Max Levchin

SciFi VC is a venture fund established by Max and Nellie Levchin, focusing on early-stage investments across a diverse range of sectors. The firm actively partners with founders who are tackling complex problems that demand significant curiosity, intellectual depth, and often, scientific innovation. SciFi VC operates as a generalist firm, with a particular emphasis on the transformative fields of fintech, artificial intelligence, and science.

Founded in 2017, SciFi VC is based in San Francisco, California. The firm's investment philosophy centers on providing intellectual rigor and deep domain expertise to its portfolio companies from their earliest stages. Max Levchin, a co-founder of PayPal and CEO of Affirm, brings extensive experience in payment technology, while Nellie Levchin, also a seasoned venture capitalist, plays a crucial role in identifying promising investments. They aim to support companies through critical product development, strategy formulation, and fundraising efforts.

SciFi VC engages with companies at various stages, including a "Brainstorm Stage" where they collaborate with founders to define product and strategy before leading seed rounds. They also participate in "Early Stage" (Seed and Series A) rounds for companies targeting large markets and make opportunistic "Growth Stage" investments in later-stage companies demonstrating exceptional growth. Notable recent investments include participation in a $140 million Series B financing round for Panthalassa, a renewable energy and ocean technology company, in May 2026, and an investment in Cellular Intelligence, a healthcare industry company, in August 2025.

The firm's investment scope extends to breakthrough technologies such as machine learning, CRISPR, robotics, and quantum computing, aiming to bring science fiction concepts to reality. Beyond its core focus areas, SciFi VC also backs inspiring founders in other challenging, regulated, or technical markets, including enterprise software, healthcare, and security. The team, including partners Brooks Hosfield and Matt Therian, and Executive Assistant Mikaela Encarnacion, is dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs who are pushing the boundaries of what's possible in an AI-powered future and beyond.