Upside Partnership
Upside Partnership is a seed-stage venture capital firm founded in 2014 by Kent Goldman that invests $500K initial checks into "inevitable founders," with backed founders becoming partners in the fund. It is headquartered in Mill Valley, California.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Upside Partnership does
Upside Partnership is a seed-stage venture capital firm founded in 2014 by Kent Goldman and headquartered in Mill Valley, California, operating through the legal entity Up Holdings, LLC. The firm targets pre-seed and seed-stage founders, writing a typical initial check of $500,000 and reserving 70% of its fund for follow-on investments in later rounds; in over 50% of its investments it has been the first institutional investor to commit. Its positioning centers on the concept of the "inevitable Founder," and the firm runs a distinctive structural model in which every backed founder becomes a partner in the fund and Upside declines board seats to preserve aligned, transparent counsel.
The firm's economic model follows traditional venture capital mechanics: returns are generated through equity participation in portfolio companies, supplemented by an alignment mechanism that shares economic outcomes with the founder-partners. Deal sourcing is community-led, relying on founder referrals and a curated founder network rather than outbound origination, with light presence on Twitter and Medium used for thought leadership and top-of-funnel awareness. The firm does not sell products or services, has no disclosed AI/technology stack of its own, and is run by a team of 1-10 employees with no public financial disclosures on AUM, fund size, or revenue.
Recent disclosed portfolio activity includes a participating investment in Stackpack's $6.3 million seed round (May 2025, AI-enabled vendor management) and in Apella's $80 million Series B (January 2026, ambient video intelligence for hospitals). The firm is recognized in the broader VC ecosystem through its portfolio co-investors (Accel, Andreessen Horowitz, Benchmark, Sequoia, First Round, Emergence, Floodgate) and through founder Kent Goldman's inclusion in the 2015 Forbes Midas Brink List.
Upside Partnership firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Upside Partnership
- Legal name
- Up Holdings, LLC
- Website
- https://upsidevc.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Upside Partnership is a seed-stage venture capital firm founded in 2014 by Kent Goldman that invests $500K initial checks into "inevitable founders," with backed founders becoming partners in the fund. It is headquartered in Mill Valley, California.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Upside Partnership industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital / Early-Stage Investment
- NAICS
- Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)
- SIC
- Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Independent Venture Debt Funds / Platforms (FSANAIAB)
Keywords
Where Upside Partnership is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Upside Partnership business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Venture Capital Returns: Traditional VC model generating returns through equity investments in portfolio companies, with economic participation shared with founders who become partners in the fund.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Upside Partnership product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Upside Partnership is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests at the pre-seed and seed stages with typical initial checks of $500K, reserving 70% of fund capital for follow-on rounds. Its defining feature is a partner-style fund structure in which every backed founder becomes a partner in the fund, sharing in economic success, and the firm declines board seats to keep advisory relationships transparent.
Product overview
Upside Partnership is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies. The firm provides capital, mentorship, and strategic guidance to founders, with a unique model where backed founders become partners in the fund. The company does not offer standalone technology products or software services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Companies that use Upside Partnership
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Upside Partnership technology and API
TechnologyAPI detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Upside Partnership partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights3 records
Upside Partnership competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Collaborative Fund: Early-stage venture capital fund focused on seed-stage companies across multiple sectors. Comparable in check size and founder-friendly orientation with a similar network-driven sourcing approach.
- Floodgate: Long-standing seed-stage venture capital firm focused on early-stage founder-led companies. Listed as a co-investor alongside Upside in portfolio rounds and shares Upside's seed-first, founder-friendly orientation.
- BoxGroup: Seed-stage venture capital fund that invests in early-stage companies across consumer and enterprise. Comparable in fund size, check size, and network/community-led approach to seed investing.
- Cowboy Ventures: Seed-stage venture capital firm led by Aileen Lee. Comparable in fund size, seed-stage focus, and thesis-driven approach to backing exceptional founders at the earliest stages.
- SV Angel: Seed-stage venture capital firm focused on early-stage consumer and enterprise companies. Similar in check size, fund size, and seed-first orientation.
- Precursor Ventures: Seed and pre-seed venture capital firm making initial checks in early-stage companies. Closely comparable in check size and pre-seed/seed orientation to Upside Partnership.
- Lerer Hippeau: Early-stage venture capital firm focused on seed-stage investments in consumer and enterprise software. Comparable fund size and community-driven seed investing model.
- First Round Capital: Premier seed-stage venture capital firm where Upside's founder Kent Goldman was previously a Partner. Operates a similar seed-first, community-driven model and is publicly displayed as a co-investor in Upside's portfolio companies.
Broad incumbents
- Sequoia Capital: Tier-1 multi-stage venture capital firm. Co-investor alongside Upside in portfolio companies and represents the type of large incumbent that Upside-seeded companies graduate into at later stages.
- Andreessen Horowitz: Large multi-stage venture capital firm. Listed as a co-investor alongside Upside in portfolio rounds and represents the broader incumbent Upside's portfolio companies typically raise from at Series A and beyond.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Upside Partnership social profiles
Digital presenceUpside Partnership financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Upside Partnership leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Upside Partnership funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Upside Partnership M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments114 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Upside Partnership
What does Upside Partnership do?
Upside Partnership is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests at the pre-seed and seed stages with typical initial checks of $500K, reserving 70% of fund capital for follow-on rounds. Its defining feature is a partner-style fund structure in which every backed founder becomes a partner in the fund, sharing in economic success, and the firm declines board seats to keep advisory relationships transparent.
Is Upside Partnership a public or private company?
Upside Partnership is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Upside Partnership founded?
Upside Partnership was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Upside Partnership based?
Upside Partnership is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Upside Partnership make money?
One revenue line is on record: venture Capital Returns.
Who are Upside Partnership's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Collaborative Fund, Floodgate, BoxGroup, Cowboy Ventures, SV Angel, Precursor Ventures, Lerer Hippeau and First Round Capital. Broad incumbents are Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz.
Does Upside Partnership have an API?
No public API is recorded for Upside Partnership.
What industry is Upside Partnership in?
Upside Partnership's product category is Venture Capital / Early-Stage Investment. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAIAB, Independent Venture Debt Funds / Platforms. Its NAICS code is 5259 and its SIC code is 6211.