At the Center of the World, Drive Capital Raises New $1 Billion of Capital

Multi-strategy venture firm Drive Capital has closed on two new funds with aggregate new capital of $1 billion. With the closings, Drive now has $2.2 billion in total assets under management.

The new $1 billion of capital supports the firm’s “Driveway” thesis that supports democratizing access to venture capital. Technology used to be its own industry based in Silicon Valley but now, technology cuts horizontally through every business and industry. According to Drive, there are more billion-dollar opportunities east of the Rockies and west of the Hudson River than everywhere else in North America combined.

“Even before COVID-19, the venture industry was coming around to the fact that not all great startup ideas were in Silicon Valley,” said Chris Olsen, a co-founder and partner at Drive. “But too often that meant firms would pursue opportunities in emerging markets in China, India, or elsewhere. But America itself is a great emerging market, and we believe that our capital, expertise, and relentless work ethic can untap billions of dollars of value. We are proving our ‘Driveway’ thesis out, and our two new funds position us to take founders even farther over the next ten years.”

Drive invests at all stages, from idea through IPO. Past investments for Drive include Olive, a provider of artificial intelligence and process automation services designed specifically for healthcare; Beam Benefits, a provider of employee benefits including dental, vision, life, disability, and supplemental health; and Path Robotics, a provider of artificial intelligence used for welding and other industrial applications.

Drive invested in each of these opportunities when they were pre-product and continued to invest in each of them through multiple rounds. Today, Drive’s investment portfolio consists of more than 40 companies located outside of Silicon Valley.

“It is critical that venture firms have the resources to follow their convictions and readily provide their portfolio companies with more capital when they need it the most,” said Molly Bonakdarpour, a partner at Drive. “These new funds strengthen Drive’s role as a long-term partner for the region’s top startups and differentiates us among an increasingly crowded venture market.”

Columbus, Ohio-headquartered Drive Capital was founded in 2013 and is an active investor that supports founders from pre-seed to initial public offering.

© 2022 Venture Capital Investor | June 30, 2022