As engineering leaders focused on what we know intimately, business-to-developer* startups, we firmly believe this category is foundational to the on-going modernization of every industry through software.
We’ve patiently assembled a highly curated team of 80+ LPs and fund advisors, all outstanding operating engineering and product leaders hailing from top tier technology companies.
Crucially to founders, our team is most actively engaged in supporting IrregEx's portfolio companies, thanks to a unique ability to guide entrepreneurs as they scale, leveraging the breadth and depth of experience within the group.
Given we invest predominantly in business-to developer* companies, a.k.a. picks and shovels for engineers, the tools our own teams rely on as they modernize and improve the world through software, we effectively represent the ideal customer of b2d companies, and thus act as a sounding board, whether it pertains to roadmap or go-to-market strategies.
The team also informs the diligence process: in that b2d category, we’re uniquely qualified to conduct ground-truth assessments not just of the product’s soundness, but of the merits of the value prop, in terms of pain point and relevance, as well as of go-to-market and ecosystem dynamics.
* Examples of b2d companies include: API-centric services (Twilio, Plaid, Stripe), data storage and processing engines (Snowflake, fivetran), infrastructure (PaaS, IaaS), developer tools (GitLab), machine learning tools (operations, lineage, compliance), visualization, analytics, observability, DevOps automation (Architect.io), Collaboration, etc.
We should have met yesterday.
We carry mostly founder and operator DNA, so don’t believe in a systemic chasm between founders and investors, or in only seeking each other out at fundraising time. We want to get to know you whether or not you’re raising right now.
Companies are built over many years, and the investors you bring on to support you on that journey will likely be around through most of it: building relationships matters, and the sooner we get to know each other, the better we learn whether we’re a valuable match.
We've built and continue to nurture a deep network of founders, engineering and product heads, academics and follow-on investors. Many of our investments originate from those relationships, and from that shared dedication to building great companies.
Once an engineer, always an engineer: we think in systems, whether it’s about refining a recruiting process, a product organization, or a sales playbook.
We’ve worked and continue to work, typically as CTOs, VPs of Engineering or Heads of Product, with amazing teams and co-founders, at many fast growing startups and iconic technology companies.
As such, the group has proven a valuable, specific, both tactical and strategic resource to founders. It doesn’t hurt that everyone’s teams at work are avid consumers and producers of engineering infrastructure.
It’s impossible to overestimate the importance of hiring and retaining exceptional people when building outstanding technology that meets the exacting needs of the market. Naturally, this extends to equipping those teams with the best tools and practices out there. We love getting specific with:
Hiring,
Team development,
Organizational design,
Engineering processes,
Fine-tuning product-market fit,
Avoiding scope creep.
Building it doesn’t mean they will come, not without a repeatable playbook to acquire and retain customers. Whether it’s product-led growth, top-down or bottom-up, your go-to-market strategy is ultimately what propels the company, or stalls it. While we’re first and foremost nerds of the engineering kind, we’re closely tied to a deep network of specialists whose collective experience translates into actionable tactics in most configurations.
Ultimately, one of the most powerful reasons we specialize so narrowly is to nurture an ecosystem of investors, customers, partners and acquirers truly valuable as you grow the company. We help you connect with engineering and product leaders.
