Vast Ventures

Vast Ventures Research Investment Thesis Vast Ventures is a manifesto-driven venture capital fund founded in 2003 that organizes investments around five concrete global objectives: Improve worldwide health and happiness - Healthcare innovation, wellness, and quality of life improvements Promote resource sustainability - Environmentally responsible deep tech and biotechnology Increase human potential and productivity - Tools and platforms that enhance human capability Increase knowledge, empathy and connectedness - Education, social networks, and community building Disrupt industries that resist these goals - Transformative businesses challenging status quo The firm takes a unique hybrid approach: they act as both investors AND company-builders, with founders like Doug Chertok having started and grown numerous companies themselves. This means they provide not just capital but also operational expertise and hands-on support far beyond typical VC engagement. Stage and Check Size Focus Vast Ventures invests across multiple stages: Pre-Seed to Seed : $250K-$1M for early-stage validation Seed : $1M-$3M for companies with working prototypes and initial traction Series A : Occasional follow-ons and selective lead investments up to $3M The fund targets companies with significant potential for global impact measured not just financially but by their contribution to their stated manifesto objectives. Portfolio Composition Vast Ventures maintains a highly diversified portfolio across six major sectors with 44 active companies and 127 total investments: Healthcare (27+ companies) - Primary focus area including Zocdoc (doctor booking, now major exit), Clover Health (Medicare innovation), Fabric (health systems operating system), Flychain (healthcare financial infrastructure), and emerging companies like Juno Medical and Candor Health. AI & Cloud Software (23+ companies) - Strong technology focus with ASAPP (AI customer service), Moat (consumer intelligence, acquired by Oracle), SafeGraph (location data, recent exit Feb 2026), Conductor (content intelligence), and emerging AI platforms. Finance, Insurance & Real Estate (11 companies) - Including major exits like Coinbase (cryptocurrency), Ripple (blockchain payments), and current portfolio like Tala (emerging markets fintech), Nomad (LATAM neobank), and StreetEasy (NYC real estate). Consumer & Happiness Brands (9 companies) - Including Sweetgreen (farm-to-table, major exit), Bark (pet subscriptions), ClassPass (fitness), Meetup (community platform), and Eight Sleep (sleep technology). Resource Sustainability & Deep Tech (3 companies) - Ginkgo Bioworks (synthetic biology), Diamond Foundry (lab diamonds), Lygos (renewable chemicals). Food (6 companies) - Sweetgreen, Gobble, Ritual, Super Coffee, Foodology, Verb Energy. Recent Activity and Fund Status Latest Investment : April 10, 2025 - Warrant (Business/Productivity Software) - Seed Round Fund Status : Actively seeking new investments Trading Status : Active investor Recent Notable Exits : SafeGraph (Feb 2026, Buyout/LBO), Little Otter (Oct 2025), PatchRx (Aug 2025), Tala (May 2025), Higher Ground Education (Jul 2025) Track Record Historic Performance: 127 total investments across all funds 67 exits , representing exceptional exit velocity Portfolio achievements : 5 unicorns, 5 IPOs, 30+ acquisitions Notable exits : Sweetgreen, Coinbase, Zocdoc, Moat (Oracle acquisition), Instinctiv (SoundCloud acquisition), Ripple Current portfolio : 44 active companies Exit rate : 53% (well above average), indicating strong fund selection and company building Team Doug Chertok - Managing Partner and Founder (2003). 15+ years of operational experience starting and operating real estate, hospitality, and venture companies. Has invested in 70+ companies. Brings founder mentality and operational experience to partnership decisions. Aniq Rahman - Managing Partner. Former CEO of Instinctiv (acquired by SoundCloud), served as President of Moat (acquired by Oracle). Dropped out of Cornell to build first company, demonstrating founder-first philosophy. Joined Vast in 2014. Deep expertise in tech scaling and exits. Sean McCroskey - Vice President. Previous investor at Atento Capital (venture arm of major community foundation). Venture for America fellowship alumnus. Joined 2022, brings emerging manager perspective. Geographic and Sector Focus Geographic Preferences: Primary : United States (NYC headquarters, significant West Coast/SF activity) Strong international : LATAM (multiple portfolio companies serve Mexico, Colombia, Brazil), Africa, Asia, Europe, MENA Emerging markets strength : Portfolio companies like Tala, Nomad, Truora, Clicoh show deep commitment to emerging market innovation Investment Philosophy: Impact-driven : Non-financial returns are core consideration (health, sustainability, social good) Hands-on : Founders state commitment to going "far beyond Vast's invested capital" for portfolio support Long-term view : Willing to support companies through multiple rounds and market cycles Contrarian : "Disrupting industries that resist our goals" indicates targeted approach to incumbents Global mindset : Portfolio inherently international and diverse across geographies and currencies Technological : Comfort with complex technology (AI, biotech, blockchain, deep tech) demonstrated through portfolio Decision Process & Timeline Decision Structure : Partnership-based (Chertok and Rahman as Managing Partners indicates collaborative decision-making with input from VP level) Decision Involvement : Board seats, advisor roles, and operational support typical ("far beyond invested capital") Warm Introductions : Likely valued given relationship-driven partnership structure and founder mentality Founder Preference : All three team members have founder or CEO experience, indicating founder-friendly approach Lead Tendency Based on portfolio analysis: Leads most seed rounds : 127 investments suggest willingness to lead or co-lead at early stages Selective Series A : Some follow-ons on successful companies (Observability.io, Fabric) Co-investor friendly : 152+ co-investor relationships documented Lead Status : Typically leads or co-leads at seed, participates in Series A Notable Achievements Founded 2003, making them one of the earlier modern VCs Managed to generate 5 unicorns and 5 IPOs while maintaining manifesto-driven approach Strong track record in healthcare innovation space Deep expertise in emerging market fintech and infrastructure Company-builder model differentiates from traditional hands-off VC approach Fund Information Founded : 2003 Headquarters : New York, NY (228 Park Avenue South, PMB 47687) Status : Actively seeking new investments Fund Structure : Multiple vintage funds (recent PitchBook data references Vast Ventures VII) Investment Types : Primary VC with impact investing and real estate secondary focus Co-investors : First Round Capital, General Catalyst, Thrive Capital, BoxGroup, Atento Capital, and 147+ others Investment Requirements Stage Preferences : Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A (occasional follow-ons) Check Size : $250K - $3M typical range Timeline : Partnership decision-making suggests 2-4 week typical decision cycle Warm Intro : Likely required but founder quality and mission alignment can overcome Board/Advisory : Typically takes board seat or advisory position with active engagement Anti-Thesis The firm explicitly avoids: Companies that perpetuate inequality or harm (conflicts with health/happiness mandate) Resource-intensive unsustainable models (conflicts with sustainability mandate) Technologies that impede knowledge sharing or connectivity (conflicts with knowledge/empathy mandate) Gambling, casino, or purely extractive industries Non-founder led teams (prefer founder-led ventures)