Night Capital

Night Capital Research Firm Overview Night Capital is a boutique early-stage venture capital firm based in San Francisco, California, founded in 2018 by Kevin Carter. The firm began investing independently after Carter spent nearly a decade as General Partner at SV Angel (2009-2018), where he built an exceptional track record partnering with generational founders from the earliest stages. Night Capital was founded with backing from the Conway family (Ron Conway and SV Angel) and a small group of strategic technology leaders as Limited Partners. The firm is currently investing from its fourth fund. Investment Thesis Night Capital's philosophy is captured in three principles: "Think independently, act with integrity, and serve founders well." The firm prioritizes long-term partnerships built on reputation and relationships rather than ubiquitous presence — they aim to be indispensable rather than everywhere. This lean, focused approach is central to how Kevin Carter and his small team operate. The firm focuses on backing exceptional founders building in massive markets at the earliest stages of company formation, typically pre-product or early MVP. Night Capital believes the best returns come from writing the first institutional check alongside founders with strong conviction — not from following consensus. Stage Focus Night Capital primarily invests at Pre-Seed and Seed stages, with occasional participation in Series A follow-on rounds for portfolio companies. The firm writes its first check at the very earliest stages — sometimes even at the idea stage for founders they know well. They aim to be the first institutional investor in a company and have historically led or co-led seed rounds. Check Size Typical investment range: $250,000 to $1,000,000 per deal, with a sweet spot around $500,000. The firm may write smaller checks ($2,000-$50,000) for angel-style bets on founders at the pre-idea stage, and occasionally deploys up to $3,000,000 for high-conviction opportunities. The firm maintains reserves for follow-on investments in breakout portfolio companies. Geographic Focus Night Capital focuses primarily on US-based technology companies, with concentration in the San Francisco Bay Area ecosystem. However, the firm backs exceptional founders regardless of location within the US. Portfolio & Track Record Kevin Carter's career-long investment track record spans 17+ years and 1,400+ investments, including 40+ unicorns. Night Capital's notable portfolio companies include: Current Fund Portfolio Highlights: Kalshi — Prediction markets and event contracts platform Deel — Global payroll and HR platform (now a unicorn) Zip — Procurement software platform Underdog — Sports fantasy and prediction markets platform Gamma — AI-native presentations and documents Rally Legal — Legal technology platform Standard Bots — AI-driven robotics for American manufacturing (raised $63M Series B, July 2024) Plenful — AI-powered healthcare automation (raised $50M Series B, 2025) Standard Fleet — EV fleet software (raised $13M Series A, September 2025) Parallel — AI-native finance team for startups (led $2.4M seed round, 2026) BuildForever — Email reimagined (April 2026 investment) Historical Portfolio (via SV Angel / early career): Airbnb, Stripe, Coinbase, GitHub, Snap, Pinterest, Twitter/X, Slack, Dropbox, Twitch, Databricks, Notion, Instacart, DoorDash, Square, Affirm, Rippling, Flexport, Twilio, and many others. Team Kevin Carter — Founder & General Partner Kevin Carter has over 17 years of early-stage investing experience. He began his career pursuing an entrepreneurial path before joining the team at Baseline Ventures in 2008. In 2009, he joined SV Angel under Ron Conway, where he spent nearly a decade investing in and supporting generational founders. In 2018, he founded Night Capital. Kevin was recognized by Forbes 30 Under 30 in both 2012 and 2013. He currently serves on the board of Underdog. Colt Sauers — Team Member Supports the investment and portfolio operations team at Night Capital. Susan Hyland — Team Member Supports the investment and portfolio operations team at Night Capital. Decision Process Night Capital is a lean, GP-led firm. Kevin Carter is the primary decision-maker and leads all investments. The firm moves quickly given its small team size — typically within 1-2 weeks from first meeting to term sheet for high-conviction opportunities. The firm prioritizes relationship-driven deal flow and does not rely on cold inbound. Founder Preferences Night Capital backs exceptional founders building in massive markets. Kevin Carter has a particular affinity for technical founders and repeat founders with prior startup experience. The firm values founders who are thinking independently and who have a contrarian but defensible thesis about their market. Kevin's network from SV Angel days means warm introductions are preferred but not required. Recent Activity Night Capital has been actively deploying from Fund IV. In April 2026, the firm backed BuildForever. In early 2026, Night Capital led a $2.4M seed round for Parallel (AI-native finance). In September 2025, the firm participated in Standard Fleet's $13M Series A. The firm is actively deploying and has made 3 new investments in the past 12 months as of late 2025.