Begin Ventures Research
Overview
Begin Ventures is a solo-GP pre-seed venture firm founded in 2025 by Michael (Mike) Saloio, based in Miami with a second base in Brooklyn. The firm launched in November 2025 as a Rule 506(c) fund, which lets it market publicly to accredited investors instead of relying on warm LP referrals. Its website (begin.ventures) is a single-page stub with links to Fund I on Decile Access, a community sign-up page and a contact email. There is no portfolio page and no team page. Most of what is known comes from the founder's LinkedIn, the firm's Substack (begin.news), and third-party fund listings.
Investment Thesis
The stated thesis is that the way humans live and interact with the physical world will change quickly in a post-AI society, and Begin wants to back founders making day-to-day life better. LinkedIn describes it as a research-driven VC firm focused on the future of everyday life and the shift in consumer behavior in a post-AI world. A later update tightened the thesis around "Originals": strong operators with domain expertise, taste and leadership who will shape how people live. The firm targets design-led operators and mid-career professionals with seven or more years of experience who reinvent parts of the economy they already know.
Sector Focus
- Home
- Transportation
- Food
- Wellness and health
- Personal finance
- Relationships
- Future of work, as it relates to human sovereignty
Decile Access lists the focus as AI, consumer tech, health and future of work.
Stage Focus and Check Size
Begin invests at pre-seed and aims to be the first institutional investor. Fund I is a roughly $2M fund, per its Decile Access listing, with a minimum LP check of $25K. Individual check sizes are not published. The firm has said it plans to run a fellowship, launched in Q1 2026, to help founders explore ideas before quitting their jobs. It also runs an investor community that receives SPV opportunities alongside Fund I.
Lead Tendency
Not stated. The Maka Kids round shows Begin participating alongside Detroit Venture Partners and Invest Detroit, so it appears to follow or co-invest more than lead. Marked unknown.
Recent Activity
In a mid-2026 update the founder said Begin had invested in five new companies, all pre-seed and all repeat founders. It also built two AI digital employees, a Chief of Staff and a VC Analyst. LinkedIn lists the firm as one person with digital agent employees. Three investments are publicly named:
- Packsmith: a software-defined 3PL for brands. Begin took part in its pre-seed through an SPV in 2024, before the fund launched.
- Maka Kids: a children's streaming app for ages 0 to 6, built with the Yale Child Study Center. Begin took part in the $3M pre-seed announced in May 2026, alongside Detroit Venture Partners and Invest Detroit.
- Jack: an AI home manager for homeowners at $49 a month, founded by Zach Blank in Portland.
The other two new investments have not been named publicly.
Portfolio Highlights
The portfolio is small and early. No exits are known. The firm publishes a research memo for each portfolio company on its Substack and shares full memos with its investor community.
Team
- Michael Saloio, Founder & Managing Partner: 16 years at Techstars, Betaworks, Expa, Human Ventures, Samsung Next and WeWork Labs, helping launch 150+ companies. Founded Huddle (raised seed and exited), was employee #1 at SuperPhone, and was a sell-side analyst at Oppenheimer and Sidoti. Also invests deal by deal with Backpocket VC.
Decision Process
Solo GP. Saloio makes the investment decisions, supported by AI agents for analysis and administration.
Founder Preferences
Repeat founders, mid-career operators with deep domain expertise, and design-led teams. The firm also works as a founder coach, offering coaching, leadership and wellbeing support.
Geographic Focus
United States. The firm is based in Miami and Brooklyn and is courting Miami investors and founders.
Gaps
No portfolio page exists on the firm's site. An Instagram post from a law firm named Begin Ventures as a DesignVerse investor, but the company's own announcement and FinSMEs name Begin Capital (London), a different firm, so DesignVerse is excluded. Check size, lead tendency and the unnamed portfolio companies are unverified.