HearstLab
HearstLab is a Hearst Corporation-backed corporate venture capital fund that invests in Seed and Series A women-led technology startups, providing strategic capital, hands-on operational support, and access to Hearst's ecosystem across the US, Europe, Japan, and GCC.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What HearstLab does
HearstLab is a mission-focused corporate venture capital fund wholly owned and backed by Hearst Corporation, founded in 2016 and headquartered at Hearst Tower in New York City. The fund invests in Seed and Series A-stage companies led by women founders, with portfolio criteria requiring a female founder as decision-maker with equal or majority equity, a working product with demonstrated market validation, primarily B2B or B2B2C business models, and strategic alignment with Hearst's core expertise across enterprise technology, data and analytics, fintech, healthcare, media, and transportation. Since inception, HearstLab has made 90+ investments with an aggregate portfolio valuation of $3.2 billion, including named companies such as GlossGenius, FreeWill, Wellthy, Statusphere, Beam Impact, Priori Legal, Highlight, and Intella.
HearstLab's value proposition extends well beyond capital deployment. Portfolio companies receive hands-on operational support from a dedicated in-house team covering legal, sales, marketing, finance, fundraising, engineering, and data/operations functions, as well as access to office space at Hearst Tower in NYC. Sourcing is driven by a network of 200+ scouts drawn from across Hearst's 375+ businesses, complemented by year-round Airtable application forms segmented into US, Europe, Japan, and GCC tracks, plus flagship Pitch HearstLab competitions held in cities including New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Texas, London, Amsterdam, Madrid, and Tokyo.
Internationally, HearstLab operates through wholly-owned regional entities in the UK (HearstLab UK, Inc.) and the Netherlands (HearstLab NL, Inc.), and through strategic partnerships with Hearst Fujingaho in Japan (launched 2024) and Hearst partners in Saudi Arabia/GCC (launched 2025). The fund has begun embedding AI into its own investment workflow — scaling analysis from 265 to 5,000 investments — and has tilted recent investment activity toward AI-native startups. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hearst, HearstLab operates with patient capital and a long-term, founder-first thesis aimed at addressing the structural underfunding of women-led companies, which receive only ~2% of total VC funding.
HearstLab firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- HearstLab
- Legal name
- HearstLab, Inc.
- Website
- https://hearstlab.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- HearstLab is a Hearst Corporation-backed corporate venture capital fund that invests in Seed and Series A women-led technology startups, providing strategic capital, hands-on operational support, and access to Hearst's ecosystem across the US, Europe, Japan, and GCC.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
HearstLab industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- akta.pro primary industry
- Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Late-Stage Venture Capital (Series C+) (FSANAAAC), Corporate Accelerators & Startup Programs (FSANAHAD)
Keywords
Where HearstLab is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices6 records
Markets served
HearstLab business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Investment Returns: HearstLab generates returns through equity stakes in portfolio companies. As a mission-driven fund backed by Hearst, it takes a long-term view in helping founders build sustainable and profitable businesses, providing strategic capital alongside operational support services.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
HearstLab product offering
Product offeringCore offering
HearstLab is a mission-driven corporate venture capital fund backed by Hearst Corporation that provides strategic equity capital at Seed and Series A stages to early-stage, women-led technology startups. Beyond capital, portfolio companies receive hands-on operational support across legal, sales, marketing, finance, fundraising, and engineering, plus access to a global network of over 200 Hearst scouts and office space at Hearst Tower in NYC.
Product overview
HearstLab is a mission-focused strategic corporate venture fund backed by Hearst, one of the largest information, services, and media companies in the world. Rather than a technology product company, HearstLab operates as an investment fund providing strategic capital and operational support to early-stage, women-led technology startups. The fund focuses on companies in sectors including enterprise technology, data and analytics, fintech, healthcare, media, and transportation. Beyond capital, HearstLab provides portfolio companies with support services across business development, marketing, data and operations, product and engineering, finance and fundraising, and legal. The organization also maintains a global network of scouts drawn from Hearst's 375+ businesses and hosts pitch events to connect with women founders. Featured portfolio companies include GlossGenius, FreeWill, Wellthy, Statusphere, Beam Impact, Priori Legal, Highlight, and Intella.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- HearstLab Investment Fund Equity capital investment fund targeting Seed and Series A-stage women-led technology startups aligned with Hearst's expertise across enterprise technology, data and analytics, fintech, healthcare, media, and transportation.
- Pitch HearstLab Competitions
Quantifiable outcome
- 90+ women-led investments to date
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use HearstLab
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
HearstLab technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
HearstLab partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Brown Institute for Media InnovationminorCo-organizer of the AI and Journalism Summit, a one-day invitation-only conference scheduled for December 16, 2025 in New York, also co-organized with OpenAI. The summit brings together media executives, technologists, and researchers to discuss AI strategy and newsroom applications.
- OpenAIminorCo-organizer of the AI and Journalism Summit with the Brown Institute for Media Innovation. Summit focuses on AI strategy, newsroom applications, model behavior, deployed systems, new product capabilities, and audience shifts in a post-search world.
- HearstLab JapancoreCorporate venture capital platform focused on portfolio of women-led startups, notable as unique in Japan's largely male-dominated and risk-averse startup environment. Part of HearstLab's global expansion strategy.
- Hearst FujingahocoreStrategic partnership with Hearst's Japanese subsidiary to extend HearstLab's operations to Japan. The partnership was launched in 2024 in Tokyo, with Sumiyo Tsuchikawa serving as Country Manager, Japan. HearstLab has made three investments in Japan through this partnership, including Yuimedi to advance medical data standardization.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights6 records
HearstLab competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Female Founders Fund: Early-stage VC exclusively backing female-founded companies. Closest direct competitor to HearstLab in women-led, tech-enabled Seed and Series A investing with comparable thesis and target founder profile.
- BBG Ventures: Seed-stage VC focused on underestimated founders, with strong emphasis on women and diverse teams. Directly comparable to HearstLab in early-stage women-led investing and operational support model.
- Backstage Capital: VC fund focused on investments in underrepresented founders including women, people of color, and LGBTQ founders. Comparable thesis on backing founders historically excluded from VC funding.
- How Women Invest: Early-stage VC investing in women-led tech companies with syndicate model. Direct peer in women-led investing with co-investment overlap (e.g., Statusphere Series A).
- Hearst Ventures: Sister CVC arm of Hearst Corporation focused on broader venture investments across media, technology, and healthcare. Sister entity inside same parent, with overlapping ecosystem but different mandate scope.
- Kapor Capital: VC firm investing in tech startups closing gaps of access and opportunity for underrepresented founders. Mission-aligned peer in diversity-focused early-stage investing with social impact overlay.
- Anthemis: Fintech-focused VC platform with diversity and inclusion focus in portfolio construction. Comparable in being a mission-driven, thesis-led fund with strategic corporate backing and emphasis on diverse founders.
Broad incumbents
- Salesforce Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Salesforce with diversity-focused initiatives and large portfolio across enterprise SaaS. Broader incumbent CVC with similar corporate-backed model and diversity programs.
- GV (Google Ventures): Alphabet's corporate venture arm with broad early-to-growth stage tech investments. Larger incumbent CVC with resources and deal volume that dwarf HearstLab, but overlapping thesis areas in enterprise tech.
Emerging players
- All Raise: Nonprofit organization increasing diversity in venture capital by supporting women and non-binary VCs and founders. Adjacent ecosystem player that overlaps with HearstLab's mission and founder community.
Market position
Weaknesses1 record
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
HearstLab social profiles
Digital presenceHearstLab financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
HearstLab leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles14 records
HearstLab subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
HearstLab funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
HearstLab M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments118 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about HearstLab
What does HearstLab do?
HearstLab is a mission-driven corporate venture capital fund backed by Hearst Corporation that provides strategic equity capital at Seed and Series A stages to early-stage, women-led technology startups. Beyond capital, portfolio companies receive hands-on operational support across legal, sales, marketing, finance, fundraising, and engineering, plus access to a global network of over 200 Hearst scouts and office space at Hearst Tower in NYC.
Is HearstLab a public or private company?
HearstLab is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was HearstLab founded?
HearstLab was founded in 2016. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is HearstLab based?
HearstLab is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does HearstLab make money?
One revenue line is on record: investment Returns.
Who are HearstLab's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Female Founders Fund, BBG Ventures, Backstage Capital, How Women Invest, Hearst Ventures, Kapor Capital and Anthemis. Broad incumbents are Salesforce Ventures and GV (Google Ventures). All Raise is listed as an emerging player.
Does HearstLab have an API?
No public API is recorded for HearstLab.
What industry is HearstLab in?
HearstLab's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAB, Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B), with a secondary code of FSANAAAC, Late-Stage Venture Capital (Series C+).