Automotive Ventures Research
Investment Thesis
Automotive Ventures is a specialized, seed-stage venture capital firm investing exclusively in mobility and automotive technology. Founded in 2014 by Steve Greenfield, an industry veteran with more than 25 years of experience and oversight of over $1 billion in automotive technology M&A, the firm positions itself as a domain-expert investor that pairs capital with deep industry relationships across OEMs, dealers, and fleet operators. The firm organizes its thesis around eight mobility sub-sectors: Connectivity, Cybersecurity & Compliance; Autonomy, Robotics & AI; Shared Assets & Subscription Economy; Decarbonization & New Energy; Auto Commerce Evolution; Smart City & Urban Mobility; Industrial Technology; and Dealership of the Future.
Sector Focus
Automotive Ventures invests across the full mobility stack, spanning vehicle data and cybersecurity, autonomous driving and robotics software, EV charging and decarbonization, digital retail and auto commerce, smart-city infrastructure, industrial/adjacent mobility applications, and dealer-facing SaaS tools. The firm explicitly targets diverse business models within this footprint, including B2B SaaS, data companies, marketplaces, and hardware ventures.
Stage Focus
The firm invests primarily at pre-seed and seed, with occasional participation in Series A rounds as a follow-on. Automotive Ventures frequently positions itself as the first institutional investor in a company, investing alongside angel investors rather than exclusively leading priced rounds.
Check Size
Typical initial check size averages around $500,000, with reported ranges from roughly $100,000 to $1,000,000 per seed-stage investment depending on round dynamics and syndicate composition.
Lead Tendency
Evidence from recent deals (BusRight's $30M raise led by Volition Capital, SkyGrid's financing alongside strategic and angel investors) shows Automotive Ventures typically participates as an early, non-lead investor, often being first money in rather than the priced-round lead.
Recent Activity
The firm is actively deploying across three vehicles: Fund I (closed 2021 with $7M+ in committed capital), Mobility Fund II, and DealerFund I. In March 2025, Assurant Ventures joined Mobility Fund II as a strategic LP to co-invest alongside Automotive Ventures in dealer-facing mobility technology. Recent 2026 portfolio activity includes BusRight's $30M raise (March 2026) and participation in SkyGrid's financing (February 2026), an AI compute-orchestration platform for idle vehicle GPUs.
Portfolio Highlights
Across three funds, Automotive Ventures has built a portfolio of roughly 50-57 companies, including WarrCloud, Axion Ray, SparkCharge, HopDrive, Recurrent, NuBrakes, Privacy4Cars, Kinetic, BusRight, and SkyGrid. The portfolio spans EV charging infrastructure, warranty automation, fleet analytics, dealer software, autonomous inspection, and mobility marketplaces.
Team
- Steve Greenfield, General Partner — Founder and CEO; 25+ years in automotive technology, former head of $1B+ in auto-tech M&A activity
- Justin Charbonneau, Venture Principal
- Chip Perry, Operating Partner
- Andrew Gordon, Operating Partner
- Brian Reed, Operating Partner
- Paul Whitworth, Operating Partner
- Phil Battista, Operating Partner
Decision Process
The firm operates with a General Partner supported by a Venture Principal and a bench of Operating Partners who bring operational and industry expertise to diligence and portfolio support, consistent with a partnership-style decision process rather than a solo-GP model.
Founder Preferences
Automotive Ventures favors founders building auto-tech and mobility-native products, particularly those who benefit from access to the firm's deep dealer, OEM, and fleet-operator network. The firm markets "founder empathy" and industry expertise as differentiators, suggesting a preference for founders who value hands-on operational support alongside capital.
Geographic Focus
The firm is headquartered in Atlanta, GA, with a stated primary focus on U.S.-based mobility startups, while describing itself as geographically agnostic in practice. The firm also maintains a presence associated with San Francisco and New York per its public materials.