What Hemi Ventures does

Hemi Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2016 and headquartered in Palo Alto, California, with a regional office in San Francisco. The firm invests in deep technology startups across four stated verticals: autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence applications, robotics, and biotech. Its portfolio comprises approximately 25-30 companies, including Apprentice.io (AI-powered pharma manufacturing), MemryX (edge AI accelerator chips), Persephone Biosciences (synthetic biology platform), Alcatraz AI (facial authentication), Phase Genomics (Hi-C metagenomics), Smart Radar System (4D imaging radar, IPO'd on KOSDAQ in 2023), Point One Navigation (RTK precision positioning), Mythic Therapeutics (ADC platform), and metaMe Health (FDA-cleared digital therapeutics). Hemi positions itself as the 'complementary half' to founders — providing not just capital but operational partnership, global network access, and introductions to co-investors including SVB, Samsung, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, NVIDIA, and Google.

Hemi's business model is the standard venture capital structure: it raises capital from limited partners into one or more funds, charges management fees (industry-typical 2% of committed capital annually), and earns carried interest (typically 20% of portfolio profits above a hurdle) on liquidity events. The firm has realized seven exits to date — six acquisitions (Epinomics, Nebula Genomics, Cypre, Melo, Sense Photonics, Scotty Labs) and one IPO (Smart Radar System on KOSDAQ in August 2023). Portfolio companies have collectively raised hundreds of millions in follow-on funding, with headline rounds including Apprentice.io's $207M cumulative raise, Point One Navigation's $35M Series C, MemryX's $44M Series B, and Alcatraz AI's $50M Series B.

The firm maintains a lean operating footprint of 1-10 employees led by Managing Partner Amy Gu (named to Silicon Valley Business Journal's 40 Under 40 in 2018) and Principal Justin Li. Distribution is driven by direct founder outreach, warm introductions from the existing portfolio, and a recurring events calendar — Hemi Academy workshops, vertical-specific Demo Days (AI, Autonomous, Bio), and an Annual Summit — supplemented by speaking presence at CES, BIO International Convention, JPM Healthcare Conference, Automated Vehicle Symposium, and Mobility Innovators Forum.

Name

Hemi Ventures

Legal name

Hemi Ventures

Website

https://hemi.vc

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Hemi Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2016, based in Palo Alto, investing in deep tech startups across autonomous vehicles, AI applications, robotics, and biotech. The firm backs ~25-30 founders with capital and operational partnership, and has realized seven portfolio exits including one KOSDAQ IPO.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital

akta.pro primary industry

Venture Studios / Company Builders (FSANAAAH)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• Early stage startups
• Deep tech investment
• Autonomous vehicles funding
• Biotech venture funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Palo Alto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Venture Capital Returns (Management Fees + Carried Interest): Hemi Ventures generates returns through management fees (typically 2% of committed capital per annum) and carried interest (typically 20% of portfolio profits above the hurdle rate) on its venture funds. Returns are realized upon liquidity events — acquisitions, IPOs, or secondary sales of portfolio companies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Hemi Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in startups focused on autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence applications, robotics, and biotech. The firm provides capital investment along with strategic partnership, global network access, operational guidance, and portfolio community support to founders.

Product overview

Hemi Ventures is a venture capital firm investing in early-stage startups across autonomous vehicles, AI applications, robotics, and biotech. Their portfolio includes approximately 30 companies spanning mobility, health, and enterprise technology sectors. Key portfolio products include Apprentice.io's Tempo Manufacturing Cloud (AI-powered pharma manufacturing platform), MemryX's MX3 edge AI accelerator, Persephone Biosciences' synthetic biology platform, Alcatraz AI's Rock facial authentication system, Phase Genomics' ProxiMeta metagenomics platform, and Smart Radar System's 4D imaging radar. The firm provides capital and strategic partnership to founders building transformative technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hemi Ventures Portfolio
• Hemi Academy Workshops
• Hemi Demo Days and Annual Summit

Quantifiable outcome

• 7 successful exits including 6 acquisitions and 1 IPO (Smart Radar System on KOSDAQ)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• 10x GenomicsminorOthers · 14 August 2023Hemi portfolio company Epinomics was acquired by 10x Genomics. Epinomics decoded the programming of the genome to drive personalized medicine in drug development and clinical applications.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• AIX Ventures: AI-focused early-stage VC with deep tech orientation — comparable to Hemi's AI applications focus within its four-vertical thesis.
• DCVC (Data Collective): Deep tech venture firm focused on AI, robotics, life sciences, and compute infrastructure — direct peer in the deep-tech early-stage segment.
• Khosla Ventures: Early-stage VC firm with concentrated bets across deep tech, AI, biotech, and mobility — closely aligned with Hemi's vertical focus and stage.
• Obvious Ventures: Early-stage VC investing in purpose-driven deep tech including health, mobility, and sustainable tech — overlapping sector mandates with Hemi.
• Founders Fund: Early-stage deep tech VC with investments in autonomy, biotech, and frontier technology — directly comparable in stage and category mix to Hemi Ventures.
• Lux Capital: Early-stage venture capital firm investing in deep tech at the intersection of science and technology — comparable to Hemi's autonomous vehicles, AI, robotics, and biotech focus.
• Playground Global: Deep tech venture firm investing in frontier technologies across autonomy, AI, and advanced engineering — comparable stage and sector overlap with Hemi.

Broad incumbents

• Plug and Play: Global early-stage investor and accelerator with deep tech and mobility verticals — overlaps with Hemi's stage and sector focus, but operates a broader platform model.
• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z): Large multi-stage VC with dedicated bio/health and AI franchises — competes with Hemi for talent and deals across biotech and AI applications, though at vastly greater AUM and stage range.

Regional players

• Toyota Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Toyota investing in autonomous mobility and deep tech — direct overlap with Hemi's AV portfolio (Sense Photonics, Point One, Smart Radar System) though structured as a strategic CVC.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hemi-ventures

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments31 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Hemi Ventures