Folklore

As a venture house, our mission is to clear the path for founders who build companies that matter. Our hybrid setup, comprising PSV Foundry, PSV Lab, and two unique venture funds, PSV Tech and PSV Hafnium, sets us free from adhering to a singular method. Rather we rethink existing ways and models to maximise our impact beyond any individual firm or investment. Together, we can punch above our weight.

Morph Capital invests in founders and co-creates companies to help them reach the next level faster. As a team of experienced entrepreneurs, who have all started and sold companies, experience and expertise is used to help other founders. The team behind Morph define themselves as entrepreneurs rather than investors; investing early and using their understanding to help founders with all the difficulties they face. The aim is never to take control, but to offer support, partnership, risk consideration and space for debate in order to help companies reach the next level. Morph Capital believe in investing in founders and not ideas - as it’s the founders who are the root of success in start-ups, and working with them is what they enjoy. Taking a very ‘hands-on’ approach to their work, Morph deliberately work in the same building as a lot of the companies they invest in, so they can develop a close relationship, be on hand to offer whatever support is needed and also just enjoy time together. Together, Morph Capital are building an infrastructure for start-ups to reach then next level, including supporting them with the financial, brand, and legal needs that must be overcome in order for success

Exceptional early talent is the greatest leading indicator of a company’s potential. Since 2017 our partners have backed or founded companies with over $1B of enterprise value. We’ve taken companies from napkin sketches to thriving businesses, hired world-class talent and raised capital from top-tier investors. From these experiences, we’ve learned how to identify great talent early, allowing us to lean in well before data, revenue, and sometimes even a deck. We lead pre-seed rounds in founders who:Are magnets for top-tier talent Have the clear, pragmatic vision needed to build a world-changing company, and Are a ton of fun to be around We blend the network of a top-tier fund with the value-add of your most impactful angel. We tailor founder support to optimize for impact. We can be high touch, high energy, or write a check and get out of the way.

We are a hub for entrepreneurs, startups, investors, and strategic industry experts. We help entrepreneurs take their startups to the next level by providing them with the tools and guidance they need to turn their excellent ideas into powerful companies.

In 2007, I was working as a junior trader at Lehman Brothers. I hated it - the dehumanizing culture, lack of creativity, and singular focus on transactions and money left me feeling uninspired and lost. I didn’t know it then, but Lehman’s bankruptcy in ‘08 was a gift, and I left in search of a calling. I spent a few years meandering - writing, working odd jobs, grad school in Hong Kong - ultimately ending up back in NYC in 2009, having stumbled upon a young, passionate group of misfits that folks were calling “founders.” These founders felt more like artists than assets, more obsessives than executives. They were avant garde, they were building the things they wanted to see in the world, and to my surprise, people called venture capitalists gave them money to pursue their dreams. I was in love with their fringe eccentricity, extraordinary craftsmanship, and wild ambition. I was in love with the beautiful new works of art they called startups. For the next 15 years, I dedicated my life to working with founders – first at betaworks, and then over three funds at Notation with my partner Alex Lines. A lot has changed. The venture ecosystem went from cottage industry outsider to institutional insider – from a nascent practice to a consensus component of institutional portfolios. The result has been the industrialization–and bankerization–of venture. Firms that make dozens or even hundreds of investments per year, relentlessly focused on assets under management, using the same copy-paste transactional language, all drowning in a sea of sameness. Similarly, what was once a risky leap of faith has become a credentialing factory: accelerators churn out 1,000s of startups per year and fundraising rounds are the new requisite bullets in Linkedin resumes. The environment today feels eerily similar to the one I left on Wall Street so many years ago. Into the Asylum I’ve always believed the best early-stage founders are artists – they're obsessive about new and unusual things, they feel compelled to bring creation into the world, and they are often misunderstood for long periods of time–even lifetimes. Building businesses is their art. The good news is that as the new “banks” in venture continue to expand their tentacles, they also enable new alternatives. What if we treated founders like artists, instead of like assets? We plan to spend the next decade trying to answer this question. We think it means: A firm that’s small by design, that makes a handful of investments per year, and that eschews board seats and administrative control. A small team of partners moving mountains to help when asked and otherwise getting out of the way. A place for founders to tune out the noise and focus on making something truly great. A source of calm, trust, and support for founders who are manifesting beauty through one of the hardest things you can do: starting a company. The path forward We believe there are exceptional founders who, like us, want to win their own way, who want to work with VCs who care more about them and their companies than assets under management. If this sounds appealing to you, please get in touch. Whether you're a founder or in between things, we’d love for you to come visit us at our studio in Brooklyn. And if you would like to join a small team dedicated to the art of venture rather than the business of banking, contact us at hiring@asylum.vc.

We’re making Australia and New Zealand the best place in the world to build a startup. We’re achieving that through building a platform that unleashes startup ambition and accelerates exceptional companies. At our core, we’re a community of the most ambitious founders, operators and investors propelled by a highly-trusted mentor-driven community, and backed by the best angels, venture funds and tech startups in the region. Over the past decade we have invested in 200+ startups, with a combined value of $2 billion. We’ve written a lot about what we love at Startmate, so check out our blog if you want some more information about us, and check out our mission, values, and team, and one of our most ambitious goals...