We’re thrilled to announce BBG Ventures’ new $60M early-stage fund backing overlooked founders building for the Polycultural Future of America. At BBG Ventures, we’ve always believed that identifying which Americans are underserved and which founders understand them best will drive outsized alpha. We’ve spent the last few years thinking about the passage of the country from a monoculture to one where identity and lived experience matter more than ever. We call this the Polyculture – a new status quo in which America is a mosaic of unique segments; where identity is multivariate and dynamic; and where new, more-nuanced solutions are needed across health, work, financial security, climate safety, and underserved consumers. To that end, we’ve officially expanded our mandate to embrace this evolution, backing underestimated founders – female or diverse – addressing the biggest pain points for our polycultural population. At a time when diversity has become a dirty word, we’re leaning in. The polyculture is about a diverse nation that includes everyone, to enable prosperity and advancement for all. You can read more about our new research on the Polycultural Future of America here: https://lnkd.in/eiefNfKb With our new fund, we’re doubling down on female or diverse founders who intuitively understand the needs of today’s Polycultural Americans in: health, education, work, financial security, climate safety, & the underserved. Know a founder transforming the way we live in one of these categories? Whether they’re building in B2B or B2C, send them our way. Nisha Dua Susan Lyne Addison B. Marsh, Claire Biernacki Carol Magalhães Isaacs, Drew Silverman Fennessy

🚀 We are proud backers of Canela Media! Congratulations to Isabel Rafferty Zavala and her team for being included in the #Inc5000 List ranking in the top 100 companies nationally and sixth in New York. cc: Susan Lyne Nisha Dua Claire Biernacki Carol Magalhães Isaacs, Drew Silverman Fennessy Addison B. Marsh,

Too many women feel unheard and unsupported during perimenopause, but Oova is leading the charge to change that. Their latest report, based on interviews with over 700 women across the U.S., reveals the real challenges women face— whether it’s navigating treatment options, addressing knowledge gaps, or confronting societal expectations. BBGV is a proud backer of Oova. We stand with them in advocating for better resources, education, and support for people navigating their hormone health. Read the full Oova report here: https://lnkd.in/gmUFFeU6 cc: Nisha Dua Susan Lyne Claire Biernacki Carol Magalhães Isaacs, Addison B. Marsh, Drew Silverman Fennessy

We’re thrilled to announce Workflow, a new assessment designed to mirror the real-world tasks engineers tackle every day. With Workflow, candidates engage in hands-on tasks—like bug fixes, pull request reviews, and feature development—through a single GitHub repository. This approach simulates actual workflows and helps hiring teams assess deeper technical decision-making and problem-solving skills. Key Features: ✅ Real-world engineering tasks in a unified GitHub repo ✅ Open-ended questions for assessing senior engineers ✅ AI integration for modern coding workflows The future of technical assessments is here – join the waitlist and be among the first to try it out: https://lnkd.in/g7JY4Tc5

Small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) are the backbone of business in the US. Fueled by momentum from COVID, they represent a massive market opportunity. SMB tech touches every area we focus on at BBG Ventures – work, health, financial security, climate, community – while also supporting our mission to supercharge underrepresented entrepreneurs (who are founding small businesses at a faster rate than ever), to better run their businesses. 💡 We have some new thoughts on the opportunity to empower underrepresented entrepreneurs though SMB tech. Check out our thesis deep dive by Claire Biernacki: https://lnkd.in/e3wsq5JY We are actively looking for people innovating in this space. If you are a founder building in this arena or an investor who shares a similar interest, connect with us! Nisha Dua Susan Lyne Carol Magalhães Isaacs, Drew Silverman Fennessy Addison B. Marsh,

Congratulations to Laurie Rowley & the Icon team on their raise! We invested in Icon because 401k plans are failing the workforce: there are 6m employers and only 600k 401k plans leaving over 80 million people without access to a plan. 💰What's needed is a new approach to delivering workplace retirement savings plans. A solution that radically simplifies the role of the employer and prioritizes the needs of individual savers. Icon delivers the first smart alternative to a 401k plan. https://lnkd.in/gcWP5Rjd Susan Lyne Claire Biernacki Nisha Dua Carol Magalhães Addison B. Marsh, Drew Silverman Fennessy

Meet Claire Biernacki 👋 Principal Investor at BBG Ventures, investing $50 Million into female founders. Claire and the BBGV team are known for being one of the most active investors in women and underrepresented founders across the U.S., backing companies like Zola, Spring Health, Blueland, and more. Before joining BBGV, Claire earned her MBA at Columbia Business School and began her career in investment banking and private equity. In this episode: 💫 Claire's investment focus, how she supports portfolio companies, and what she's seeing in the market today 💫 How Claire broke into venture capital and her advice for aspiring VCs 💫 Why Claire pursued her MBA at Columbia Business School 💫 +so much more! So excited to share this one! Watch the episode: https://lnkd.in/g6zu8CeX Listen to the episode: https://lnkd.in/g9JGr8ws

At BBG Ventures, we are developing a thesis on Aging America, starting with the impact of our aging population on the workforce. While this demographic shift could create challenges, it should drive us to rethink retirement and imagine a Third Act for Americans where they can continue to learn, earn, and contribute to the nation’s productivity. Our thesis is centered around leveraging AI, and technology broadly, to develop tools and platforms to enable that Third Act. 💡Check out our thesis deep dive by Susan & Carol: https://lnkd.in/dwhm3cPD We are actively looking for people innovating in this space. If you are a founder building in this arena or an investor who shares a similar interest, connect with us! Susan, Carol, Nisha, Claire, Drew, Addison

For founders: to cheerlead or not to cheerlead? I think the answer is both. Investing in a company is about more than giving a blank check and saying, "go you good thing." It's a fine line to walk when pitching to back someone's company: you're wholly optimistic about the opportunity, but once you invest there is a healthy tension between that optimism and realism. IMO it's the job of the investor to help the founder think about downside, and cover all their bases. If I take money from someone I respect, I also expect direct honesty so I can look around corners, iterate faster and plan better. At BBG Ventures we love founders who do too. We'll always be your cheerleaders, but love includes tough love. Here's how we work at BBGV: Make change and make money. Hand in hand. Venture capital kindles the future. We want to make it matter. Diversity is personal to us. We started BBG Ventures because the problems we face today can’t be solved by same-same thinking. All in and high conviction. We lead or co-lead rounds and help find the right investors to round out your syndicate. Here for you on the regular. We’ll meet up frequently as part of a Year One Sprint to get you leverage where you need it – from brand strategy and business model to recruiting and PR. Connections get you there faster. We’ll share the network we’ve built over decades – friends and allies, both old and new. Always think ahead. As you set milestones, we’ll help shape a compelling story and find the right investors for your next chapter. Tough love. Founders need support, but they also need honesty, feedback, and the occasional reality check. #Investing #Entrepreneurship #BBGVentures #Startups

Today, we are excited to announce a $100M Series E funding round at a $3.3B valuation to accelerate our continued growth and expand global access to mental healthcare. The round was led by Generation Investment Management with participation from existing investors, including Kinnevik, William K Warren Foundation, RRE and Northzone. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gyx-qeJk