What Sierra Ventures does

Sierra Ventures is a privately-held, early-stage venture capital firm founded in 1982 (per firmographic record; one internal timeline lists 1984) and headquartered in San Mateo, California. The firm invests globally from seed through Series A, with a stated focus on enterprise AI infrastructure, healthcare, frontier technologies, physical AI, and open source. Sierra partners with founders from company formation and provides hands-on support through an Operating Team covering business development, strategy, and partner relations. Differentiated value-add is delivered via the CXO Advisory Board — a network of Fortune 1000 technical C-suite leaders — and the EPL Council of senior engineering and product executives, which together provide portfolio companies with enterprise insight, design partner introductions, and go-to-market leverage. The firm also operates ASCEND, a founder content platform, and hosts the annual CXO Summit (20th edition held recently, featuring the CEO of ServiceNow and the CEO of LinkedIn).

Sierra's business model follows standard institutional venture economics. The firm charges management fees (typically ~2% of AUM) on committed capital during the investment period and earns carried interest (typically ~20%) on profits distributed to Limited Partners after returning capital and a preferred return. With over $2 billion in assets under management and a lean team of 11–50 employees, Sierra is structured as an investment-led boutique rather than a platform-heavy growth fund. Recent disclosed activity shows lead checks of $8M in Smallest.ai (voice AI seed), $22M in Eden (LATAM healthtech Series A), and $5.8M in Expert Intelligence (regulated-lab AI seed), alongside participation in rounds led by General Catalyst, AVP, Capstone Partners, and Venrock.

Sierra's customers are twofold: institutional Limited Partners that commit capital to its funds, and portfolio company founders who receive investment and platform support. Distribution is relationship-driven rather than transactional, with deal sourcing concentrated through the CXO Advisory Board and direct founder network. The firm has a documented history of material liquidity events — Sourcefire to Cisco ($2.7B), RedLock to Palo Alto Networks ($195M), AuthenTec to Apple, and others — which underpins LP return narratives and re-up economics across successive fund vintages.

Name

Sierra Ventures

Legal name

Sierra Ventures Management III, LLC

Website

https://sierraventures.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sierra Ventures is a private, early-stage venture capital firm founded in 1982 and headquartered in San Mateo, California, investing globally from seed through Series A in enterprise AI infrastructure, healthcare, frontier technologies, and physical AI, supported by a CXO Advisory Board of Fortune 1000 technology leaders and over $2 billion in assets under management.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Venture Studios / Company Builders (FSANAAAH)

Keywords

• Venture capital
• Early-stage investing
• Startup funding
• Seed investment
• Series A funding

Headquarters

HQ city

San Mateo

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Venture Capital Management Fees: VC firms typically charge management fees (usually 2% of AUM) on committed capital during the investment period, and carried interest (typically 20%) on profits returned to Limited Partners.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sierra Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm based in San Mateo, California, that invests in technology startups from seed through Series A stages. The firm provides capital, strategic guidance, and executive support to founding teams building emerging technology companies.

Product overview

Sierra Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm with over four decades of experience and more than $2 billion in assets under management. It is not a technology product company. Its core offering is venture capital investment and company-building partnership for founders from formation through Series A, focused on the future of the enterprise across AI infrastructure, healthcare, frontier technologies, physical AI, and open source. Sierra complements its investment thesis with a platform of services including the ASCEND early-stage playbook (guides and interviews for founders), the CXO Advisory Board (Fortune 1000 technology leaders), the EPL Council (senior engineering and product executives), and the annual CXO Summit — all providing portfolio companies with enterprise insight, strategic feedback, and go-to-market support. The firm's published POV content, including the AI Layer Cake framework and annual CXO Tech Survey, reflects its investment perspectives rather than a commercial product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ASCEND: Founder's resource for delivering excellence at scale - includes guides, interviews, and resources for early-stage startup building.
• CXO Advisory Board
• EPL Council

Products and services

• Sierra Ventures Seed-to-Series A Venture Fund
• ASCEND
• CXO Advisory Board
• EPL Council
• CXO Summit

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple successful exits including Sourcefire ($2.7B to Cisco), Text IQ (acquisition), Quillbot, RedLock ($195M to Palo Alto Networks), AuthenTec (to Apple), and others
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Bill McDermottminorOthersCEO of ServiceNow keynoted Sierra Ventures 20th Annual CXO Summit, sharing lessons in leadership and future of enterprise.
• Ryan RoslanskyminorOthersCEO of LinkedIn and EVP at Microsoft participated in deep-dive session at 20th Annual CXO Summit on leading through AI transformation.
• CXO Advisory BoardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFortune 1000 technology leaders across healthcare, financial services, retail, manufacturing, and technology sectors provide enterprise insights, deal sourcing, and strategic feedback for portfolio companies.
• EPL CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEngineering and Product Leaders council providing technical expertise, product feedback, and talent connections for portfolio companies.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Direct peers

• Benchmark Capital: Early-stage venture capital firm known for concentrated, founder-led seed and Series A investing. Highly comparable to Sierra in stage focus, partnership-driven model, and emphasis on enterprise and consumer technology.
• Accel: Global early-stage venture firm investing from seed/Series A onward, with a long enterprise and consumer track record. Comparable to Sierra in stage focus, enterprise tilt, and global LP base.
• Bessemer Venture Partners: Multi-stage VC with deep enterprise software, cloud, and AI infrastructure franchises, including seed/Series A activity. Comparable in sector focus (enterprise, AI, healthcare) and long history.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners: Multi-stage VC with strong enterprise and consumer franchises and a global footprint, including active seed investing. Comparable in stage breadth, sector tilt, and global LP base.
• Battery Ventures: Multi-stage VC focused on enterprise software, AI, and infrastructure, investing from seed through growth. Closely comparable to Sierra in enterprise/AI seed tilt and sector specialization.
• NEA (New Enterprise Associates): Large multi-stage VC with deep seed through growth capabilities and a long enterprise/technology track record. Comparable to Sierra in stage breadth and enterprise focus.
• Norwest Venture Partners: Multi-stage VC investing in enterprise, healthcare, and consumer from seed to growth, frequently co-investing alongside Sierra. Highly comparable in stage, sector, and co-investor behavior.
• Foundation Capital: Early-to-growth stage VC based in the Bay Area with a long enterprise software, AI, and infrastructure track record. Directly comparable to Sierra in stage, sector, and California base.

Broad incumbents

• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z): Large multi-stage venture platform with significant seed, venture, and growth funds, including dedicated AI infrastructure theses. Overlaps with Sierra in enterprise and AI seed investing but at much greater scale and breadth.
• Kleiner Perkins: Historic Silicon Valley multi-stage VC with a long enterprise/consumer franchise, including active seed investing through its KP Discovery program. Overlaps with Sierra in enterprise and AI seed activity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sierra_ventures
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sierra-ventures
• Instagraminstagram.com/sierraventures

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments458 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sierra Ventures