Worldbuild is a thesis-driven venture capital firm founded by Sumeet Singh, a former a16z investment partner and New Yorker with an unconventional background spanning finance, fintech operations, and creative pursuits. The firm is built around a simple but distinct conviction: back founders at the earliest stages, before consensus forms, by leading with original thought and published intellectual frameworks rather than pattern-matching from recent deal flow. Singh previously helped a16z get into anti-fraud startup Sardine and fintech Revolut during his time there, and backed SF Compute personally before making it one of Worldbuild's first fund investments.
Worldbuild focuses on the earliest stages of company building, pre-seed and company formation, where Singh says there is "the most change and the most chaos." The firm backs founders who create new categories, are infinitely experimental, and generate a gravitational pull of attention. Singh publishes theses on where intersections of technologies will go, including pieces on the post-software era, and uses these to attract and evaluate founders, positioning Worldbuild as a tastemaker for where larger platforms should be spending time six to twelve months from now. Current portfolio companies span AI compute, AI hardware, browser infrastructure, space energy, and fintech.
Worldbuild I closed at $30 million, announced in May 2026 after approximately one year of operation. LPs include a top 20 university endowment and several prominent multi-stage VC firms. Village Global co-founder Ben Casnocha is also a limited partner. The fund is Worldbuild's debut vehicle and was raised while the firm had already quietly been deploying capital into its earliest portfolio companies.
Leadership
Sumeet Singh is the founder and managing partner of Worldbuild. Prior to launching the firm, Singh was an investment partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), where he was one of its first New York hires, focusing on fintech, consumer, and crypto. Before a16z, he served as Head of Strategy at Brigit, a consumer finance startup later acquired for $460 million, which he joined after starting his VC career at Nyca Partners. Earlier in his career, Singh was an analyst at BlackRock's Portfolio Management Group.
Investment Strategy
Worldbuild's strategy is built around Singh's practice of publishing detailed theses on emerging technology intersections, which he shares via Substack, Discord, Reddit, and other channels. Founders have used these theses to raise from firms like Founders Fund and Sequoia. The firm aims to be the "first believer", investing when conviction cannot be outsourced, and to serve as the first call for founders across every subsequent fundraising round. Four of Worldbuild's portfolio companies are founders Singh had previously backed personally before launching the fund.
Notable Investments
Worldbuild's portfolio includes SF Compute (AI computing marketplace), Browserbase (AI browser infrastructure), Truffle (AI hardware), Aetherflux (space energy), and Interfere (YC S25).
Notable Exits
None to date, Worldbuild I is the firm's debut fund.
Other
Singh is a DJ and creator with a background in fashion, previously running a custom clothing line. He is part of a growing wave of a16z alumni launching independent funds, alongside names like Vijay Pande (VZVC), Arianna Simpson, Kristina Shen, and Bryan Kim.
United States
