Collide Capital

Collide Capital is a $66M venture capital fund founded in 2022 and based in New York that focuses on providing early-stage funding and operational support to innovative startups led by underrepresented entrepreneurs. The firm was established by Aaron Samuels and Brian Hollins, who previously co-founded AfroTech and BLCK VC, two of the largest Black tech ecosystems designed to connect under-networked communities to institutional resources. Collide Capital's mission is to guide founders on their institutional capital journey and equip them with resources, knowledge networks, and hands-on operational support for successful exits, while transforming the venture capital landscape by making diversity and inclusion a cornerstone of innovation.

The firm invests in early-stage companies from pre-seed to Series A, with a particular focus on founders building transformational enterprise SaaS, sustainable supply chain infrastructure, and Gen-Z minded consumer technology businesses. Collide Capital has built a notable portfolio including companies like Rheaply, Golde, Sidechat, and Slang.ai, with over 40 companies backed to date, of which 80%+ are led by Black, Latinx, or female founders. The fund is anchored by the University of California Endowment and is the first emerging VC fund to be simultaneously backed by major institutions including Amazon, Alphabet, Bank of America, and Twitter.

Beyond capital deployment, Collide Capital provides hands-on support through a strong network of industry connections, offering introductions to other investors and founders, strategic advising and coaching, and access to the firm's broader community of entrepreneurs and institutional partners. The team blends deep operating and investing experience, with leadership trained at institutions including Goldman Sachs, Bain & Co, Harvard Business School, and Stanford Graduate School of Business. The firm's average historical check size is $4.7M with a maximum check size of $86M.