Corazon Capital Research
Investment Thesis
Corazon Capital is a Chicago-based early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2014 with the tagline "Investment with heart." The firm backs founders building companies around enduring human behaviors — how people learn, connect, transact, work, and live. With Fund IV ($100M, closed March 2026), Corazon has doubled down on AI-native companies that amplify human potential rather than replace human connection. As Managing Partner Phil Schwarz put it: "We invest in founders who use AI to amplify human potential, not replace it; in a world racing toward automation, we're investing in humanity."
The firm operates with an operator-led, hands-on approach, with its leadership team having built and scaled companies including SparkNotes, OkCupid, Match Group, Tinder, ShopRunner, and Grindr. This operator DNA shapes the firm's founder empathy and its ability to provide practical, actionable support.
Stage Focus
Corazon invests across pre-seed, seed, and Series A. Over 126 investments since founding, with:
- Seed: ~15 investments, average round size $2.48M
- Series A: ~12 investments, average round size $7.08M
- Series B: ~4 investments, average round size $13M
Corazon frequently leads seed rounds and participates in Series A. Fund IV explicitly targets pre-seed, seed, and Series A.
Check Size
Typical check size ranges from approximately $500K–$10M, depending on stage:
- Pre-Seed: $250K–$1M
- Seed: $1M–$5M (average ~$2.48M)
- Series A: $3M–$10M (average ~$7.08M)
The firm also deployed a $34M sidecar fund alongside Fund III for follow-on investments in existing portfolio companies.
Lead Tendency
Corazon consistently leads rounds. Recent examples include leading Noble Mobile's $10.3M seed (September 2025) and Tandem's $3.7M seed (March 2024).
Sector Focus
Corazon invests across four primary categories:
- Consumer Tech — apps, products, and platforms centered on consumer behavior and lifestyle (BoldVoice, Brilliant, PrettyLitter, BillTrim, LifeForce, Mustard, Pebble, etc.)
- Marketplaces — platforms connecting buyers and sellers (SpotHero, RocketMiles, FoodsBy, Carro, Mudflap, Arta, etc.)
- Commerce Enablement — B2B tools that power commerce (Bluecore, MasonHub, nVenue, Batch, Better Trucks, HiLink, ExecThread, etc.)
- Emerging Tech / AI — AI-native applications and infrastructure (HeyC, iAsk, MX Pilot, Rime, Clarifai, SafeGraph, Draftbit, Telnyx, etc.)
With Fund IV, AI-native companies have become the primary focus. The firm's view: AI enables anyone to build sophisticated technology, so product-market fit and scale will increasingly define winners.
Recent Activity
Fund IV ($100M): Closed March 31, 2026. Third institutional close as a firm. Focuses on AI-native companies transforming enduring human behaviors.
Fund III ($100M + $34M sidecar): Closed December 2021.
Recent investments:
- Noble Mobile (September 2025) — Led $10.3M seed for the mobile carrier that pays customers to use less data. Founded by Andrew Yang, backed by Scott Galloway.
- Tandem (March 2024) — Led $3.7M seed for the couples fintech app with a Goals feature.
Portfolio Highlights
Over 87 portfolio companies across the firm's history. Notable companies include:
- SpotHero — Market-leading parking marketplace (major exit)
- Telnyx — Enterprise cloud communications (scaled unicorn)
- TradingView — Financial charting and social network for traders (scaled unicorn)
- Brilliant.org — Interactive STEM education platform
- PrettyLitter — Subscription cat litter with health diagnostics
- Bluecore — Retail email personalization platform (now part of PagerDuty ecosystem)
- Bonobos — Direct-to-consumer menswear (acquired by Walmart)
- Pinterest — Social image discovery platform
- SafeGraph — Location data analytics company
- Mudflap — Fuel savings marketplace for truckers
Team
Corazon has expanded from a Chicago-roots firm to a nationally distributed team:
- Sam Yagan (Co-Founder & Managing Partner): Former CEO of Match Group and ShopRunner; founded SparkNotes and OkCupid. BA Applied Mathematics/Economics, Harvard; MBA, Stanford GSB.
- Steve Farsht (Co-Founder): Former COO of Tap.Me; 9 years as General Partner at Norwest Equity Partners; Techstars Chicago board member. MBA, Kellogg; BS Accounting, UW-Madison.
- Phil Schwarz (Managing Partner): Former CMO of Tinder, VP Growth at Match Group. MBA, University of Chicago Booth; BBA, Ohio University.
- Alison Stillman (Partner): Formerly founding partner at Serena Ventures; J.P. Morgan Asset Management; Melo7 Tech Partners. BS Economics (Wharton); MBA, Harvard Business School; CFA charterholder.
- Greg Johnston (Partner): Promoted from principal; growth-stage investor at LLR Partners; M&A advisory at Sagent Advisors. MBA, University of Chicago Booth; Economics/Art History, Duke.
- Smriti Jayaraman (Partner): Promoted from principal; founding principal at Kraft-Heinz–backed Evolv Ventures; VP at Guild Capital; Bain & Company. MBA, Harvard Business School.
- Josh Graves (VP): Former KB Partners and New Stack Ventures; Chief of Staff at Farmer's Fridge. MBA, University of Chicago Booth; BS Economics, Northwestern.
- Zach Kaplan (Venture Partner): Founder and CEO of Inventables; Techstars Chicago Mentor-of-the-Year 2013; TED and SXSW speaker.
Decision Process
Partnership model with multiple GPs and partners. Founders can submit via corazon.com or [email protected] with a pitch deck. The firm targets responses within a few weeks. Operator-led approach means partners engage hands-on with portfolio companies post-investment, often taking board seats.
Geographic Focus
Corazon was founded in Chicago and retains its Midwest identity, but has expanded nationally. Investors are now based in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York, giving the firm a coastal-meets-Midwest footprint that mirrors its portfolio's national reach.
Founder Preferences
Corazon backs founders building around enduring human needs and behaviors. With Fund IV, the firm specifically seeks founders leveraging AI to amplify human potential. Given the operator backgrounds of the team (dating, commerce, education, media), the firm has particular affinity for founders in consumer, marketplace, and AI applications. The team brings hands-on operational experience and emphasizes deep, long-term partnerships.
Anti-Thesis
While not explicitly stated, Corazon avoids pure deep tech, defense, life sciences, and hardware plays. Their portfolio reflects a strong bias toward software, consumer internet, marketplaces, and AI applications with clear paths to consumer adoption or enterprise deployment.