Carya Research
Investment Thesis
Carya Venture Partners (operating publicly as "Carya") is a Palo Alto, California-based micro-VC founded in May 2022 by Sharath Keshava Narayana, Andrés Pérez Soderi, and Marty Massih Sarim. The firm's stated thesis is that it "invests in restlessness, courageousness, and willingness" — backing founders who can see into the future of markets and are willing to pursue ambitious, unconventional visions. Carya positions itself as an active, hands-on partner that provides "unwavering and patient support" through company pivots and early-stage challenges, rather than a passive check-writer. The founding team's own operating background (Observe.AI, Sanas) informs a preference for technical founders solving hard, deep-tech problems in AI infrastructure and applied AI.
Sector Focus
Carya concentrates on early-stage deep tech and AI, with recurring themes across its portfolio:
- AI infrastructure and model routing/orchestration (Martian, Andean)
- Voice AI and speech technology (Retell AI, Sanas, and its 2026 investment in Fish Audio)
- Customer experience (CX) AI and support automation (AptEdge, Crescendo)
- Vertical AI applications (Accordance)
- Fintech and finance automation (Arc, DualEntry)
- Developer tools, cybersecurity, and enterprise SaaS more broadly, per third-party firm descriptions
Stage Focus
Carya invests primarily at pre-seed and seed, occasionally following on into Series A for existing portfolio companies as they mature (e.g., participation alongside larger co-investors in Fish Audio's 2026 seed extension-style round).
Check Size
Third-party sources place Carya's typical check size between $100K and $5M, with a stated "sweet spot" around $1.5M per deal.
Lead Tendency
Carya appears to primarily co-invest and follow rather than consistently lead. In its most recent identified deal (Fish Audio, July 2026), the round was led by Coreline Ventures and Capital Today, with Carya participating alongside 359 Capital, Play Time, HF0, 645 Ventures, Parable, Bayhouse Ventures, and Alphalist Partners. This is consistent with its positioning as a value-add, syndicate-friendly participant rather than a price-setter.
Recent Activity
Carya has been actively deploying capital through 2025 and into 2026:
- July 2026: Participated in Fish Audio's $52M seed round (Fish Audio grew from zero to $21M ARR and 8M+ users in its first year of operation)
- May 2026: Invested in General Compute
- February 2026: Participated in Fluency's $6M seed round
- Earlier 2022–2025 investments include Accordance, Andean, AptEdge (2023), Arc (2022), Martian, Crescendo, DualEntry, Retell AI, Stuut, and Sanas
As of late 2025, third-party trackers counted roughly 18 portfolio companies with 3 new investments in the preceding 12 months, indicating a steady, ongoing deployment pace.
Portfolio Highlights
Notable portfolio companies span voice AI (Sanas, Retell AI — both well-known names in the voice AI space) and AI infrastructure (Martian). The firm's earliest identified deals (Arc, 2022) show it was investing from near its founding date.
Fund
Carya raised a first fund of approximately $20M, launched around October 2023, targeting pre-seed and seed-stage companies with the intent of preparing them for Series A. A second fund reportedly opened around June 2024. Specific fund II size was not independently confirmed from public sources.
Team
- Sharath Keshava Narayana — General Partner and co-founder. Previously co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Observe.AI (scaled to unicorn status, $15M+ ARR at his departure) and co-founder/COO of Sanas. Has raised over $500M in venture funding across his operating career prior to founding Carya.
- Andrés Pérez Soderi — General Partner and co-founder.
- Marty Massih Sarim — Venture Partner and co-founder.
- Andy Lee — Chairman.
- Michael Greenbaum — Principal.
- Sai Supriya Sharath — Venture Partner.
- Ryan Snow — CFO.
- Patricia Peña — Operations Analyst.
Decision Process
Not explicitly disclosed; with three General Partners and a Chairman, deals likely go through a partnership-style discussion rather than a solo-GP decision.
Founder Preferences
Carya explicitly favors founders with "restlessness, courageousness, and willingness" — language suggesting a preference for relentless, ambitious operators, often with prior technical or operating pedigree (mirroring the founding team's own Observe.AI/Sanas background), building in AI infrastructure, voice AI, and vertical AI applications.
Geographic Focus
Headquartered in Palo Alto, California; portfolio companies (Sanas, Retell AI, Martian, Fish Audio) skew toward the SF Bay Area, consistent with a domestic-US, Silicon-Valley-centric investing focus, though the firm has not published explicit geographic restrictions.