Cake Ventures — Investment Thesis & Preferences

Cake Ventures Research

Investment Thesis

Cake Ventures is a specialized early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2021 that invests in founders with global ambitions who are creating products addressing the needs of tomorrow's internet users through demographic change. The firm is uniquely positioned at the intersection of technology and newly powerful consumer groups, betting on companies that will be early disruptors to markets impacted by major shifts in technology consumers and demographics.

Monique Woodard, the founder and Managing Director, spent 15+ years in technology as an entrepreneur, ecosystem builder, operator, and investor before founding Cake Ventures. She was previously a Venture Partner at 500 Startups (500 Global) where she invested in early-stage companies across the US and Africa, and later worked as a Venture Scout at Lightspeed Venture Partners. Her thesis is grounded in understanding how massive demographic changes create enormous market opportunities for companies that serve these newly powerful consumer groups.

Demographic Focus Areas

Cake Ventures focuses on three primary demographic shifts that are reshaping consumer markets:

1. Aging & Longevity

By 2034, Americans over 65 will outnumber those under 18. This large and economically powerful demographic increasingly expects to use technology and innovation to address unique challenges of late life. Portfolio companies in this area help aging consumers age in place, manage finances, find work and purpose beyond retirement, and access healthcare services. Examples include Death Clock, Guaranteed, Tendercare, and Eli Health.

2. Spending Power of Women

Women wield significant influence over how they connect online, shop, and access products and services for themselves and their families. They are driving companies to multi-billion dollar outcomes in categories like women's health, e-commerce, care economy, and more. Portfolio companies serving this demographic include Eli Health, Frame Fertility, Pamper, Culina Health, Aster, and others focusing on female-driven markets.

3. The New Majority (Shift to Majority-Minority)

Asian, Black, and Latino people represent the fastest-growing and most lucrative consumer groups in the US and globally. This demographic shift has unlocked opportunities for technology companies addressing unsolved problems and unmet needs including improved healthcare outcomes, more inclusive financial products, and culture-driven consumer technology.

Stage & Check Size Focus

Cake Ventures is a seed-stage investor with the following investment parameters:

Stages: Pre-seed and Seed stage companies

Check Size: First checks range from $200,000 to $750,000, representing seed-stage investment tickets

Fund Size: Monique Woodard closed $17 million for Cake Ventures Fund I in 2023. She originally planned to reach 25 portfolio companies by end of 2024, demonstrating a portfolio density of 12-25 companies per fund.

Geographic Focus

While based in San Francisco, Cake Ventures invests throughout North America. Notably, more than half of the portfolio companies are located outside San Francisco/Silicon Valley, showing geographic diversity in deployment. Portfolio companies are distributed across:

San Francisco Bay Area and California
New York City
Washington DC Metro
Midwest (Minneapolis, MN)
Mountain West (Salt Lake City, Denver area)
Canada (Montreal, Quebec)

Investment Decision Process

Cake Ventures operates with a focused investment structure:

Solo GP Model: Monique Woodard leads investment decisions as a solo General Partner
Partnership Structure: Recent growth shows the addition of partners (Shaherose Charania mentioned as a recent addition in early 2024)
Decision Timeline: Seed-stage timeline, typically 2-4 weeks
Typical Involvement: Board seat or advisory involvement

Portfolio Companies (16+ Active Investments)

Cake Ventures has invested in 16+ portfolio companies across the demographic change thesis:

Healthcare & Aging:

Death Clock (AI lifespan prediction, San Francisco)
Guaranteed (End-of-life healthcare platform, NYC)
Tendercare (AI copilot for caregiving, NYC)
Frame Fertility (Virtual fertility care, SF Bay Area)
Culina Health (Clinical nutrition services, Hoboken, NJ)
Eli Health (Hormone monitoring for women, Montreal)
Sol Health (Mental health access for Gen Z, NYC)
Aster (Women's health practice management, SF Bay Area)

Consumer & E-Commerce:

Pamper (Reusable nail art, SF Bay Area)
Shop McMullen (Luxury e-commerce for emerging designers, SF Bay Area)
Snack (Video-first dating app for Gen Z, location TBD)
Rares (Fractional sneaker investing, location TBD)
Serif (Community spaces, location TBD)
Joshin (Disability benefit platform, Minneapolis)

Future of Work & Other:

STAND+ (Work shoes for deskless workers, San Diego)
TenYour (Insurtech for unemployment protection, SF Bay Area)
Lotus Labs (Home automation wearable ring, SF Bay Area)
Bright (AI immersive training platform, Washington DC)
EasyMateAI (AI deployment tools for non-engineers, SF Bay Area)

Recent Activity & Fund Status

Latest Investments: Most recent investment confirmed in December 2025 (Frame Fertility follow-on), indicating active deployment from Fund I with remaining reserves for follow-on investments.

Fund Status: Actively deploying from Fund I ($17M raised 2023). Based on portfolio density and follow-on activity, the fund appears to be in mid-deployment phase with capacity for new investments and follow-ons.

Co-Investment Partners: Cake Ventures typically leads or co-leads rounds. The firm works with other seed-stage investors and demonstrates willingness to participate in Series A rounds for strong portfolio companies.

Founder Preferences

Based on portfolio composition, Cake Ventures favors:

Founder backgrounds: Diverse founding teams, particularly those from underrepresented demographics (women, minorities, immigrants)
Problem selection: Founders solving real problems for large, underserved demographic groups
Product focus: Consumer-first or consumer-inspired B2B solutions addressing demographic needs
Geography: Willingness to work with founders across North America, not limited to coastal tech hubs

Investment Thesis & Anti-Thesis

Core Thesis: "Investing in where we're going, not where we came from." The firm is deeply focused on consumer and enterprise startups that will be early disruptors to markets impacted by demographic sea changes in technology consumers.

Anti-Thesis: The firm explicitly avoids:

Pure gambling/casino gaming
Hardware-only plays (though some portfolio companies have hardware components)
Traditional B2B enterprise software (focus is on companies serving demographic shifts)
Companies not addressing specific demographic needs

Competitive Advantages

Demographic Expertise: Monique Woodard brings deep expertise in demographic trends and consumer behavior patterns
Operator Background: Founder has 15+ years as entrepreneur and operator, providing value beyond capital
Global Perspective: Previous investments across US and Africa provide international insight
Equity Gap Focus: Implicit focus on backing underrepresented founders and markets
Portfolio Diversity: Geographic spread and diverse portfolio company types reduce concentration risk

Thought Leadership & Public Presence

Cake Ventures is active in public discourse around demographic change:

Published whitepapers including "Finding Alpha: The Trillion Dollar Female Economy," "Demographic Revolution: First Slowly, Then All at Once," "Navigating the Silver Economy," and "Gray New World: Aging in the Time of Technology"
Active on Medium, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn
Monique Woodard is a sought-after speaker and author on demographic trends in tech
Kauffman Fellow (KF26) indicating recognition as emerging venture leader

Fund Metrics & Performance

Fund I Metrics:

Fund Size: $17 million (closed 2023)
Target Portfolio Size: 25 companies by end 2024 (actual portfolio is 16+ as of Feb 2026)
Check Size: $200K-$750K first checks
Follow-on: Reserves set aside for follow-on investments into proven winners
Deployment Timeline: Fund I appears to be in mid-deployment (2.5+ years into fund lifecycle)

Stage & Thesis Alignment

Cake Ventures represents a unique thesis-driven approach to seed investing. Rather than betting on traditional venture themes (SaaS, fintech, AI infrastructure), the firm bets on demographic change as the organizing principle. This creates several advantages:

Large TAM: Each demographic shift creates a multi-billion dollar opportunity set
Long Runway: Demographic trends are multi-decade phenomena, reducing time pressure
Anti-Competition: Fewer generalist VCs focus on demographic-driven investing
Portfolio Resilience: Diversification across demographic themes and consumer segments

Fund History & Context

Cake Ventures was founded in 2021 by Monique Woodard during a period of significant conversation about venture capital diversity and demographic trends. The fund emerged during the height of diversity discussions in VC and positioned itself uniquely by focusing on both the demographic themes AND founder diversity. The "Cake" branding suggests sweetness, celebration, and sharing—a deliberate positioning away from more aggressive venture branding.

Decision Timeline & Process

For founders considering applying:

Application: Via cake.vc/apply form
Decision Timeline: Typical seed-stage timeline of 2-4 weeks from submission to decision
Typical Ask: Decks with clear problem statement, market size, founder background, and progress to date
Warm Intros: While not explicitly required, warm introductions likely help (Monique has extensive network from 500 Startups, Lightspeed, and previous roles)

Notable Recent News

Early 2024: Announced partnership with Shaherose Charania, expanding team capacity
2023-2025: Sustained deployment from Fund I with follow-on investments and new first checks
Active public presence with speaking engagements, thought leadership, and portfolio visibility