Project Ventures Research
Investment Thesis
Project Ventures is a London-based, early-stage venture capital firm investing at the intersection of Deep Tech and AI. The firm is rooted in the Imperial College London ecosystem, backing founders emerging from the Imperial community and its connected networks who apply frontier science, engineering and AI to build intelligent systems bridging the digital and physical worlds. The firm targets teams building defensible technologies across hardware and software, where scientific breakthroughs, proprietary IP and technical differentiation create lasting competitive advantage. Sector focus spans robotics, healthcare, climate, energy and advanced manufacturing.
Stage Focus
Pre-seed and seed. The firm explicitly targets founders raising their first institutional rounds out of the Imperial ecosystem.
Check Size
Per its own debut-fund announcement (September 2026), Project Ventures invests between £100,000 and £300,000 per company (approximately $127,000-$381,000).
Lead Tendency
The firm's disclosed investment to date (Tewke's £1.5M pre-seed round) was a syndicate participation alongside JamJar Investments, Cur8 Capital, Energy Mix Ventures and angel investor Vlad Yatsenko (Revolut co-founder/CTO), not a lead position. Given the fund's small check size relative to round sizes, Project Ventures should be treated as a syndicate participant rather than a lead investor at this stage.
Recent Activity
Project Ventures publicly launched its debut £5M (€5.8M) fund on September 21, 2026, with a targeted final close by summer 2027. More than 80% of the fund's LPs are Imperial College alumni. Ahead of the formal launch, the firm had already been deploying capital on a soft-launch basis, with three disclosed investments: Tewke (home energy/smart switch platform, £1.5M pre-seed round closed February 2026), NexusAM (AI quality assurance for metal additive manufacturing), and Neubond (wearable neurotech for stroke rehabilitation). The fund is actively deploying.
Portfolio Highlights
- Tewke — Intelligent home operating system for home energy optimisation and decentralised energy infrastructure; raised a £1.5M pre-seed round (Feb 2026) with JamJar Investments, Cur8 Capital, Energy Mix Ventures and Vlad Yatsenko.
- NexusAM — Real-time AI-powered quality assurance platform for metal 3D printing, built on research from Imperial College London; targets aerospace, medical and energy manufacturers.
- Neubond — Wearable, closed-loop neurotech platform for stroke rehabilitation, based on clinical research developed at Imperial College London.
Team
- Shahryar Barati, Founder & Managing Partner — Three-time Imperial College London alumnus (BEng Biomedical Engineering, MSc Metals & Energy Finance, MBA). Operator, investor and asset manager; previously co-founded and operated a technology startup, built and ran an automated venture investment platform, and worked across financial institutions. Solo GP on the fund per his own LinkedIn profile.
- Lisa Portz, Venture Partner — Startup growth specialist and ecosystem builder with a PhD in Entrepreneurship from Imperial College London; supports founder development, strategic connections and community building.
- Max Munford, Venture Partner — Entrepreneur and operator with MEng and PhD from Imperial College London; Forbes 30 Under 30; leads the Imperial Founder Roundtable community; supports sourcing, commercial due diligence and portfolio growth strategy.
- Riccardo Bassiri, Venture Partner — Deep tech operator with a PhD in Physics and an Imperial MBA; former Stanford research leader who co-founded the Center for Coatings Research and worked on LIGO optical coatings; supports technical due diligence and technology assessment.
- Martin Milani, Venture Partner — Bay Area-based entrepreneur and technology executive with two decades scaling Deep Tech and AI companies, over $100M raised across prior ventures; supports strategic partnerships and US market access.
Decision Process
Solo GP structure: Shahryar Barati makes investment decisions, supported by a bench of Venture Partners for sourcing, technical diligence and portfolio support rather than formal investment-committee votes.
Founder Preferences
Technical founders applying frontier science and engineering, typically emerging from the Imperial College London ecosystem or its connected alumni and research networks, building hardware-enabled or IP-defensible technology companies.
Geographic Focus
Primarily UK (London, Imperial College ecosystem), with Venture Partners based in London and the Bay Area supporting international (particularly US) expansion for portfolio companies.