Latest fund size
$450M
Announced
October 21, 2026
Global HQ
United States
Members only
Check size
$1M-$15M
Members only
Stage focus
Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A
Members only
Regions of investment
North America
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Inspired Capital is a New York-based venture capital firm founded in 2019 by Alexa von Tobel and Penny Pritzker. The firm invests from pre-seed through Series A under its "An Inspired Future" thesis, backing founders in areas including digitizing the industrial economy, retooling the workforce, building the monetization layer of the internet, unlocking AI's potential, and supporting financial stability, with recent bets in physical AI and quantum computing.
Alexa von Tobel, Founder and Managing Partner
Penny Pritzker, Co-Founder
Mark Batsiyan, General Partner
Lucy Deland, General Partner
Charlotte Ross, Partner
Kamran Ali, Partner
Chris Brown, Partner
Alexa Gellman, Principal
Members only
Names, roles, emails and LinkedIn profiles for the team, plus the fund's website.
Inspired Capital invests from pre-seed through Series A, backing roughly 10 companies a year under its "An Inspired Future" thesis: digitizing the industrial economy, retooling the workforce, building the monetization layer of the internet, unlocking AI's potential, and supporting financial stability in volatile societies.
The firm says it picks investment themes early and avoids crowded trades, having backed physical AI and quantum computing startups rather than only AI applications.
It will lead later primary rounds if it misses a company at an earlier stage, and has written checks into companies already valued above $100 million.
Its portfolio spans roughly 45% East Coast, 45% West Coast, and 10% elsewhere, and the firm typically keeps more than 90% of its ownership position in portfolio companies.
Members only
What the fund looks for in founders and which sectors it backs.
Inspired Capital closed its fourth fund at $450 million, bringing the firm's assets under management to nearly $1.4 billion.
The fund follows a $200 million debut fund (2019), a $281 million second fund (2021), and a $330 million third fund that closed in early 2024.
Co-founder Alexa von Tobel says 12 companies from the firm's first two funds have become unicorns, about 15% of the portfolio, with more than 10 exits to date and roughly a third of the portfolio made up of repeat founders.
Members only
Fund size, LPs and track record.
Leadership
Inspired Capital was co-founded by Alexa von Tobel, Founder and Managing Partner, who previously founded LearnVest and sold it to Northwestern Mutual for a reported $375 million, and Penny Pritzker, Co-Founder and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce, who remains an active co-founder.
The broader partner group includes General Partners Mark Batsiyan and Lucy Deland, and Partners Charlotte Ross, Kamran Ali, Chris Brown, and Annie Shapiro.
Notable Investments
Notable Exits
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Leadership, investment strategy, notable investments and exits.
