About This Fund
Elevate Capital Fund I is the inaugural venture capital fund managed by Elevate Capital, a Portland, Oregon-based firm founded in 2016 with a mandate to expand access to early-stage capital for underrepresented entrepreneurs. The fund raised approximately $10 million and established Elevate Capital's core thesis: that high-potential startups founded by women, minorities, and veterans are systematically underserved by conventional venture capital, creating a persistent investment opportunity in the Pacific Northwest. Elevate Capital was co-founded to address the structural funding gap faced by diverse founders, a group that historically received a fraction of a percent of all venture capital deployed in the United States.
The fund invested at the Pre-Seed and Seed stages in technology and healthcare companies in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan region, making initial ticket sizes of $25,000 to $100,000 in women-, minority-, and veteran-founded startups. Elevate Capital's model combines financial capital with intensive mentorship and network access — what the firm terms mentor capital — connecting portfolio founders to operators, domain experts, and follow-on investors who can accelerate company development. The fund concentrated on a geography and founder profile where competitive deal dynamics were minimal and where Elevate's community relationships provided distinctive sourcing advantages.
Elevate Capital Fund I validated the firm's investment approach and demonstrated that backing underrepresented founders generates competitive financial returns while advancing equity in entrepreneurship. The fund's performance supported the launch of Elevate Capital Fund II with a $40 million target and a national investment mandate, and led to Elevate Capital being selected by Business Oregon to manage the state's SSBCI Venture Direct program and Innovation Gap Funds. The firm's track record across Fund I and subsequent vehicles established Elevate Capital as a leading institution-backed inclusive VC manager in the Pacific Northwest.