Hyperplane Venture Capital

Hyperplane Venture Capital Research

Investment Thesis

Hyperplane Venture Capital was founded on the principle that seed capital is the foundational layer in building enduring companies, where early decisions define trajectories and reshape industries. The firm invests in applied AI and machine intelligence companies solving the world's biggest challenges across enterprise and industrial sectors.

Hyperplane is at the intersection of several critical trends:

• The AI Inflection Point: By the end of this decade, the combination of software, hardware, and AI will drive ubiquitous automation in every industry
• Physical AI & Robotics: The firm backs companies applying AI to physical-world automation problems (wastewater epidemiology, precision agriculture, industrial robotics)
• Vertical AI Solutions: Purpose-built AI systems for specific industries rather than horizontal platforms
• Founder-Operator Mentality: Former operators and entrepreneurs themselves, they understand the grind of scaling companies

The firm's core belief is that gritty, visionary founders backed with thoughtful capital and operational expertise can build category-defining companies in AI-powered automation, particularly in regulated, complex domains.

Stage and Check Size Focus

Hyperplane primarily focuses on seed-stage investments, with the following parameters:

• Primary Stage: Seed and Pre-Seed
• Check Size Range: $250K - $3M
  • Pre-Seed: $250K - $500K
  • Seed: $1M - $3M
• Fund Status: Actively deploying ($100M+ deployed since 2015; $180M+ in portfolio follow-on funding in 2024 alone)

Lead Tendency

Hyperplane has a strong tendency to lead rounds. Evidence:

• The 2024 year-in-review highlights multiple seed rounds where Hyperplane "led" or "co-led" (Cephable $4.6M Series Seed, Farmblox $2.5M Series Seed)
• Portfolio company achievements show Hyperplane as early investors with follow-on participation
• The firm structures itself as the foundational capital partner, similar to how a hyperplane transforms inputs in ML

Recent Activity & Fund Status

Fund Status: Actively Deploying

2024 Performance:

• 6 new investments closed
• Portfolio companies raised $180M+ in follow-on funding
• 2 exits (Numerated to Moody's, NWO.ai to Nax Group)
• 18th total exit since founding, with cumulative exit value exceeding $825M
• Total portfolio follow-on funding since inception: $1B+

Recent Notable Investments (2024-2025):

• Pickle Robot (Series B lead): $50M for truck-unloading robotics
• Butlr (Series B participation): $38M for physical space analytics
• Tive (Series C participation): $40M for supply chain logistics
• GreenEye (Series participation): $20M for precision agriculture
• Indico: $19M for document-based workflow automation
• Mudstack: $4M Series Seed for game development asset management
• Cephable: $4.6M Series Seed for accessibility AI
• Farmblox: $2.5M Series Seed for farm automation
• MedEssist: Recent investment in enterprise healthcare

Latest investment activity shows continued deployment pace into 2026.

Sector Preferences

Hyperplane's portfolio reveals deep focus across multiple verticals:

Primary Sectors:

1. Robotics & Automation: Pickle Robot, Soft Robotics, Dexai Robotics, RoadBotics, Venti Technologies
2. Data & Analytics: Modulate, Indico, Relevize, Allstacks, Tranquil Data, nwo.ai, Matterbeam, Haystacks.AI
3. Healthcare & Life Sciences: Biotia, Elucidata, BeSound, MedEssist, Numerated, Flexpa, DynamiCare Health, Nurse-1-1
4. Enterprise SaaS: LinkSquares, Mudstack, Talla, Spiro, Tive, Aryeo, HiFive
5. AgTech: GreenEye Technology, Farmblox, Indigo Ag, TellusLabs
6. Logistics & Supply Chain: Tive, ShipIn, Integrate, Venti Technologies
7. Infrastructure & Developer Tools: Trilio, Kite, Unison, Dover Microsystems, Pillar Technologies, Slight
8. Hardware/Semiconductors: Vesper, Dover Microsystems
9. FinTech: Numerated, Capita, Elsen

The portfolio demonstrates a remarkably cohesive thesis around applied AI and automation across vertical-specific use cases.

Decision Process & Timeline

Based on firm structure and founder profiles:

• Decision Process: Partnership model with significant founder/co-founder involvement
• Decision Timeline: Appears deliberate with founder-driven decision making
• Board Involvement: Founders maintain close operational involvement

The firm emphasizes patience and partnership - they see investing as a long-term relationship spanning multiple companies.

Team & Leadership

Founder & Managing Partner: Vivjan Myrto

• Founded Hyperplane in 2014 with John Murphy
• Serial entrepreneur with deep AI/ML expertise
• Survived cancer and emigrated from Albania with entrepreneurial vision
• Built multiple successful tech businesses before VC
• Named "52 Most Important VCs in Boston" and "Ten Important Humans Behind Boston's AI Revolution"
• Joined Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council Board of Trustees
• Background: Former machine learning entrepreneur

Co-Founder & Managing Partner: John Murphy

• Co-founded Hyperplane in 2014
• Former accounting professional (Grant Thornton), early VC experience (PJC)
• Strong technology background and passion for founder diversity
• Philosophy: "There is both an art and a science to entrepreneurship"
• Boston Marathon runner (6x with Dana-Farber)

General Partner: Samara Gordon

• Named "52 Most Important VCs in Boston"
• Early-stage investment expertise

Operating Partner: Rags Gupta

• Provides operational support to portfolio companies

Principal: Blake Billiet

• Investment and portfolio support

Vice President, Finance & Portfolio Management: Christopher Curtis

• Financial oversight and portfolio management

Co-Founder & CTO: Brendan Kohler

• Technical infrastructure and platform development

Company Culture & Values

Hyperplane operates on four core principles:

1. Swing for the Fences: Solving the world's biggest problems requires commitment, conviction, and capital. Go big and aim high.
2. Respect the Journey: Lead with empathy and respect for the ups and downs of bringing difficult tech to market.
3. Commit: Long-term partnership requires patience, clear communication, and community engagement from first company to last.
4. Be Generous: Generosity with time, expertise, energy, and passion benefits founders and the community.

The firm was founded by self-made, risk-taking entrepreneurs who understand founder challenges firsthand.

Portfolio Highlights & Track Record

Total Portfolio Stats:

• 72+ companies invested in since 2015 (10+ year track record)
• $100M+ deployed
• $1B+ in follow-on funding from other investors
• 18+ exits with $825M+ total exit value
• Multiple acquired companies (Numerated/Moody's, NWO.ai/Nax Group)

Geographic Presence:

• Headquarters: Boston, Massachusetts
• Regional communities: Austin, Atlanta, NYC, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto

Warm Introductions & Founder Fit

Warm Introduction Tendency: Likely required or strongly preferred for cold outreach, given the firm's founder-operator background and emphasis on long-term partnerships.

Founder Preferences:

• Bold, gritty founders with perseverance and conviction
• Founders solving hard technical problems in regulated/complex domains
• Teams that understand their respective industries deeply
• Founder-operators with experience building products and scaling

Investment Decision Model

The firm employs a disciplined thesis-driven approach:

1. Portfolio companies must align with applied AI and automation thesis
2. Founders must demonstrate grit, vision, and execution capability
3. Problems tackled must be in established industries (not speculative markets)
4. Operating expertise from Hyperplane founders directly adds value

Typical Involvement & Support

Beyond capital, Hyperplane provides:

• Operational Support: Founder mentorship from experienced entrepreneurs
• Network Access: Connections across portfolio and beyond
• Strategic Guidance: Help with go-to-market, hiring, fundraising for future rounds
• Long-term Partnership: Engagement through company journey

The firm invests in "company after company" relationships, showing 10+ year commitment patterns.