Ten years ago, Elevate Capital set out not only to invest but to change who gets funded and who builds wealth.
What began as a bold bet on overlooked founders is now a decade-long proof that diversity and inclusion are the engines of extraordinary financial returns and lasting generational impact.
“As a minority founder, we don’t get the time of day. Without Elevate Capital getting us off the ground, giving us a chance, Ren Energy simply wouldn’t exist, said Eric Jen, founder and CEO, Ren Energy.
On June 4, investors and portfolio companies gathered in Portland, Oregon, for the 10th Annual Elevate Capital Investor Meeting and Reception. We celebrated the generational wealth and economic resilience built by our portfolio companies, looked ahead to new technology, and outlined our strategic pivot toward Agentic AI with Fund III.
Inclusion Arbitrage: Economic Value, Not Just Capital
Elevate Capital’s core thesis has always been that investing in underserved founders is a massive economic opportunity. We call this Inclusion Arbitrage.
“We don’t look for founders in the usual places. By identifying talented entrepreneurs who have historically been undercapitalized, Elevate Capital enters deals at a median entry discount of 26% to valuation compared to traditional VC funds. This results in faster exits and higher multipliers,” said Nitin Rai, Elevate Capital founder and Managing Partner.
“This strategy is not about concessionary capital but about finding founders who are more capital efficient and maintain realistic valuation expectations,” said Ben Nahir, PhD, Elevate Capital Partner.
“Supporting Elevate’s great ideas and the teams they’re building, the job retention and job creation, as well as the wealth building that comes out of all of the outcomes that Elevate Capital has, is important, and it’s the reason why we invest,” shared Judith Wiencken, Senior Responsible Investment Officer, Meyer Memorial Trust.
Ten years later, the data speaks for itself.
- Fund Performance: Fund I ranks in the top 5% for the 2016 vintage with a focus on diversity and inclusion.
- Wealth Creation: Fund I alone created $270 million in generational wealth through 8 exits from 30 companies.
- Total Portfolio Market Cap: Portfolio companies across Fund I and Fund II now have a combined market cap of $1.7 billion. More than 500 high-wage jobs were created across the regional ecosystem.
Watch the Elevate Capital Annual Investor Reception
Moving Beyond SaaS to Agentic AI
While the morning investor meeting reflected on the past, the afternoon was all about the future. We believe we are at a turning point in technology similar to where Software as a Service (SaaS) was in 2010.
Soumitra Sengupta, Elevate Capital Venture Partner, discussed defensibility. “The system of record is here to stay, but form-filling is ending. True defensibility now comes from proprietary data collection, workflows that are highly bespoke and super complicated, and regulatory capture.”
This isn’t just theory; the Elevate portfolio is already living it.
Companies like WEVO are using an “AI-agents plus humans” model to predict customer responses with 85% accuracy for Fortune 500 companies.
“WEVO is growing at a 140% annualized rate and expects to be cash-flow positive by the end of the year,” said Nitzan Shaer, WEVO co-founder and CEO.
High-Conviction Funds with Oregon SSBCI Fund
The focus on AI is already manifested in new Oregon-based investments. Through the Oregon SSBCI Venture Direct Program, we are identifying high-conviction opportunities that serve as the strategic pipeline for our Fund III focus.
Selected by Business Oregon following a highly competitive process, Elevate Capital was chosen to manage the SSBCI Venture Direct Program to expand access to early-stage capital and support long-term economic growth across Oregon. The SSBCI portfolio is already proving the potential of localized AI and digital transportation.
Here are three companies from the SSBCI fund that took the stage at our investor meeting:
PortalSphere is a specialized B2B e-commerce platform and Shopify application that enables brands to manage and sell wholesale operations directly within their existing online store.
Rapta is deploying edge-based AI in manufacturing to eliminate 98% of factory-floor defects, proving that localized AI can deliver high-security, high-performance solutions.
StrateSea Technology, a maritime technology company, develops AI-powered software that transforms complex subsea and ocean data into actionable multi-sensor intelligence.
The Elevate Edge: Post-Investment Platform
Elevate Capital’s core belief has always been that we are more than financial backing. While mentoring, expertise, and networking have always been key offerings, we recently restructured our mentorship program with a more intentional, hands-on approach.
Elevate Edge is led by Allie Persitz, Elevate Capital Operating Partner and events-technology innovator. She is best known as the founder and CEO of Hubb, which Intrado Digital Media (now Notified) acquired in 2021. She scaled Hubb to a half-billion-dollar business.
“Early-stage mentorship is one of the most important factors when choosing a venture partner; someone who is hands-on and helps the company and its leaders grow,” said Allie. “Elevate Edge guides founders to shift from ‘working in the business’ to ‘working on the business,’ and equips them with the tools to scale.”
Elevate Edge is structured around three pillars designed to drive operational growth:
1. Sprint Workshops: Quarterly intensive hands-on sessions addressing executive coaching, workforce planning, go-to-market strategies, and predictable pipeline generation.
2. Series A Bridge: Systematic operational templates to structure audit-ready data rooms and compress pilot timelines.
3. Pressure Valve Sessions: Monthly confidential issue-processing meetings allow founders to bring specific business challenges to a peer group for strategic feedback and accountability.
“Beyond the funding, the mentorship has been substantial. Elevate Edge has given us access to formal guidance, practical resources, and a strong community, but the informal support has been just as important. That level of genuine partnership is difficult to quantify, but it has meant a great deal,” said Victoria Price-Doucet, co-founder and CEO, StrateSea Technology.
“I didn’t really know what to expect as a new startup, and often didn’t know which direction to go. Being out there on my own, I found it even more important to feel like I had a foundation of people to turn to when I needed help,” said Kimberly Hutchinson, MD, founder and CEO, Somnoseal.
Fund III: The Future Outlook with an AI Strategy
After a decade spent building a resilient and diverse startup ecosystem, Elevate Capital now aims to scale nationally over the next ten years.
Fund III, a fund targeting 15–20 high-conviction core companies in the Agentic AI space, will focus on capital at the Seed-to-Series A transition window.
There is strong momentum to bring the Elevate model to major markets such as Miami and New York, further demonstrating that diversity is a powerful driver of economic success.
Elevate is also doubling down on its commitment to underserved founders while expanding its footprint to include high-potential markets in Canada, Israel and India.
For investors, the message is clear. Elevate Capital’s first decade laid the foundation for inclusion and wealth creation. The coming decade will usher in autonomous intelligence that will reshape global industries.
The future is inclusive, intelligent and unfolding now.
Thank you to our sponsors Stoel Rives, Merrill (a Bank of America Company), and Perkins Coie for your support.
