Amplify.LA

Amplify.LA Research Investment Thesis Amplify.LA is LA's premier pre-seed venture capital fund, founded in 2011 as one of the earliest dedicated pre-seed investment vehicles focused on Los Angeles founders. The firm provides passionate technology entrepreneurs with early-stage capital and hands-on guidance to grow their startups into strong, scalable, and successful companies. Amplify believes in backing technical founders with bold visions, particularly those building in Los Angeles, and combines institutional capital with operational mentorship through their extensive 120+ mentor network. Stage Focus Amplify.LA is exclusively focused on the pre-seed stage: Pre-seed: $250K-$1M+ for founders with vision and early traction Occasionally follow-on Series A investments in existing portfolio The fund explicitly positions itself as often the first institutional investor in portfolio companies. They pride themselves on supporting founders from day one with strategic guidance and access to their network of operators, entrepreneurs, and executives. Check Size Based on portfolio analysis: Typical initial check: $250K-$750K Average check size observed: ~$650K (as of 2023) Follow-on rounds: Variable, often $1M-$4M for promising companies Lead Tendency Amplify leads most pre-seed rounds and positions themselves as the lead investor. They are known for being the first institutional check and often encourage additional capital from their trusted network of co-investors when appropriate for later stages. Investment Activity 2025 was a strong year for Amplify: Invested in 7 new portfolio companies Portfolio companies achieved notable raises: Warp ($10M Series A), Pryzm ($12.2M Seed), Mavvrik ($6.2M Seed), Cascade Bio ($4.8M Seed), Abstract ($4.8M Seed), Sourcetable ($4.3M Seed), Genia ($3M Pre-Seed) 50% of new portfolio companies based in Los Angeles; others in Toronto, San Francisco, and Austin Notable acquisition: Humi acquired by Employment Hero Latest investment activity: January 2026 investment in Overworld Fund status: Actively deploying and expanding team (brought on new GP Alex Rubalcava in early 2026) Portfolio Breadth 165+ total investments to date, with portfolio companies spanning: Fintech/Payments : FloQast (accounting automation), Penelope (retirement platform), Card.com, Cheers (credit building), Linc (B2B payments) Consumer Tech : Volley (voice AI games), Clutter (moving/storage), Loxclub (members club), Winc (wine discovery), Bouqs (flowers) Enterprise Software : Abstract (government affairs workspace), Smarty (productivity), Sourcetable (AI spreadsheet), Thankful.ai (customer service automation) Healthcare/Wellness : Upwards (childcare accessibility), Pete Health (mobile PT), Aiva Health (virtual assistance), SafeRide Health (medical transportation), Honeybee Health (pharmacy) AI/Infrastructure : Altitude AI (robotics with computer vision), Clifton AI (investment decision AI), Mach1 AI (business operations), Trials.ai (clinical trial optimization) Government/Defense : Pryzm (government contract capture), Airwai (government infrastructure AI), Wayfarer (world models) Developer Tools : Mission.dev (engineer staffing), Gem (crypto on-ramps), Buildkite (CI/CD, acquired by Atlassian), LogStream (log management, acquired by Datadog) Vertical SaaS : HelloTech (tech support), Hellotech (enterprise), Linc (B2B payments), Leadspace (contact management) Other Sectors : Gaming (Battlefy for esports), EdTech (ProGuides for esports learning), Media (Repost for music creators), Real Estate (RentSpree for landlords) Team Core Team: Paul Bricault, Managing Partner : Founded/leads Amplify.LA, featured on LA Business Journal's LA 500 for 10 consecutive years (through 2025), deep LA connections and entrepreneurial background Oded Noy, Partner : Active in AI strategy and industry panels; hosted "Navigating the AI Landscape" panel in 2025 Alex Rubalcava, General Partner : Joining in early 2026, formerly ran Stage Venture, adding expanded operational capacity Katie Dean, Director of Operations : Co-leads VIA (Venture Capital Operators community) LA chapter, organizes quarterly operations/platform events for VC professionals Connor Sundberg, Partner : Member of investment team Extended Network: 120+ mentors in Amplify Mentor Network including operators and executives from: Uber, SoFi, HashTagDirect, Gro. Business Ventures, Hawke Media, Hellotech, retailOS, Unlocked Media, Giggster, and many others Strong Hollywood/entertainment connections through Venice campus location and mentor network Geographic Focus Primarily Los Angeles, with selective investments nationally: Strong LA presence: 50% of new 2025 investments based in LA Also active in: Toronto, San Francisco, Austin National reach through their Los Angeles base and network Decision Process Partnership-based decision making with focus on founder fit and execution potential. Team evaluates founders individually and provides hands-on operational support post-investment. Notable Portfolio Exits Buildkite (CI/CD platform) - Acquired by Atlassian (2024) LogStream (log management) - Acquired by Datadog (2023) Humi (HR/payroll) - Acquired by Employment Hero (2025) Thankful - Acquired by Gladly (2023) Founder Preferences Amplify favors: Passionate, mission-driven founders with bold visions Technical founders and entrepreneurs with execution ability Founders committed to building in Los Angeles Teams with diverse backgrounds and perspectives Founders who embrace operational excellence and mentorship Recent Initiatives (2025) AI Event Series : "Navigating the AI Landscape" panel exploring practical AI product development and go-to-market strategies Operations/Platform Community : Katie Dean leading quarterly VIA LA chapter events for VC operators and professionals LA Tech Week : Co-hosted with Bling Capital and Act One Ventures, bringing together early-stage founders and investors Seed Report : Published 1H 2025 Los Angeles Seed Deal Report analyzing regional funding trends Anti-Thesis Less interested in: Non-technical founders without execution track record Hardware-heavy plays requiring significant capital Companies not aligned with founder mission or values Late-stage opportunities requiring institutional-scale checks Funding Profile Amplify operates as a traditional pre-seed VC fund focused on first-check capital deployment. They emphasize: Hands-on mentorship and operational support Network effects through mentor network and co-investor relationships Long-term founder support through multiple fundraising rounds LA-centric sourcing with national reach Overall Assessment Amplify.LA is a highly respected, founder-friendly pre-seed fund with 15+ years of track record backing LA-based tech entrepreneurs. Their strength lies in early identification of founder talent, hands-on operational support through an extensive mentor network, and deep LA ecosystem knowledge including entertainment/media connections. The addition of Alex Rubalcava as GP in 2026 signals expansion capacity. Portfolio breadth spans fintech, AI/ML, healthcare, enterprise software, and consumer tech with demonstrated ability to source strong companies (Buildkite, LogStream exits; 165+ investments).