Ground Up Ventures

Ground Up Ventures Research

Investment Thesis

Ground Up Ventures is a US-Israel bridge venture capital firm that operates with a distinctive mission: to serve as an extension of founder headcount. Founded on a decade-long friendship between David Stark and Cory Moelis, the firm operates differently from traditional venture firms. Their core thesis is that the best founders build world-class companies, and Ground Up's role is to remove friction from their journey—from day one through exit.

The firm positions itself as operators who "wake up every morning and ask ourselves how we can help our portfolio companies move the needle." They describe their involvement as ranging from "in-the-weeds to twenty thousand feet," meaning they engage at both tactical execution and strategic planning levels. Their approach emphasizes founder respect and empowerment, with testimonials from portfolio founders consistently highlighting their hands-on support, proactive introductions, and willingness to "roll their sleeves up" on any problem.

Stage Focus

Ground Up Ventures is a pre-seed and seed stage investor, with occasional Series A follow-ons. The firm explicitly targets early-stage founders:

• Pre-Seed: Companies with founders but limited product-market fit evidence
• Seed: Companies with product and initial traction
• Series A: Follow-on investments in exceptional portfolio companies

Their portfolio demonstrates this focus clearly, with 45+ portfolio companies spanning these stages. Notable exits include BrightHire (acquired), Fondue (acquired by Postscript), and TermScout (acquired by Agliloft), showing their ability to support companies through exit.

Investment Check Size

Ground Up Ventures invests $500K to $1.5M per round:

• Typical check size: $500K - $1.5M
• Minimum: $250K (pre-seed for exceptional teams)
• Maximum: $1.5M (seed investments)

Despite their modest check size relative to mega-funds, portfolio founders consistently cite the disproportionate value they provide, describing their support as "punching above our check size."

Lead Tendency

Ground Up Ventures follows rather than leads most rounds. They are typically investors in institutional rounds rather than round leaders. This positioning allows them to pick exceptional opportunities without the burden of round leadership responsibilities, leaving them more bandwidth to provide operational support to their portfolio.

Recent Activity and Fund Status

Based on portfolio data from 2025, Ground Up has been actively deploying capital:

Recent Notable Investments (2025):

• January 2025: Jones completed $15M Series A (Ground Up follow-on)
• April 2025: Pillar Security, Seed round
• May 2025: Glass Imaging, $9.3M Seed investment
• September 2025: Threefold, Pre-Seed investment

The firm appears to be actively deploying from their fund and maintaining steady investment velocity. Their portfolio companies span diverse geographies (US, Israel, Canada, UK, Saudi Arabia, LatAm) and industries, reflecting their generalist approach.

Portfolio Highlights

Ground Up's portfolio of 45+ companies demonstrates quality and diversity:

Enterprise/Developer Focus:

• Daily (WebRTC video platform, Series B)
• Komodor (Kubernetes troubleshooting, Series B)
• BuildOps (PropTech for contractors, Series C)
• EliseAI (AI for property management, Series E)
• Preql (Data management, Seed)

E-Commerce & Marketplace:

• Tolstoy (Interactive video, Seed)
• Postscript (SMS for eCommerce, Series C)
• Portless (Cross-border fulfillment, Series A)
• TripleWhale (eCommerce analytics, Series B)
• Flyp (Resale marketplace, Series A)

FinTech:

• Accrue (Buy now, save later, Series A)
• Pipe (Recurring revenue trading, Series B)
• Meridian (International payments, Seed)
• Lenkie (Embedded lending, Series A)

Hardware & Infrastructure:

• Glass Imaging (Neural network cameras, Seed)
• Dandelion (Geothermal heating, Series C)
• HyWatts (Renewable energy storage, Pre-Seed)
• Harbinger (Commercial EVs, Series A)
• Starcloud (Data centers in space, Series A)

Israel-Based Portfolio (representing strong US-Israel bridge thesis):

• Kela (Defense tech, Series A)
• Komodor (DevTools, Series B)
• Panjaya (AI video dubbing, Seed)
• Ritual (Relationship wellness, Seed)
• Younity (Residential IoT WiFi, Seed+)

Notable Exits:

• BrightHire (acquired by undisclosed acquirer)
• Fondue (acquired by Postscript)
• TermScout (acquired by Agliloft)

Team & Decision Making

Core Team:

• David Stark (Founding Partner): Deep experience in Israel-US bridge investing
• Cory Moelis (Founding Partner): Operational and strategic expertise
• Jordan Odinsky (Partner): Day-to-day portfolio management
• Allie Feuerstein (Head of Value Creation): Leads founder support initiatives
• Navot Volk (Venture Partner): Israeli market expertise
• Shira Stein (Executive Assistant): Operations

Decision Process: Partnership. David and Cory make investment decisions together, with input from the broader team. The firm emphasizes that "investing is a team sport" and each partner brings complementary strengths.

Decision Timeline: Based on portfolio velocity and founder testimonials, Ground Up appears to move quickly—their phrase "it's never too early to start a conversation, but it might be too late" suggests rapid decision-making and responsiveness.

Founder Support & Value Add

Ground Up's differentiation is their hands-on founder support:

Ground Up Leads (Sales/SDR Support)

• Act as outsourced sales development team
• Market research and ideal customer profile refinement
• Outreach campaign execution and optimization
• Introduction facilitation with decision-makers
• Comprehensive lead intelligence

Quote from portfolio founder: "The number of intros, leads, and deals Ground Up has gotten for us is insane."

Network & Introductions

• Access to 1,500+ companies (customers, design partners, follow-on investors, mentors)
• Portfolio founder dinners connecting companies and potential customers (e.g., DTC dinner connecting to SodaStream, James Allen, Jones Road Beauty)
• Relentless founder-to-founder intros within the portfolio

PR and Media Support

• Media outreach planning
• Features in top-tier publications (e.g., TechCrunch articles for portfolio companies)

Marketing & Branding

• Messaging and content creation
• Conversion rate optimization
• Social media strategy
• Personal brand building for founders

Portfolio founder quote: "The workshop on social branding was fantastic, and one of the posts I did last week is now at 44,000 impressions which is 10x the norm."

Geographic Focus

Ground Up explicitly invests in the US and Israel, with a special emphasis on the US-Israel bridge:

• Primary markets: US East Coast (New York-based), Israel
• Secondary markets: Selective investments in Canada, UK, Saudi Arabia, LatAm
• Thesis: Helping Israeli founders expand to the US while bringing US networks back to Israel

Sector Preferences

Ground Up is a generalist fund with breadth across sectors. Portfolio analysis reveals strong presence in:

1. PropTech (BuildOps, EliseAI, Jones, Tulu, TrueHold, Valia, Younity)
2. E-Commerce Infrastructure (Tolstoy, Postscript, Portless, TripleWhale, Flyp, Fondue, PDQ)
3. Developer Tools & Infrastructure (Daily, Komodor, Preql, Openlayer, Glass Imaging)
4. FinTech (Accrue, Pipe, Meridian, Lenkie)
5. Hardware & Energy (Dandelion, Glass Imaging, HyWatts, Harbinger, Starcloud)
6. Defense Tech (Kela, ZeroMark, Pillar Security)
7. GovTech (Threefold)
8. Health (Weave, Zealthy)
9. Consumer (Hello Wonder, Ritual)

Sector mapping: Enterprise software, developer tools, infrastructure, fintech, and proptech dominate. The firm does not focus on consumer-only plays, preferring B2B or B2C with strong retention metrics.

Warm Introductions

Given their emphasis on existing relationships and network, warm introductions are strongly preferred. The team checks their egos and expects founders to reference-check them before investing. Their brand is built on founder trust and word-of-mouth.

Investment Philosophy

Ground Up's investment philosophy centers on:

1. Founder-First: "We believe that the founders are the best people to be running their company"
2. Operational Engagement: "We are partners at every level, from in-the-weeds to twenty thousand feet"
3. No Ego: "We check our egos at the door and jump into the trenches with you"
4. Mutual Growth: "We intend to grow together, learn from each other, and hold each other accountable"
5. Measurable Value: Their NPS (net promoter score) is their north star—they want founders to rate them highly

Key Differentiators

Compared to traditional venture firms, Ground Up stands out for:

1. Team Stability: Founded on decade-long friendship; no partnership drama
2. Founder-Centric Language: Explicit emphasis on serving founders, not controlling them
3. Operational Support: Dedicated SDR team (Ground Up Leads) working on portfolio company sales
4. Israel Bridge: Unique positioning in US-Israel tech ecosystem
5. Hands-On Partnership: Not passive investors; actively involved in portfolio management

Future Outlook

Based on recent activity and portfolio performance:

• Fund Status: Actively deploying (recent investments through Sept 2025)
• Focus Areas: Continuing breadth across sectors, with strength in PropTech, DevTools, and FinTech
• Growth Strategy: Expanding founder support programs (Liftoff program mentioned on website)
• Geographic Expansion: Selective growth outside US/Israel while maintaining core focus

Founder Testimonials & Proof Points

Portfolio founder quotes consistently emphasize:

• "Like having another founder on the team"
• "No-nonsense, true believers who backed us from day one"
• "Best VC I've ever worked with"
• "Treat every task with respect, and there is no request that's beneath them"
• "Relentless support for their founders"

This consistent theme across multiple independent founders (Tolstoy, Ritual, Daily, Portless, Fondue, Tolstoy, Tulu, Younity) suggests Ground Up has genuinely built a founder-friendly brand.

Conclusion

Ground Up Ventures represents a new model for pre-seed and seed investing: a partnership-driven, founder-centric firm that combines strategic capital with hands-on operational support. Their $500K-$1.5M check size and partnership approach allows them to be selective while providing disproportionate value through network, introductions, and sales support. Their US-Israel bridge positioning and strong portfolio across diverse sectors demonstrate both strategic focus and pragmatic execution. For founders building ambitious companies in early stages, Ground Up appears to offer genuine partnership and measurable value beyond capital.