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Nautilus Venture Partners

North America, California, United States, Palo Alto

Description

Nautilus Venture Partners is a Palo Alto-based venture capital firm with a strategic focus on early to growth-stage technology companies. Established with a vision to back disruptive innovation, the firm primarily targets startups developing unique technologies, particularly in the deep tech, artificial intelligence, big data, Internet of Things (IoT), and enterprise software sectors. Their investment philosophy centers on identifying companies with strong founding teams, defensible intellectual property, and significant market potential, aiming to foster long-term growth and market leadership.

The firm's investment strategy is characterized by a hands-on approach, working closely with portfolio companies to navigate challenges and capitalize on opportunities. Nautilus Venture Partners seeks to be more than just a capital provider, offering strategic guidance, operational support, and access to a broad network of industry experts and potential partners. They are particularly interested in technologies that can drive significant efficiency gains or create entirely new market categories, often looking for solutions that address complex problems within large, evolving industries.

Financially, Nautilus Venture Partners has demonstrated a consistent commitment to the innovation ecosystem. Their most recent fund, Nautilus IV, successfully closed with $100 million in capital in 2017, underscoring their capacity to deploy substantial resources into promising ventures. While specific initial check sizes can vary based on the stage and needs of the company, Nautilus typically provides first checks ranging from $1 million to $5 million, often participating in Series A or Series B rounds. The firm has built a diverse portfolio, having made over 50 investments across various technology domains, reflecting their broad yet focused investment mandate.

Investor Profile

Nautilus Venture Partners has backed more than 23 startups, with 1 new investments in the last 12 months alone. The firm has led 3 rounds, about 13% of its total and boasts 5 exits across its portfolio.

Investment Focus Highlights

  • Concentrates on Series A, Series C, Series B rounds (top funding stages).
  • Majority of deals are located in United States, Canada, United Kingdom.
  • Strong thematic focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI), Software, Electronics.
  • Typical check size: $1M – $5M.

Stage Focus

  • Series A (48%)
  • Series C (22%)
  • Series B (17%)
  • Seed (9%)
  • Series Unknown (4%)

Country Focus

  • United States (78%)
  • Canada (13%)
  • United Kingdom (4%)
  • South Korea (4%)

Industry Focus

  • Artificial Intelligence (Ai)
  • Software
  • Electronics
  • Analytics
  • Hardware
  • Semiconductor
  • Data Center
  • Machine Learning
  • Manufacturing
  • Computer
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FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Learn who this investor regularly partners with—both firms and angels—and explore their latest activity.

Who does Nautilus Venture Partners frequently co-invest with?

AV
Europe, Luxembourg, Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Co-Investments: 2
Playground Global
North America, California, United States, Palo Alto
Co-Investments: 2
Samsung Catalyst Fund
North America, California, United States, Menlo Park
Co-Investments: 3
M12 - Microsoft's Venture Fund
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Co-Investments: 4
Bosch Ventures
Europe, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany, Stuttgart
Co-Investments: 3
Entrada Ventures
North America, California, United States, Santa Barbara
Co-Investments: 2
Bold Capital Partners
North America, California, United States, Santa Monica
Co-Investments: 2
Sony Innovation Fund
Asia, Tokyo, Japan, Tokyo
Co-Investments: 2
NVIDIA
North America, California, United States, Santa Clara
Co-Investments: 3
Intel Capital
North America, California, United States, Santa Clara
Co-Investments: 3

Which angels does Nautilus Venture Partners often collaborate with?

RB
North America, Virgin Islands, United States
Shared Deals: 1
CG
North America, Texas, United States, Houston
Shared Deals: 1
PT
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Shared Deals: 1
RG
North America, Maryland, United States, Columbia
Shared Deals: 1
Daniel Nadler
North America, Massachusetts, United States, Cambridge
Shared Deals: 1
JB
North America, Washington, United States, Seattle
Shared Deals: 1
KW
North America, District of Columbia, United States, Washington
Shared Deals: 1
TM
North America, District of Columbia, United States, Washington
Shared Deals: 1
PH
North America, California, United States, Los Altos
Shared Deals: 1
SA
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Shared Deals: 1

What are some of recent deals done by Nautilus Venture Partners?

DataPelago

Sunnyvale, California, United States

DataPelago is a software development company that offer big data analytics solutions.

AnalyticsHardwareSoftware
Series AOct 1, 2024
Amount Raised: $47,000,000
d-Matrix

Santa Clara, California, United States

D-Matrix is a computing platform that targets artificial intelligence inferencing workloads in the datacenter.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Cloud InfrastructureData CenterSemiconductor
Series BSep 6, 2023
Amount Raised: $110,000,000
Point2 Technology

Seoul, Seoul-t'ukpyolsi, South Korea

Point2 Technology develops a dielectric waveguide for high speed interconnect for both datacenter applications.

ElectronicsIndustrial ManufacturingManufacturing
Series BMay 25, 2022
Amount Raised: $22,000,000
Ayar Labs

Emeryville, California, United States

Ayar Labs develops an optical I/O solution for applications that require high bandwidth and low latency using light to move data.

ComputerHardwareInformation TechnologySemiconductor
Series CApr 26, 2022
Amount Raised: $130,000,000
d-Matrix

Santa Clara, California, United States

D-Matrix is a computing platform that targets artificial intelligence inferencing workloads in the datacenter.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Cloud InfrastructureData CenterSemiconductor
Series AApr 20, 2022
Amount Raised: $44,000,000
Balbix

San Jose, California, United States

Balbix enables organizations to transform their cybersecurity posture and quantifiably reduce their breach risk.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Cloud SecurityCyber SecurityNetwork Security
Series CMar 1, 2022
Amount Raised: $70,000,000
Rescale

San Francisco, California, United States

Rescale is a cloud simulation platform that enables research scientists and engineers to build, compute, analyze, and scale simulations.

AnalyticsArtificial Intelligence (AI)Enterprise SoftwareMachine LearningSimulationSoftwareSoftware Engineering
Series CNov 23, 2021
Amount Raised: $55,000,000
Rescale

San Francisco, California, United States

Rescale is a cloud simulation platform that enables research scientists and engineers to build, compute, analyze, and scale simulations.

AnalyticsArtificial Intelligence (AI)Enterprise SoftwareMachine LearningSimulationSoftwareSoftware Engineering
Series CFeb 2, 2021
Amount Raised: $50,000,000
FiscalNote

Washington, District of Columbia, United States

FiscalNote uses artificial intelligence and big data to deliver predictive analytics on government information to determine its impact.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Big DataGovTechPredictive AnalyticsSoftware
Series UnknownDec 4, 2020
Amount Raised: $160,000,000
Exo

Redwood City, California, United States

Exo is a medical device startup which develops handheld ultrasound devices and AI for imaging and therapeutic applications.

Health CareMedicalMedical Device
Series BAug 5, 2019
Amount Raised: $35,000,000