Mentors Fund

What Mentors Fund does

Mentors Fund is a privately held, seed-stage venture capital firm founded in 2017 and headquartered in Redwood City, California. The firm invests capital into and mentors capital-efficient technology startups that are applying disruptive digital technologies to traditional industries. Investment focus areas include Data Science & Analytics, IoT, AI & Machine Learning, Drones, Sharing Economy, Health, Retail, Media & Telecom, Agriculture, and Finance.

The firm was founded by four entrepreneurs with prior exit track records: Jahanzeb Sherwani (Co-founder of Screen Hero, acquired by Slack), Ahmed Khaishgi (Co-founder of Squaretrade, acquired by Allstate), Charles Huang (Co-creator of Guitar Hero, acquired by Activision), and Aamir Sheikh (former President of Barra Inc., acquired by Morgan Stanley). The founding partner group has since expanded to include Adnan Lawai, Umair Khan, Mobeen Khan, Omar Haque, and Shuja Keen.

Mentors Fund distributes investment opportunities through two vehicles: a Rolling Fund — an index approach to early-stage investing with capital called quarterly over 16 quarters — and SPV/Syndicate deal-by-deal participation. Both vehicles are administered and distributed via AngelList. The firm generates revenue through standard VC management fees and carried interest on deployed capital, and offers portfolio companies an integrated support ecosystem spanning customer introductions, co-founder sourcing, follow-on capital from VC/PE connections, M&A advisory, legal counsel, and manufacturing partnerships. Its only publicly disclosed portfolio investment is Poltio, a Turkey-based AI-powered e-commerce startup in which the fund participated in a $1 million round.

Name

Mentors Fund

Legal name

Mentors Fund

Website

https://mentors.fund

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mentors Fund is a privately held seed-stage venture capital firm founded in 2017 in Redwood City that invests in and mentors capital-efficient technology startups transforming traditional industries, distributing its Rolling Fund and SPV/Syndicates via AngelList.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital

NAICS

Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)

akta.pro primary industry

Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Venture Capital Fundraising Placement (FSAEALAC)

Keywords

• Seed stage venture capital
• Early stage investing
• Startup mentorship
• Venture fund management
• Capital efficient startups

Headquarters

HQ city

Redwood City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Mentors Fund is a seed stage venture capital fund that invests in and mentors capital-efficient startups transforming traditional industries through technology. The fund offers two investment vehicles: a Rolling Fund that provides indexed exposure to all portfolio investments with capital called quarterly over 16 quarters, and SPV/Syndicates that allow partners to invest deal-by-deal at the same terms as the Rolling Fund.

Product overview

Mentors Fund is a seed stage venture capital fund that invests in capital-efficient startups transforming traditional industries through technology. The fund does not offer a product or service in the traditional sense; it provides investment capital, mentorship, and strategic guidance to early-stage entrepreneurs. Investment focus areas include Data Science & Analytics, IoT, AI & Machine Learning, Drones, Sharing Economy, Health, Retail, Media & Telecom, Agriculture, and Finance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rolling Fund
• SPV/Syndicates

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Right Side Capital Management: Rolling Fund-style seed-stage VC that invests in a large volume of small checks across many companies using an index-style programmatic model. Closely matches Mentors Fund's Rolling Fund approach and quarterly capital-call mechanics.
• Pioneer Fund: YC alumni-led rolling fund VC deploying quarterly capital calls across a diversified portfolio of early-stage startups. Direct structural and operational parallel to Mentors Fund's Rolling Fund vehicle.
• Hustle Fund: Pre-seed and seed VC explicitly focused on capital-efficient founders and product-market fit, similar to Mentors Fund's stated philosophy. Both funds emphasize capital efficiency over mega-rounds and target tech-enabled disruption of traditional industries.
• Antler: Global early-stage VC and accelerator that funds founders from idea stage through capital-efficient paths to PMF. Comparable founder mentorship model and global geographic reach.
• FundersClub: Online venture capital platform offering rolling fund and SPV structures for accredited LPs, with a focus on early-stage tech investing. Comparable platform-based fundraising model and SPV offering.
• Republic: Investment platform offering rolling funds, SPVs, and syndicate-style participation for retail and accredited investors in early-stage startups. Direct competitor in the programmatic/rolling fund LP acquisition space.

Broad incumbents

• 500 Global: Large global seed/early-stage accelerator and VC firm with programs across 80+ countries and thousands of portfolio companies. Overlap in seed-stage investing, capital efficiency, and global geographic reach — but at vastly larger scale.
• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z): Premier multi-stage VC that also writes seed checks with strong founder mentorship programs. Overlaps with Mentors Fund in tech seed investing and founder support, but operates with much larger fund sizes and broader stage coverage.
• Y Combinator: Largest startup accelerator offering seed funding in exchange for equity plus intensive mentorship. Comparable focus on early-stage capital efficiency and founder coaching, but at vastly larger scale and via an accelerator cohort model.

Others

• Carta: Carta has launched venture capital-as-a-service and rolling fund products that compete with AngelList's offerings. Comparable as adjacent infrastructure provider rather than direct investor, but increasingly a substitute for Mentors Fund's chosen LP acquisition channel.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mentors-fund

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments60 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Mentors Fund