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Lightbird is a Zurich-based VC firm backing entrepreneurs at one of the most intense periods of a company’s life – the early stage (Pre-Seed/Seed/Seed+). We invest in the most ambitious founding teams that use technology to solve real problems for real people and real businesses. The fund invests in B2B software with a particular focus on companies using PLG, Community-led Growth, Bottom-up Saas, NFX, Self-serve etc.. While we’re able to invest globally we will invest most of the money close to home (Europe). We are a rising brand with young, dynamic and driven people that values team work and open communication. We are rebels and want to challenge the status quo in VC by doing things a bit differently - more human. We strongly encourage individual initiatives and diverse perspectives, and enjoy spending time with each other.

As former entrepreneurs and operators, we have been in your shoes. We have founded, built and sold companies; we have recruited and led employees and management teams; and we have tackled many of the challenges that are unique to early-stage companies. With over 100 years of collective experience as founders, operators and board members, we have plenty of scar tissue and insights to help you avoid pitfalls and to optimize your business. We consider every investment to be a long-term partnership and aim to bring much more than just capital to help you build your company. In addition to evaluating every investment on the fundamentals, we are particularly interested in finding opportunities that leverage our experiences and unique resources. We focus only on industry segments that we know extremely well and where we have deep, relevant networks that can be tapped for our companies. We love early-stage technology investing and are energized by working with brilliant entrepreneurial minds. We are excited to share our operational experience and entrepreneurial instincts. We are a small team, which allows us to be responsive and nimble, working at the same clock speed as our entrepreneurial partners. We bring complementary backgrounds and leverage every member of our team for every company.

We're an early stage venture capital limited partnership championing the next generation of B2B technology startups in Australia and New Zealand. Investing in ambitious founding teams at pre-seed, seed and series A funding. An open letter to startups Hello, it’s nice to meet you. We are Black Nova VC, a team of founders, turned investors. We have successfully built and exited companies and we can empathise with what you’re going through. We get it. We get you. That’s why we believe we can help. We strive to develop long, enduring and strong relationships that last well beyond the exit. We will roll up our sleeves and become an extension of your team in a heartbeat when needed. But we will also give you the time and space to focus on building without getting in your way. We support our portfolio companies with our time, our network, our experiences and our multiple initiatives. Our support is enabled by capital, not the other way around. We are a thematic fund focused on B2B SaaS companies. Our specialisation allows us to go deep in specific areas to the benefit of our portfolio companies. We want our best ambassadors to be our portfolio companies. We understand that investing is a two way street and a strong culture fit and capabilities between a VC and the portfolio company is key to make the relationship successful. That’s why we invest time to get to know each other before deciding to work together. On that note, if you have an idea, a company ready to raise capital or just want to reach out to discuss anything, reach out to hello@blacknova.vc. Onwards and Upwards, The Black Nova VC Team We invest in out of this world founders, building companies in the B2B SaaS technology spaceGetting a foot in the door It all starts with the intro, and honestly, we don’t mind where it comes from. Whether it’s a hot, warm or even cold intro, we look forward to speaking with you. Meet us at events, online or, if you fit the B2B SaaS category and want to chat, you can even send us your pitch deck. It’s great to meet you! From here we take a look at your pitch deck and do some light due diligence to see if the stars align. If you fit the mandate and we think we can help we will set up a pitch meeting. If not we will send you a quick email to let you know that we won’t proceed further and why that is. The Pitch Great! The stars have aligned, next step, you will sit down (in person or virtually) with a member of the Black Nova team to tell us more about your business. Here we will ask questions to deep dive into the company. Part of the meeting is also for you to ask us questions; it’s always a two-way street. The deep dive continues as we conduct further due diligence on you and the business. We most probably need additional meetings at this stage but we always try to find the right balance between getting to know each other but not taking much of your time. At this stage we will ask you to share specific data with us relative to the stage you are at (we really try to keep our data requests to the bare minimum and not divert you from building). If at this point we decide to bow out, we will let you know and offer feedback. Alternatively, once we have finished the due diligence we will discuss the opportunity to partner with you over our Investment Committee. At the investment committee meeting we may invite you to ask our final burning questions and answer any more questions you may have. Decision Time The final stage! We don’t want to keep you waiting so we aim to have a decision for you as quickly as possible. We aim to complete the whole process, from first meeting to money in the bank- in 6-8 weeks max. However, the truth is that sometimes we may need more time than that. This is because ensuring there is a cultural fit is a top priority and this may take time. If we do not go ahead with investment for this round we will be sure to provide feedback and happy to jump on a call to discuss. If it’s a yes… congratulations! We are looking forward to working with you and seeing your business grow. Black Nova Investment ThesisWe invest predominantly in Australian and B2B SaaS companies at the pre-Seed, Seed and Series A stages. We are comfortable investing in pre-revenue businesses We are excited with the opportunity to write the first check for ambitious founders When making our decisions, we weight the following: Team Market Product Defensibility Technology

ScOp stands for scalable opportunities. You’ve worked hard to solve an important problem with your early customers - Now it is time to scale. We bring capital and insightful advice to help you take your company to the next level - up and to the right. Where We Invest We invest in early-stage software companies. We look for Scalable Opportunities (ScOps) that have achieved some proof of product-market fit. Our team partners for the long run and we build lasting relationships with ambitious founders. We Like to Invest:$500k - 3 Million Experience & Strategic Advice What We’re Looking For We want companies that fill a fundamental consumer or business need in the most efficient way. Cool technology just doesn't cut it - your product has to solve a real problem. We seek management teams that are smart, competitive and aggressive. We want to find people who love what they do and need to make a profound impact.

We are customer-obsessed, relentless about creating winning teams, operators and builders, long-term partners, consistent, and proven. TIA stands for “Thought Into Action” and is the philosophy we live by. Founded in 2014, TIA Ventures is an evolution of the Thought into Action Entrepreneurship Incubator (2009) and our passion for accelerating exceptional entrepreneurs. We are customer-obsessed, relentless about creating winning teams, operators and builders, long-term partners, consistent, and proven.

We invest early - sometimes when a company is no more than an idea. Our focus is B2B technology-enabled companies. Who: We look for coachable founder teams with a deep understanding of the industry and technology and we celebrate a hustler and hacker mentality. What: We push when we see potential and take a hands-on approach following a proven playbook and problem-solving toolkit, enabling you to spend more time on the core business. When: We prefer to be the first established investor, typically before or at the pre-seed round. We create the most value for you when engaging early.