Flying Fish Partners

Flying Fish Partners Research

Overview

Flying Fish Partners (also known as Flying Fish Ventures) is an early-stage venture capital firm headquartered in Seattle, WA, founded in 2016 by Heather Redman, Geoff Harris, and Frank Chang. The firm is one of the Pacific Northwest's leading AI/ML-focused investors, operating with the core thesis that "Artificial Intelligence will disrupt every industry." Flying Fish has deployed capital across three primary funds: Fund I ($37M, 2018), Fund II ($70M, closed May 2022), and Fund III (SEC filing July 2024, amount undisclosed). They also operate Flying Fish Opportunity Fund I ($25M) dedicated to follow-on investments in their existing portfolio.

Investment Thesis

Flying Fish Partners exclusively invests in companies where AI and machine learning serve as foundational technologies. Their investment framework is organized around three focus areas:

1. Applied Intelligence — Companies applying AI to transform specific industries and workflows, including customer experience automation, sales intelligence, identity verification, cybersecurity, social media AI, and autonomous agents. Notable investments include Simular (AI agent for computers), NLX (customer experience automation), TrojAI (AI security), Vouched (identity verification), and Clarity (deepfake detection).

2. Foundational AI & Infrastructure — Companies building the core infrastructure and tooling for AI/ML development, including reinforcement learning platforms, reasoning engines, AI training acceleration, and industrial AI optimization systems. Notable investments include AgileRL (reinforcement learning), Phaidra (industrial AI), and Axiom Math (AI reasoning).

3. Hard Sciences — Companies using AI to accelerate scientific discovery, particularly in computational biology, drug discovery, protein engineering, and materials science. Notable investments include Latent Labs (AI-programmable biology), Accipiter Biosciences (de novo protein therapies), Orbital Materials (materials discovery), and Variational (small molecule drug discovery).

Geoff Harris stated: "We were one of the first venture firms to recognize AI and ML as a rich investment opportunity," reflecting the firm's early conviction in AI as a foundational technology shift.

Stage Focus

Flying Fish focuses primarily on pre-seed and seed stage investments. For pre-seed, check sizes typically range from $250K to $1M. For seed rounds, they invest approximately $1M–$2M. The firm's Opportunity Fund I ($25M) provides follow-on capital for portfolio companies at later stages.

Check Size

• Pre-seed: ~$250K–$1M
• Seed: ~$1M–$2M
• Maximum initial check: ~$2M
• Follow-on capital: Available via Opportunity Fund I for existing portfolio

Lead Tendency

Flying Fish both leads and co-leads early-stage rounds. They led Hiverge's $5M seed round in September 2025 and co-led Accipiter Biosciences' $12.7M seed alongside Takeda in November 2025. In larger rounds, they often participate alongside major investors such as GV, True Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Felicis.

Fund Status & Recent Activity

The firm is actively deploying from Fund II with 8 investments in 2025 and 1 new investment already in January 2026. An SEC filing from July 2024 indicates Fund III is being raised, suggesting continued deployment capacity. Their most recent investments include:

• January 2026: AgileRL (seed, reinforcement learning framework for AI training)
• January 2026: Aisy (seed, AI-native cybersecurity/threat intelligence)
• December 2025: Simular ($21.5M round led by Felicis, AI agent for Mac/Windows)
• November 2025: Accipiter Biosciences ($12.7M seed co-led with Takeda, de novo protein therapies)
• October 2025: Portfolio company Phaidra raised $50M from Nvidia and Collaborative Fund
• September 2025: Hiverge ($5M seed, former Google DeepMind researchers)
• June 2025: Nectar Social ($10.6M backed by GV and True Ventures)
• February 2025: Latent Labs ($50M for AI-programmable biology)

Portfolio Highlights

Flying Fish has built a portfolio of 39+ companies with several notable exits:

Exits:

• Streem (acquired by Frontdoor, NASDAQ: FTDR) — AR-based video assistance platform
• Reclaim.ai (acquired by Dropbox, NASDAQ: DBX) — AI calendar optimization
• Gradient (acquired by Criteo, NASDAQ: CRTO) — eCommerce ML optimization
• Finn.ai (acquired by Glia) — Mobile banking AI interface
• Ethos — Instant life insurance (acquired)
• Symbl.ai — Conversational intelligence APIs (acquired May 2025)

Active Standouts:

• Phaidra — Industrial AI/ML for data center and operations optimization; raised $50M from Nvidia and Collaborative Fund (2025)
• Orbital Materials — Materials discovery via generative AI; AWS collaboration (2024)
• NLX — Customer experience automation; $15M Series A (2024)
• Groundlight AI — Computer vision and visual reasoning; $10M+ raised
• Latent Labs — AI-programmable biology; $50M raised, led by DeepMind AlphaFold alumnus (2025)
• Accipiter Biosciences — De novo protein therapies; partnerships with Pfizer and Kite Pharma

Team

• Geoff Harris, Managing Partner — Microsoft veteran with background in NLP, machine learning, and digital commerce; co-founder of Flying Fish
• Heather Redman, Managing Partner — Co-founder; experienced investor and attorney, well-known figure in Pacific Northwest tech
• Frank Chang, Managing Partner — ML engineering background at Amazon, Audible, Microsoft, and Reef Technologies; co-founder
• Adriane Brown, Managing Partner — Former President & COO at Intellectual Ventures; former President of Honeywell Transportation Systems; joined for Fund II
• Heather Gorham, Venture Partner — Based in London; former JP Morgan technology banker, ON Semiconductor, Tesla; hosts interdisciplinary AI salons; portfolio focus: Nectar, Latent Labs, Aisy, AgileRL, Hiverge, BluePill AI, Accipiter Bio
• Lisa Nelson, Venture Partner — Seattle-based; venture partner role
• Vanessa Pegueros, Venture Partner — Seattle-based; cybersecurity expertise
• Tiffany Linke-Boyko, Principal — Edmonton-based; focuses on US and Canadian deal flow
• Tri Tran, CFO — Seattle; manages fund operations and finance
• Malyun Abdullahi, Chief of Staff — Seattle; firm operations

Decision Process

Flying Fish operates as a partnership with 4 managing partners making investment decisions collectively. The London-based venture partner (Heather Gorham) expands European origination, as demonstrated by the Hiverge investment from the UK.

Geographic Focus

Originally focused on the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada, Flying Fish has expanded nationally across the US and Canada. Heather Gorham's London base enables European deal flow, evidenced by the Hiverge investment. The firm has investments spanning Seattle, NYC, London, and Canada.

Founder Preferences

Flying Fish strongly favors deeply technical founders with demonstrated AI/ML expertise. Many portfolio founders come from Google DeepMind, Microsoft, Amazon, and top research universities. The firm particularly backs founders applying AI to scientifically challenging and capital-intensive problems — drug discovery, materials science, and industrial optimization — where AI provides step-function improvements over previous approaches.