DBL Partners Research
About the Firm
DBL Partners is a pioneering impact venture capital firm founded in 2008 by Ira Ehrenpreis and Nancy Pfund, with offices in San Francisco and Palo Alto, California. The firm's name reflects its foundational principle: the "Double Bottom Line" — achieving top-tier venture capital returns (the First Bottom Line) while enabling meaningful social, environmental, and economic benefits (the Second Bottom Line) without compromise.
DBL Partners manages approximately $2.3 billion in assets across seven funds. The firm closed its fourth fund at $600 million in 2021, focused on clean energy, agriculture and food, nature-based solutions, health and safety, economic opportunity, transportation and mobility, and the space/Earth nexus. As of 2025, DBL Partners has invested in 73+ companies, generating notable exits including Tesla, Planet Labs, NEXTracker, The RealReal, and Pandora, along with 4 unicorns, 7 IPOs, and 18 acquisitions.
Investment Thesis
DBL Partners invests in mission-driven founders building companies that demonstrate financial performance and positive social/environmental impact are not mutually exclusive. The firm coined the term "Double Bottom Line" investing — the idea that top-tier venture returns can coexist with, and even be catalyzed by, measurable social, environmental, and economic benefits.
The firm's seven core impact themes guide its investment strategy:
- Clean Energy & Climate — Solar, storage, clean energy infrastructure, wildfire prevention, and climate resilience
- Agriculture & Food — AgTech, sustainable food systems, precision agriculture, and food waste reduction
- Nature-Based Solutions — Carbon markets, reforestation, land management, and ecosystem services
- Health & Safety — Biotechnology, diagnostics, healthcare innovation, and public health
- Economic Opportunity — Workforce development, marketplace platforms, and financial inclusion
- Transportation & Mobility — Electric vehicles, autonomous systems, and last-mile logistics
- Space/Earth Nexus — Satellite imagery, launch services, and space-enabled Earth applications
DBL Partners is affiliated with major impact investing networks including the US Impact Investing Alliance, PRI, IIGCC, and Climate 50.
Stage Focus
DBL Partners primarily invests across Series A through Series C rounds:
- Series A: 15 investments, average round size $11.9M
- Series B: 13 investments, average round size $41.4M
- Series C: 10 investments, average round size $38.6M
- Series D: 4 investments, average round size $41.1M
- Seed: 3 investments, average round size $4.47M
The firm is most active at Series A and B stages but makes selective seed investments and follows on through Series C+.
Check Size
DBL Partners' historical average check size is approximately $9.4 million, with individual checks ranging from approximately $2M to $50M+ depending on stage and round dynamics. Follow-on investments in marquee portfolio companies have significantly exceeded these thresholds.
Lead Tendency
DBL Partners frequently leads or co-leads investment rounds. The firm led Agtonomy's oversubscribed $18M Series B in October 2025 (with Ira Ehrenpreis joining the board) and led Fiber Global's $20M Series A in June 2025 (with Ira Ehrenpreis joining the board). The firm takes board seats in portfolio companies where it leads.
Recent Activity (2025–2026)
DBL Partners remains actively deploying from Fund IV ($600M, 2021):
- Agtonomy (Series B, October 2025): $18M oversubscribed round for physical AI solutions in agriculture and off-road industries. DBL led the round, with Nuveen as a new co-investor.
- Fiber Global (Series A, June 2025): $20M to scale a circular building materials platform converting global waste streams into durable, low-carbon building materials.
- R-Zero (follow-on, 2025): AI-powered smart building platform linking occupancy patterns to HVAC energy efficiency.
Portfolio Highlights
Marquee Exits:
- Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) — Early-stage investor and board member
- SolarCity — Acquired by Tesla
- Planet Labs (NYSE: PL) — Satellite imagery, IPO 2021
- NEXTracker (NASDAQ: NXT) — Solar tracking systems, IPO 2023
- The RealReal (NASDAQ: REAL) — Luxury resale marketplace, IPO 2019
- Pandora — Internet radio pioneer, acquired
Active Unicorns:
- Mapbox — Location data platform
- Andela — Global tech talent marketplace
- Apeel Sciences — Natural food preservation technology
- Farmers Business Network (FBN) — Farmer data and commerce network
Notable Current Portfolio:
- SpaceX — Commercial launch and Starlink
- xAI — Advanced AI for scientific discovery
- The Boring Company — Underground tunnel infrastructure
- BurnBot — Robotic wildfire prevention through mechanized vegetation management
- Rain — Autonomous aircraft for wildfire prevention
- Chestnut Carbon — Nature-based carbon removal (TIME's Top GreenTech Company 2025 and 2026)
- Agtonomy — Physical AI for agriculture and off-road industries
- Pallet — Rapid-response shelter products
- R-Zero — Smart buildings and HVAC efficiency
- Menlo Micro — Energy-efficient electronic switches
Team
Ira Ehrenpreis — Founder and Managing Partner. JD/MBA from Stanford; BA from UCLA (Phi Beta Kappa, Summa Cum Laude). President, Western Association of Venture Capitalists. Chairman, VCNetwork. Founder and Chairman, World Energy Innovation Forum (WEIF). Board member, Tesla Motors. 2018 NACD Directorship 100 honoree.
Nancy Pfund — Founder and Managing Partner. BA/MA Anthropology, Stanford; MBA, Yale. Former Managing Director, JPMorgan Venture Capital. Early investor in Tesla, SolarCity, and Pandora. Board Trustee, National Geographic Society. 2024 Impact Capital Managers Impact Leadership Award. 2023 Forbes Women 50 Over 50. 2022 Financial Woman of the Year.
Mark Perutz — Partner. BS/MS Mechanical Engineering + MBA, MIT Sloan. At DBL since founding (January 2008). Former JPMorgan Bay Area Equity Fund Manager. Former equity research analyst at Robertson Stephens. Board: Pallet. Former boards: ZincFive, RallyPoint, Better Place Forests, Revolution Foods.
Paula Uniacke — Director of Impact. Leads impact measurement and assessment for the portfolio.
Vincent Caruso — Principal. Active investment team member.
Jake Harris — Principal. Active investment team member.
Becky Cooper — Chief Financial Officer.
Carol Wong — Chief Administrative Officer.
Decision Process
DBL Partners operates as a partnership with two Managing Partners (Ehrenpreis and Pfund) and a Partner (Perutz). Board seats are taken on led investments. The firm maintains long-term relationships with portfolio founders, often holding for 10+ years.
Geographic Focus
DBL Partners invests primarily in the United States (40+ of 73 portfolio companies US-based), headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area. The firm has made selective international investments in Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the UK.
Founder Preferences
DBL Partners seeks mission-driven founders building companies at the intersection of strong commercial performance and meaningful environmental, social, or economic impact. The firm values founders with deep domain expertise in climate, sustainability, energy, food systems, or social innovation who can demonstrate clear pathways to both market-leading financial returns and measurable positive outcomes.