Trust Ventures Research
Investment Thesis
Trust Ventures backs founders building "generational companies" in industries where the biggest barrier to progress is not technology but public policy and regulation. Founded in 2018 by Salen Churi (a former law professor who founded the Innovation Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School) and Brian Tochman (former COO of modular-housing startup Kasita and former VP of M&A at Platinum Equity), the firm's core insight is that many of the most important, highest-impact markets — energy, housing, healthcare, insurance, advanced manufacturing — are gated by outdated rules, incumbent capture, and regulatory inertia rather than by unsolved engineering problems. Trust Ventures pairs venture capital with in-house legal and policy strategy (led by Director of Legal & Policy Joel Stonedale) to help portfolio companies navigate, and in some cases actively reshape, the regulatory environments they operate in. A Wall Street Journal opinion piece profiled the firm as one of "America's New Regulation Busters."
Sector Focus
Trust Ventures is explicitly cross-sector, organized around "regulatory-heavy" markets rather than a single vertical:
- Energy and grid infrastructure (nuclear, thermal storage, home batteries)
- Healthcare, insurance, and benefits
- Advanced/additive manufacturing and industrial materials
- Construction technology and affordable housing
- Robotics and automation in physical industries
- Biotech and life sciences manufacturing
- Alternative food production
Stage Focus
The firm primarily invests at Series A, with a meaningful secondary book at Seed and select Series B activity. In August 2026 it made its first-ever Series D investment (Base Power), reflecting a willingness to follow strong existing portfolio companies well past their initial check as they scale.
Check Size
Round sizes Trust Ventures participates in have ranged widely by stage — Seed rounds around $10-25M, Series A rounds in the $20-115M range (often co-investing with other funds rather than solely determining round size), and larger Series B/C/D rounds ($500M-$1B+) as a continuing investor rather than sole check-writer. This suggests Trust Ventures typically writes a meaningful but not lead-defining check and relies on syndicate partners for round construction at later stages.
Lead Tendency
Based on available deal data, Trust Ventures appears to participate alongside lead investors more often than it leads rounds outright, particularly at Series A and beyond, where rounds are frequently led by larger growth funds (e.g., Kleiner Perkins led TerraFirma's Series A; G2 Venture Partners and Eclipse co-led Antora's Series C; Ribbit/Addition/Valor led Base Power's Series D). Classified as "follows" pending clearer evidence of solo-led rounds.
Recent Activity
Trust Ventures has been actively deploying through 2026:
- August 2026: Participated in Base Power's $1B Series D at a $13B valuation (its first Series D check)
- July 2026: Participated in Antora Energy's $550M Series C for thermal battery manufacturing
- July 2026: Participated in TerraFirma's $100-115M Series A for semi-autonomous heavy construction equipment
- June 2026: Participated in Neion Bio's oversubscribed $23M Series A for egg-based biologics manufacturing
- June 2026: Participated in Foundation Alloy's $22M Series A to scale its MetalsFIRST solid-state metals platform
The firm has raised three funds to date: Fund I ($35M, 2018), Fund II ($70M, 2019), and Fund III ($200M, closed February 2022), for roughly $305M in total committed capital.
Portfolio Highlights
Trust Ventures has backed roughly 40 companies. Notable names include Oklo (advanced nuclear fission, NASDAQ IPO via SPAC merger in 2024), Base Power (home battery storage, reached unicorn status and a $13B valuation in 2026), Antora Energy (thermal batteries), ICON (3D-printed construction), Apptronik (humanoid robotics), Sana Benefits (small-business health insurance), Swimply (pool-sharing marketplace), Dutch (pet telehealth), Truemed, Meati Foods, Foundation Alloy, TerraFirma, and Neion Bio. Portfolio outcomes to date include one IPO (Oklo) and several acquisitions.
Team
- Salen Churi — Founder & Managing Partner. Former law professor; founded the Innovation Clinic at University of Chicago Law School; previously practiced at Kirkland & Ellis and Sidley Austin.
- Brian Tochman — Co-Founder & General Partner. Former co-founder, President & COO of Kasita (modular housing); former VP of M&A at Platinum Equity.
- Richard Deulofeut — Partner
- Joel Stonedale — Director of Legal & Policy; provides regulatory and policy strategy to portfolio companies
- Rob Newell — Vice President
- Brooke Fallon — Vice President
- Casey Wu — COO
- Will Jessup — Venture Partner
- Peter Lake — Venture Partner
- Ben Weaver — Senior Analyst
- Jake Roeper — Senior Analyst
- Kat McGuire — Senior Analyst
- Eric Hobby — Associate
Decision Process
Structured as a partnership with a general-partner-led investment process (Churi and Tochman as co-founders), supported by a deal team of partners, VPs, venture partners, and analysts. Not a solo-GP shop.
Founder Preferences
Trust Ventures gravitates toward founders tackling capital-intensive, physically real markets where regulatory or policy barriers have historically kept incumbents entrenched — energy, housing, healthcare, and heavy industry — rather than pure software plays. The firm's value-add centers on policy and regulatory navigation alongside capital.
Geographic Focus
Headquartered in Austin, Texas; invests primarily in US-based startups.