1955 Capital

1955 Capital Research Investment Thesis & Core Philosophy 1955 Capital is a global venture capital firm founded in 2016 by Andrew Chung, a former General Partner at Khosla Ventures. The firm's mission is to invest in advanced technologies with the potential to solve the world's greatest challenges in energy, environment, food safety, supply chain, sustainable manufacturing, healthcare, and education. The firm's name deliberately references 1955, a year when visionary innovators like Albert Einstein, Alexander Fleming, Mary McLeod Bethune, and others transformed their industries, while simultaneously welcoming new innovators like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Vinod Khosla. This metaphorical positioning underscores 1955 Capital's commitment to backing contrarian, provocative, and innovative founders who defy convention and drive transformative change. 1955 Capital's thesis-driven approach is built on deep domain expertise, global networks, and operating experience across sustainability, health technology, and cleantech. The firm invests in hard-technology solutions that address survival-driven global needs—energy transition, food security, healthcare access, and sustainable manufacturing. Rather than chasing software trends, 1955 Capital focuses on capital-intensive, deep-tech ventures that create high-return, high-impact outcomes by bringing breakthrough technologies from developed markets into emerging economies and vice versa. Fund Structure & Strategy 1955 Capital operates with a focused, thesis-driven investment model. The First Fund (2016) closed at approximately $200 million, targeting investments in energy, food, agriculture, health, and education technologies. The firm's investment focus is Series A stage companies with significant growth potential, typically $5-10 million check sizes. Their geographic strategy employs a global approach bridging US/European technology innovation into emerging markets, particularly China and developing countries. The check size range is $5-10 million for primary investments with capacity for follow-on investments and larger pro-rata commitments. Stage Focus & Check Size 1955 Capital primarily invests at the Series A stage with selective pre-Series A participation in exceptional companies. Primary stage focus is Series A ($5-10M checks), with secondary focus on late-stage follow-ons and growth equity. They occasionally participate in seed-stage for exceptional teams with de-risked technology. Their typical check size range is $5M - $10M, with fund capacity enabling pro-rata follow-ons and larger syndications. Recent Activity & Portfolio Performance 1955 Capital has maintained active deployment since inception with strong portfolio momentum. Recent notable investments include Nature's Fynd (sustainable food), where they were the Series A lead investor in 2018 with over $50M total investment; the portfolio company raised $350M Series C+ in 2021 with SoftBank, Blackstone, and Hillhouse participation, with Fy products now in Whole Foods nationwide. Noah Medical (surgical robotics) is a major investor where the portfolio company raised $150M Series B with SoftBank Vision Fund, Tiger Global, and Sequoia China participation, with the Galaxy System receiving FDA clearance. They invested in Gridtential (battery technology) with hybrid solid-state/AGM technology combining performance of Li-ion with safety of lead-acid. Ampaire (electric aviation) demonstrated a 1,135-mile nonstop flight with 40% fuel savings versus standard aircraft and secured WingTips launch order for 25+ aircraft. They backed Crop Enhancement (agriculture), a biopesticide platform with CropCoat spray product for environmentally-friendly pest protection. Vital Biosciences (diagnostics) is a blood testing platform that raised $18.56M Series A with Northpond Ventures in 2021. The fund status is actively deploying with strong track record of supporting portfolio companies through multiple funding rounds. Portfolio Highlights & Track Record Notable portfolio companies include Nature's Fynd - mycoprotein producer using Yellowstone fungi, now valued at $1B+ implied from $350M Series C with launched retail products at Whole Foods; Noah Medical - robotic bronchoscopy system (Galaxy) with FDA clearance and accelerating commercial adoption; Gridtential - next-generation battery technology bridging cost/performance gap; Ampaire - hybrid-electric aviation platform with commercial orders and demonstrated 40% fuel efficiency improvements; Vital Biosciences - distributed blood diagnostics platform; and Crop Enhancement - sustainable biopesticide platform. Notable exits include early exits via Khosla portfolio: LS9 (acquired by POET), Cogenra (acquired by SolarWorld), EcoMotors (acquired). Team & Leadership Andrew Chung, Founder & Managing Partner, has 25+ years tech investing expertise in sustainability and health tech, was an early investor in 10 unicorns generating $30B+ market value. Former GP at Khosla Ventures (led Asia activities, invested in Impossible Foods, LanzaTech, Quantumscape, Wattpad), prior Lightspeed Ventures (early investor in SolarEdge, Natera, Personalis), speaks fluent Mandarin/Cantonese, BA Applied Mathematics from Harvard (Phi Beta Kappa), MBA Wharton. Euan Thomson, Ph.D., Partner (Frontier Health Technologies), has 30+ years healthcare spanning CEO roles, VC, and medical device innovation. Former Partner at Khosla Ventures (digital health/analytics), President of Ophthalmic Devices at Carl Zeiss Meditec, previously President/CEO of Accuray (robotic radiosurgery; took company from startup to $400M+ revenue and IPO in 2007), former CEO AliveCor (FDA-cleared cardiac algorithms), Head of Digital Health at Samsung, Global Head of Digital Technology R&D at Johnson & Johnson, PhD Medical Physics from University of London, Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Vijit Sabnis, Ph.D., Partner (Health, Renewables, Manufacturing), has 20 years at intersection of deep tech as inventor, entrepreneur, investor. Former Partner at Khosla Ventures (biotech, healthcare, advanced manufacturing, food tech), co-founder & CEO Solar Junction (highest-efficiency solar cells), early employee at Translucent (silicon photonics materials), MS/PhD Electrical Engineering from Stanford, BS EECS from UC Berkeley, 15+ publications, 4 patents. Unique Positioning & Competitive Advantages Founder operator expertise with all core partners having built/scaled companies or led major initiatives at hyperscalers, bringing operational playbooks beyond capital. 2. Deep tech thesis focused on hard technology versus software SaaS addressing underinvested areas with high barriers to entry. 3. Global network with relationships to top institutional co-investors and market access across US, Europe, China, emerging markets. 4. Proven track record with portfolio companies achieving $1B+ valuations and securing follow-on rounds from tier-1 institutions. 5. US-China bridge positioning to connect technology across developed/emerging markets with founder's China fluency enabling cross-border deals.