Linse Capital
Linse Capital is a SEC-registered venture capital firm founded in 2006 that invests in deep-technology companies across energy, mobility, space, robotics, and AI, managing a concentrated portfolio of 19 holdings for undisclosed limited partners.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersMenlo Park, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Linse Capital does
Linse Capital is a privately-held venture capital firm that invests in deep-technology companies across energy, mobility, space, robotics, and artificial intelligence. Founded in 2006 and headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the firm is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment adviser and operates with a small team of approximately seven named investment professionals. Its portfolio of 19 companies spans autonomous vehicles (Waabi, Wayve), commercial drones (Skydio), space transportation and in-space services (SpaceX, Impulse Space, Varda, Thea Energy), physical security (Verkada), AI semiconductors and lithography (Mythic, Zeromatter, Lace Lithography), energy infrastructure (Redaptive, ChargePoint), and defense, logistics, and additive manufacturing (UFORCE, Onodrim Industries, Amca, Kargo, Freeform).
The firm generates revenue through the standard venture capital model: charging limited partners management fees on committed capital and earning carried interest on fund profits above a hurdle. As an investment manager, the firm does not build proprietary technology products; its output is capital allocation and portfolio company support. Two portfolio companies have reached public-market liquidity — ChargePoint on NYSE and Valens, which listed in 2021 — providing a verifiable track record. In the 12 months from December 2025 through June 2026, the firm participated in at least six new or follow-on rounds, with deal sizes ranging from approximately $40M (Lace Lithography Series A) to $750M+ (Waabi Series C), indicating active capital deployment consistent with a freshly invested fund vintage.
The investment team is led by Founding Partner Michael Linse (formerly KPCB and Goldman Sachs) and Partner Bastiaan Janmaat (formerly DataFox/Oracle and Goldman Sachs), supported by a small bench of principals, a CFO, an associate, and an executive assistant. The firm's "customers" are its limited partners (LPs) supplying capital and its portfolio companies receiving capital, neither of which is publicly disclosed. The deep-tech concentration of the portfolio, combined with the team's operator pedigrees, positions Linse Capital as a specialist fund in sectors requiring significant technical judgment, such as fusion energy, semiconductor lithography, and orbital mechanics.
Linse Capital firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Linse Capital
- Legal name
- Linse Capital Management PR LLC and Linse Capital LLC
- Website
- https://linsecapital.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Linse Capital is a SEC-registered venture capital firm founded in 2006 that invests in deep-technology companies across energy, mobility, space, robotics, and AI, managing a concentrated portfolio of 19 holdings for undisclosed limited partners.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Linse Capital industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Other Financial Investment Activities (5239), Other Financial Vehicles (52599)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282), Finance Services (6199)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Equity Capital Advisory (Private Equity Placements, Growth Capital) (BPAHAOAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Capital Raising Advisory (Equity & Equity-Linked) (FSAEAGAC), Corporate Finance & Capital Advisory (BPAHADAB)
Keywords
Where Linse Capital is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Menlo Park
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Linse Capital 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 advisory / fund management fees: Linse Capital is an investment adviser registered with the SEC, managing funds that earn recurring management fees on assets under management, plus potential carried interest on fund performance (industry-standard VC economics; specific terms not publicly disclosed).
- Carried interest / performance fees: As a venture capital firm, Linse Capital is entitled to carried interest (performance-based compensation) on the profits of funds it manages, subject to terms negotiated privately with limited partners.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Linse Capital product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Linse Capital is a privately held, SEC-registered venture capital investment adviser that manages private investment funds and deploys concentrated, long-term growth equity capital into deep technology companies across energy, mobility, space, robotics, and AI. The firm earns management fees on assets under management and carried interest on fund performance, while providing operator partnership and multi-stage capital support to a high-conviction portfolio of approximately 19 portfolio companies.
Product overview
Linse Capital's offering is a venture capital investment platform composed of a focused portfolio of deep tech portfolio companies rather than a single software product. The firm's public-facing "product" is its curated portfolio of brands spanning autonomous drones (Skydio), security (Verkada), space mobility (Impulse Space), space exploration (SpaceX), space manufacturing (Varda), autonomous driving (Wayve, Waabi), edge AI (Mythic), simulation (Zeromatter), chipmaking (Lace Lithography), energy efficiency (Redaptive), EV charging (ChargePoint, exited), semiconductors (Valens), defense technology (UFORCE, Onodrim Industries), advanced manufacturing (Freeform), aerospace manufacturing (Amca), logistics technology (Kargo), and fusion energy (Thea Energy). The firm emphasizes high-conviction, concentrated investment in deep tech across energy, mobility, space, robotics, and AI, providing capital and operational partnership to each named portfolio company.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Venture capital fund management services
- Growth equity and venture capital investment rounds
- Operator partnership and deep tech advisory
Quantifiable outcome
- Backed 19+ deep tech portfolio companies across venture and growth stages over 20+ years
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Linse Capital
Customer profileSegments6 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Linse Capital technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Linse Capital partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
19 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship portfolio company, core portfolio company and exited flagship portfolio company.
- SpaceXflagship portfolio companySpaceX is described by Linse Capital as "the world's leading space exploration and space communications company," designing, manufacturing, and launching advanced rockets and spacecraft. Elon Musk is listed as CEO. SpaceX was valued at approximately $800B ahead of its 2026 IPO filing.
- Skydioflagship portfolio companySkydio is the leading U.S. autonomous drone manufacturer and "the world leader in drone autonomy for inspections and emergency response." CEO Adam Bry. Linse Capital made its initial investment in 2020; Skydio raised a $230M Series E at a ~$2.2B valuation in February 2023, with secondary-market valuations trending toward $3B. Named Frost & Sullivan's 2021 Company of the Year.
- Impulse Spaceflagship portfolio companyImpulse Space builds dual-use orbital transfer vehicles (Mira and Helios) for delivery of payloads from LEO to MEO, GEO, and beyond. CEO/CTO Tom Mueller (ex-SpaceX), President/COO Eric Romo. Initial investment in 2025; Linse Capital led the $300M Series C in June 2025 and participated in the $500M Series D in June 2026 (co-led by 137 Ventures and BANNER VC, with Founders Fund and Lux Capital), at a $4.26B valuation. NASA selected the company in August 2025 to study lower-cost access to challenging orbital destinations.
- Verkadaflagship portfolio companyVerkada is "the leading physical security platform to protect people and assets in a privacy-respecting manner," with six product lines (cameras, access control, sensors, alarms, visitor management, mailroom). CEO Filip Kaliszan; Executive Chairman Hans Robertson. Initial investment in 2022; security systems deployed across institutions serving 20M students.
- Wayveflagship portfolio companyWayve is "reshaping the future of autonomous mobility with Embodied AI, paving the way from assisted to automated driving," building autonomous driving technology for global OEMs. CEO Alex Kendall. Linse Capital invested in 2021.
- Waabiflagship portfolio companyWaabi is "pioneering physical AI, starting with autonomous trucks," using end-to-end AI and high-fidelity simulation. Founder & CEO Raquel Urtasun; COO Lior Ron. Initial investment in 2026; Linse Capital participated in the $750M Series C co-led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners, with milestone-based investment from Uber, totaling over $1B — the largest fundraise in Canadian history.
- Thea Energycore portfolio companyThea Energy is building "an economical and scalable fusion energy system utilizing arrays of mass-manufacturable magnets and dynamic software controls." CEO Brian Berzin; Co-Founder & CTO David Gates. Linse Capital participated in the $100M Series B (May 2026) led by US Innovative Technology Fund, alongside General Innovation Capital Partners. Spun out of Princeton in 2022; first DOE-certified power plant preconceptual design.
- Lace Lithographycore portfolio companyLace Lithography develops next-generation lithography technology using a helium atom beam, enabling chip features up to 10x smaller than current limits and potentially extending Moore's Law. Linse Capital participated in the $40M Series A (March 2026) led by Atomico, alongside M12 (Microsoft's venture fund), Vsquared Ventures, Future Ventures, Runa Capital, Deep Future, SETT, and Nysnø. Pilot tool targeted for ~2029.
- Freeformcore portfolio companyFreeform is "building a next-generation metal manufacturing platform to produce complex aerospace and defense parts at scale," with AI-native GoldenEye and next-generation Skyfall platforms. CEO Erik Palitsch; Chief Scientific Officer Tasso Lappas. Linse Capital participated in the $67M Series B (February 2026) with Founders Fund, NVentures, Two Sigma Ventures, Apandion, AE Ventures, and Threshold Ventures, at a ~$179M post-money valuation per PitchBook. Named to Fast Company's 2026 Most Innovative Companies list.
- Kargocore portfolio companyKargo is "building a common language for the supply chain," connecting the physical and digital worlds at loading docks with computer vision and industrial AI. Founder & CEO Samuel Lurye. Initial investment in 2025; Linse Capital participated in the $42M Series B (December 2025) led by Avenir, alongside Hearst Ventures, Lightbank, Matter Venture Partners, and Sozo Ventures. Grew from 3 enterprise customers in 2022 to 45+ Fortune 500 clients.
- Vardacore portfolio companyVarda "designs, builds, and flies spacecraft that process pharmaceuticals in microgravity," targeting small molecule crystallization. CEO Will Bruey. The firm returned the first commercial in-orbit manufacturing capsule and has launched a second mission with payloads from Air Force Research Laboratory and NASA.
- Mythiccore portfolio companyMythic "develops AI inference processors that deliver high performance with extreme power efficiency, enabling edge devices to run advanced AI models without relying on the cloud," using analog compute-in-memory technology (M1076 Analog Matrix Processor). Co-Founders & CEO Mike Henry and CTO Dave Fick. Raised $70M Series C in 2021 and expanded into defense/security applications in 2023.
- Zeromattercore portfolio companyZeromatter "creates high-fidelity simulation platforms for advanced engineering," supporting aerospace, automotive, defense, and industrial applications. Founded by Ian Glow (ex-Tesla simulation team). Launched its first enterprise simulation platform in 2023 and partnered with aerospace OEMs for flight dynamics simulation in 2024.
- Redaptivecore portfolio companyRedaptive "enables large-scale rapid deployment of energy efficiency technologies" via Efficiency-as-a-Service for Fortune 500 real estate portfolios. Leadership includes Arvin Vohra and John Rhow. Initial investment in 2017; portfolio-scale energy upgrades have yielded $10.1M in energy & infrastructure savings. Raised $157M in October 2020.
- ChargePointexited flagship portfolio companyChargePoint is "the world's largest and most open EV charging network," operating EV charging hardware and software. CEO Pat Romano. Linse Capital originally invested in ChargePoint via KPCB (Michael Linse led the deal there). ChargePoint is noted as exited on Linse Capital's site (NYSE: CHPT). Reached 100,000 charging stations per the firm's philosophy timeline.
- Valenscore portfolio companyValens is "a fabless semiconductor company that provides communications technology for the professional audio visual and automotive industries," enabling high-bandwidth data distribution in buildings and vehicles. CEO Gideon Ben-Zvi. Initial investment in 2018; listed on NYSE in 2021. Aptiv embeds Valens chipsets in its smart vehicle architecture platform.
- UFORCEcore portfolio companyUFORCE "delivers combat-proven, multi-domain defense systems across air, land, and sea for NATO and allied forces." CEO Oleg Rogynskyy. UFORCE systems have helped Ukraine's armed forces convert speed and iteration into billions in confirmed enemy losses.
- Onodrim Industriescore portfolio companyOnodrim Industries is "building an industrial platform that advances technologies in defense manufacturing, multi-domain sensing and networked systems." Co-Founder & CEO Aistis Simaitis; Co-Founder & CTO Alexander Blessing.
- Amcacore portfolio companyAmca "designs and manufactures advanced aerospace products for the most important aircraft platforms in the world," rebuilding the aerospace supplier base to enable faster, cheaper, and more reliable aircraft production. Co-Founder/CEO Jai Malik; Co-Founder/COO Eli Giovanetti.
Scale indicators11 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Linse Capital competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Lux Capital: Lux Capital is a venture capital firm focused on deep tech, science, and frontier technology investments, with a portfolio spanning space, AI, robotics, semiconductors, and energy. Like Linse Capital, it concentrates on science- and engineering-heavy companies and co-invested alongside Linse in Impulse Space's $500M Series D.
- Founders Fund: Founders Fund is a venture capital firm with deep exposure to frontier technology, space (SpaceX), and AI, sharing Linse Capital's long-tenured, high-conviction philosophy. The two firms have co-invested in multiple Linse portfolio rounds including Impulse Space Series D and Freeform Series B.
- Khosla Ventures: Khosla Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests broadly in deep tech, AI, energy, and frontier technology with a willingness to back high-risk, science-heavy companies. It co-led Waabi's $750M+ Series C alongside G2 Venture Partners with Linse Capital as a participant.
- 137 Ventures: 137 Ventures is a venture capital firm that provides concentrated, long-duration capital to category-defining technology companies, often in later-stage and pre-IPO rounds. It co-led Impulse Space's $500M Series D with Linse Capital participating, indicating shared high-conviction approach to deep tech.
- DCVC (Deep Computing Venture Capital): DCVC is a venture capital firm focused on deep tech investments in computational, physical, and life sciences, backing companies in AI, robotics, energy, and advanced materials. It shares Linse Capital's concentration on deep, science-driven technology companies.
Broad incumbents
- Kleiner Perkins (KPCB): Kleiner Perkins is a long-established, multi-stage venture firm with deep tech and growth-stage exposure across multiple sectors. Linse Capital's founding partner Michael Linse was previously a KPCB partner who led the original ChargePoint investment, creating a direct lineage and thematic overlap with Linse Capital's portfolio.
- Sequoia Capital: Sequoia Capital is one of the largest and most established venture capital firms, with broad exposure to deep tech, AI, and frontier technology. While it invests across a much wider portfolio, it competes for allocation in the highest-conviction deep tech rounds that Linse Capital targets.
- Andreessen Horowitz (a16z): Andreessen Horowitz is a major venture capital firm with significant capital and deep tech exposure, including dedicated bio/health, infrastructure, and American Dynamism funds. Its large fund sizes and broad sector coverage make it a broader competitor in the deep tech space where Linse Capital focuses.
- General Catalyst: General Catalyst is a multi-stage venture capital firm with deep tech, AI, and frontier technology exposure, including dedicated efforts in defense, climate, and health. Its broad sector mandate and large fund sizes overlap with Linse Capital's deep tech investment focus.
Regional players
- Atomico: Atomico is a European-based venture capital firm investing in deep tech and frontier technology companies. It led Lace Lithography's $40M Series A (Norway) with Linse Capital participating, demonstrating shared conviction in non-US deep tech opportunities.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Linse Capital social profiles
Digital presenceLinse Capital compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Linse Capital financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Linse Capital leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Linse Capital subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries19 records
Linse Capital funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Linse Capital M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments29 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Linse Capital
What does Linse Capital do?
Linse Capital is a privately held, SEC-registered venture capital investment adviser that manages private investment funds and deploys concentrated, long-term growth equity capital into deep technology companies across energy, mobility, space, robotics, and AI. The firm earns management fees on assets under management and carried interest on fund performance, while providing operator partnership and multi-stage capital support to a high-conviction portfolio of approximately 19 portfolio companies.
Is Linse Capital a public or private company?
Linse Capital is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Linse Capital founded?
Linse Capital was founded in 2006. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Linse Capital based?
Linse Capital is headquartered in Menlo Park, United States, in the North America region.
How does Linse Capital make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Investment advisory / fund management fees are the primary driver. The others are carried interest / performance fees.
Who are Linse Capital's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Lux Capital, Founders Fund, Khosla Ventures, 137 Ventures and DCVC (Deep Computing Venture Capital). Broad incumbents are Kleiner Perkins (KPCB), Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and General Catalyst. Atomico is listed as a regional player.
Does Linse Capital have an API?
No public API is recorded for Linse Capital.
What industry is Linse Capital in?
Linse Capital's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAOAE, Equity Capital Advisory (Private Equity Placements, Growth Capital), with a secondary code of FSAEAGAC, Capital Raising Advisory (Equity & Equity-Linked). Its NAICS code is 523940 and its SIC code is 6282.