sciences fundraising, and which biotech innovations are poised to change the game. Whether you’re navigating the biotech space or looking to scale your own venture, Shahram’s insights on innovation, fundraising, and building meaningful investor relationships are invaluable.
While some people pray for exits, Shahram Seyedin-Noor makes them happen. Graduating Harvard Law School and a career in big law and banking wasn't cutting it, so he followed his heart into healthcare. He went on to build and sell two companies and has a third that's raised $150M+ and is still going. But all that was just the warm up. Now with his firm Civilization Ventures, Shahram is embodying the idea of a "mentor capitalist," writing the first check to life sciences and healthcare founders and helping them navigate the complexity of building and fundraising. Civilization has already racked up *10 exits.* Learn how on this episode of Money Moves. Full episode links in the comments
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‘Tis the holiday season, and November pre-seed activity showed signs of cheer. Last week: $7.6M raised across 8 rounds Average round size: $946K Estimated valuations: $4.7M-$9.5M Looking at the bigger picture, November wrapped up on an interesting note. Crunchbase data showed fewer deals for the month compared to last year, but a 67% increase in deals over $2.5M. The question we should all be asking ourselves: what’s driving these shifts in deal size and volume?
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A couple pre-seed companies that stood out this week: Ukhi – From rubble to riches. Ukhi raised $1.2M led by 100Unicorns to produce compostable biomaterials from agricultural residues. Their biodegradable packaging is a step toward reducing waste and supporting sustainable practices. Elysium Communities – No place like super home. Elysium Communities raised $5M to redefine real estate with affordable, tech-enabled, and sustainable communities. They’re setting a new standard for future living.
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A couple exciting pre-seed raises this week: 1. Revolutionizing mental healthcare delivery. Jimini Health – Not cynical; it’s clinical. Jimini Health raised $8M, including investments from Zetta Venture Partners, LionBird, and more, to build a unique mental health platform. Combining a clinician-led model with a supervised AI therapist assistant, Jimini is setting a new standard for scalable, personalized mental healthcare. 2. Smarter tools for smarter investments. ololand.ai – Agents in financial analysis. Ololand.ai raised $1M at a $9M pre-money valuation to create a platform powered by autonomous AI agents. Designed for investment banks and private equity firms, Ololand aims to make financial evaluations faster, smarter, and more insightful.
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Last week’s pre-seed activity showed some movement: - $17.5M raised across 9 rounds, with an average round size of $2.5M - Valuations ranged from $12.3M to $24.6M, a jump up compared to recent weeks However, the broader picture shows an uptick in down rounds in Q3, continuing the trend we’ve seen throughout 2024. The market is not quite in its comeback era post-2023.
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Ever wondered what it takes to build and sell four successful companies? This week on Money Moves, Marty Ringlein—serial entrepreneur, investor, and all-around powerhouse—shares his journey from building and selling companies to Twitter, Eventbrite, and Brex, to launching his latest venture, Agree.com, which is set to disrupt the e-signature space. Marty also dives into his unique approach to capital efficiency and how it’s shaped both his business ventures and investments. Tune in for invaluable insights on fundraising, embracing failure, and building lasting relationships in the VC world.
Let's be real. It's pretty hard to raise venture capital. Most who try, don't. But it's actually even harder to actually build and sell a company. Most venture-backed companies fail. Marty Ringlein has done it 4 times already. He built and sold his first company to Twitter before building and selling a second to WPP, a third to Eventbrite, and a fourth to Brex! If that wasn't enough, along the way, he's invested in companies like SpaceX, Coinbase, Uber, and Stripe with his venture fund, Adventure Fund. That would be enough for most people, but Marty isn't most people. He's now taking on Docusign and the e-signature world with Agree.com, a free e-signature solution that includes AI-powered workflows, automated invoicing, and integrated payments. Does the world really need another e-signature company? Get the answer to that question along with tons of hard-earned wisdom in this week's episode of Money Moves - links in the comments