Kalos Ventures

Kalos Ventures — Research Document ## Firm Overview Kalos Ventures is a New York City–based early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2024 by Managing Partner Ashley Bittner. The firm is built on an all-women founding team and invests thesis-driven capital at the intersection of two mega-trends: rapid technological advancement (AI, automation, robotics) and rapid demographic change. Their targeted sectors are workforce, care, and education — areas where these two forces collide with the greatest urgency and market opportunity. In May 2026 Kalos announced the close of its inaugural $78.8 million Fund I at a final oversubscribed close (an earlier interim close had been reported at $53M). ## Investment Thesis Kalos believes the most durable businesses of the next decade will be built by founders who deeply understand the structural shifts reshaping work, caregiving, and learning. Their investment thesis centers on three core sectors: 1. Workforce — Technology that improves labor market participation, employee leave management, benefits access, and career mobility, particularly for workers who have been historically underserved. 2. Care — Platforms improving the delivery of care in home and community settings as the U.S. population ages and the healthcare workforce faces systemic shortages. 3. Education — Tools that bridge credential attainment, employer hiring, and lifelong learning, especially at the intersection of education and employment outcomes. The firm explicitly connects these themes to macroeconomic tailwinds: aging demographics driving demand for home-based care solutions, workforce automation creating urgent re-skilling needs, and AI making industry-specific intelligence accessible for the first time to small businesses and frontline workers. ## Stage Focus Kalos invests at the early stage — primarily Seed and Series A — entering at the first signs of product-market fit. They write lead checks and build concentrated portfolios, targeting a minimum of 15 investments per fund. They bring operational depth alongside capital: Ashley Bittner and Renée Beaumont have investment pedigrees spanning Goldman Sachs, Generation Investment Management, Lafayette Square, and Owl Ventures. ## Check Size Kalos leads early-stage rounds. Based on disclosed investments — including leading Rosarium Health's $6M seed in May 2026 — check sizes appear to range from approximately $1M to $8M at Seed and Series A stages, with typical initial ownership targets in the range seen at thesis-driven early-stage funds. ## Lead Tendency Kalos leads. The firm explicitly states it "writes lead checks" and participates at the board level. Ashley Bittner is confirmed as a board member at Transfr, Tilt, Mirza, and Manifest. ## Team Ashley Bittner — Managing Partner Ashley brings more than a decade of experience across venture investing, policy, and education. She was an investor at Owl Ventures ($2B AUM, edtech-focused), served as a Special Assistant in the Obama Administration's Department of Education, and taught in the Bronx through Teach For America. She has led or worked on more than $250M in investments across private and public sectors. Board seats at Transfr, Tilt, Mirza, and Manifest. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleymbittner/ Renée Beaumont — Partner + Executive Chair Renée brings over 25 years of investment experience. She spent a decade at Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking, was a Managing Director at Providence Equity Partners, a Partner at Generation Investment Management (Al Gore's impact-focused $40B fund), and COO at Lafayette Square (impact-oriented PE firm). She is also a trained attorney (Shearman & Sterling). Her operational and institutional LP relationships add significant gravity to Kalos's fundraising and portfolio support. Kate Ballinger — Principal Kate joined the founding team in 2020 and has supported all aspects of fund and firm management from the start. She manages the investment pipeline, sources new opportunities, and co-leads financing processes for portfolio companies. She is a former BCG consultant with a focus on PE due diligence and was selected for BCG's Social Impact Immersion Program (2018). LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherine-ballinger/ Venture Partners and Advisors - David Blake — Venture Partner. Founder/CEO of Degreed, co-founder of Learn In and BookClub. Deep expertise in workforce learning. - Josh Golomb — Venture Partner. Former CEO of Hazel Health (K-12 telehealth), co-founder of DaVita (scaled to $1B+ revenue). - Eric Sharp — Technical Advisor. Three-time technical co-founder, co-founded Humanist Venture Studio (AI-focused) and Degreed. AI/ML and cloud architecture expert. - Toni Alejandria — Head of Investor Relations + Community. 18+ years in community building; helped scale Preface Ventures, Rackhouse Ventures, and Unanimous Capital. ## Fund Details - Fund I (Inaugural): $78.8M (oversubscribed final close, May 2026; interim close reported at $53M) - LPs: ZOMA Capital, GCM Grosvenor, MassMutual, Sorenson Impact Advisory, Pivotal Ventures - Total AUM: ~$78.8M ## Portfolio Highlights Kalos has backed 9 disclosed companies and 1 in stealth: 1. Manifest — AI-native platform for SMB owners. Founded by Sarah Horn (former ReUp Education). Targets the $280B small business market with industry-specific AI guidance and coaching. Kalos invested March 2025. 2. Rosarium Health — Tech platform delivering home safety assessments and accessibility modifications for older adults. Founded by Cameron Carter. Kalos led the $6M seed round (May 2026), alongside ResilienceVC, Rock Health Capital, and Symphonic Capital. 3. Learn In — Skills training platform using employer-funded education benefits. Founded by David Blake (now Kalos Venture Partner). Acquired by Degreed in 2023. 4. Transfr — VR-based platform creating seamless pathways from classroom to career. Founded by Bharani Rajakumar. Raised $40M Series C in September 2023. Ashley Bittner is a board member. 5. Tilt — Leave management software with compliance support for employers. Founded by Jen Henderson. Raised $15M Series B (August 2024), $3.4M Series B-II (July 2025). Ashley Bittner is a board member. 6. Clasp — Loan-linked hiring tool that bridges healthcare education and employment, paying student loan debt on behalf of clinicians in exchange for tenure commitments. Founded by Tess Michaels (Forbes 30 Under 30). Previously Stride Funding. Raised $20M Series B (January 2026; led by Crosslink Capital and Digitalis Ventures). Over $130M committed by health systems. 7. Mirza — Benefits access platform connecting families to government benefits programs (childcare subsidies, food assistance, healthcare). Founded by Siran Cao. Raised $5.3M total. 8. Podium Education — Experiential learning bridging college to career. Helps undergraduates gain real-world experience. 9. Hazel Health — Student telehealth for K-12. Completed merger with Little Otter (October 2025). Josh Golomb (Kalos Venture Partner) was CEO. 10. Stealth — Led by Jeff Wald, future of work entrepreneur. ## Geographic Focus New York City is the firm's home base. Portfolio companies span the US. No explicit geographic restrictions. ## Decision Process Partnership-based: Ashley, Renée, and Kate are the core investment team. Given the small, concentrated team and 15+ minimum investments, decisions likely move efficiently through a partnership consensus model. ## Founder Preferences Kalos backs founders with unique market insight — often operators who have lived the problem they are solving. The "systems-level change" framing suggests they value founders with policy, labor, or healthcare sector fluency in addition to entrepreneurial experience. Ashley Bittner's own background (teacher, federal government, VC) reflects the profile they seek. All-women founding team at Kalos likely means they actively seek underrepresented founders. ## Anti-Thesis Kalos does not invest in: - General consumer apps or social media unrelated to workforce/care/education - Pure software infrastructure or developer tools - B2C categories outside their core sectors - Deep tech hardware or semiconductors ## Notable Co-Investors ResilienceVC, Rock Health Capital, Symphonic Capital, Crosslink Capital, Digitalis Ventures, ABS Capital, Lumos Capital Group, Firework Ventures, 500 Global.