Jackson Square Ventures

Seed and Series A rounds in software and online marketplaces are the usual entry points for Jackson Square Ventures, a venture capital firm based in San Francisco. The firm says it has partnered with founders since 2011 at the moments when their companies take shape, and it describes its investment as backing those who are building software and marketplace businesses.

Seed and Series A bets in software and marketplaces

Its money goes into software and marketplace businesses while they are still young, usually at the seed or Series A stage. At those early points it gives founders money together with access to experienced operators and other founders. It also says it has invested in AI-native companies, and that it has backed more than 60 companies since it started.

Companies backed and exits named by the firm

Companies the firm names among its portfolio include Strava, DocuSign, Upwork and Seismic, and it mentions further deals with Mynd Management, Bus.com, Lyte, Outlier and Trust & Will. The firm lists exits that include acquisitions by Vista Equity, Engine Gaming and Media, Hitachi Vantara, the New York Times Company and Oracle.

Community and reading for founders

The firm runs a book club for the entrepreneurs and investors in its community. It selects titles several times a year on the grounds that they contain lessons founders can use in their missions. The club is presented as part of the firm's effort to build community rather than as a separate business.

Commentary from the partners

The firm publishes articles and updates by its partners. They cover funding announcements, the firm's view of new software markets, and wider debates about how companies should measure quality. One piece by a partner in the Harvard Business Review argues for more effective ways to measure quality than five-star rating systems.

The firm describes its work as convening and connecting the next generation of AI-native founders, and it presents its commitments as a set of software and marketplace investments built around experienced operators.