What Seligman Ventures does

Seligman Ventures is the venture capital arm of Seligman Investments, a Silicon Valley–based technology-focused investment firm that operates within Columbia Threadneedle Investments' alternatives business. Founded in November 2025 and publicly launched in February 2026, the firm manages a $500 million fund targeting early-stage to pre-IPO companies in AI and cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and modern data-center hardware. The venture is led by Managing Partners Umesh Padval, Ashish Kakran, and Eddie Ackerman, with Umesh Padval taking board seats at portfolio companies including EPIC Microsystems and Cognichip. The firm is headquartered in Silicon Valley and is incorporated in the United States as a subsidiary of Seligman Investments.

The investment thesis is built on an integrated model that connects private investing with the parent's public-market technology research. Seligman Investments manages approximately $30 billion in assets under management, primarily in public technology equities, giving the venture arm access to research, market intelligence, institutional relationships, and follow-on capital that few independent VC firms can replicate. The strategy targets earlier-stage rounds than typical crossover investors, aiming to capture ownership before later-stage rounds inflate valuations. The fund returns capital to LPs through portfolio exits via acquisitions, IPOs, or secondary transactions, generating economics through standard management fees (approximately 2% of committed capital) and carried interest (approximately 20% above the hurdle rate).

Since formation, Seligman Ventures has deployed capital across at least five companies: Upscale AI ($190 million Series A-1 extension at a $2 billion valuation), Exaforce ($125 million Series B at a $725 million valuation), Cognichip ($60 million Series A, led), EPIC Microsystems ($21 million Series A, led), and Modiqo ($3 million pre-seed, co-led). Portfolio activity spans AI networking silicon, AI-native security operations, physics-informed chip design, hybrid switched-capacitor power architecture for AI data centers, and deterministic AI agent workflow infrastructure—indicating deliberate ecosystem construction across the AI infrastructure stack rather than a single-vertical thesis.

Name

Seligman Ventures

Legal name

Seligman Ventures

Website

https://seligman.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Seligman Ventures is a $500 million venture capital fund launched in 2025 as the venture arm of Seligman Investments, investing from early-stage through pre-IPO in AI infrastructure, cybersecurity, and data-center hardware companies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• Early-stage technology investments
• AI infrastructure funding
• Cybersecurity venture capital
• Data center hardware investments

Headquarters

HQ city

Greenwich

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Venture Capital Fund Management: Seligman Ventures generates returns through traditional venture capital economics, including management fees (typically 2% of committed capital) and carried interest (typically 20% of profits above the hurdle rate). The fund returns capital to Limited Partners through exits from portfolio companies via acquisitions, IPOs, or secondary transactions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Core offering

Seligman Ventures is a $500 million venture capital fund that invests in early-stage to pre-IPO technology companies across AI and cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and modern data-center hardware. The fund deploys equity capital through Series A, Series B, and pre-seed rounds into portfolio companies developing AI networking, AI-native cybersecurity platforms, AI-driven chip design, and AI data-center power delivery technologies. Returns are generated through traditional venture capital economics, including management fees on committed capital and carried interest on exits via acquisitions, IPOs, or secondary transactions.

Product overview

Seligman Ventures is a venture capital arm of Seligman Investments focused on early-stage to pre-IPO investments in AI and cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and modern data-center hardware. It is not a product company and does not offer products or services to customers. The firm manages a $500 million fund and has made investments in portfolio companies including Upscale AI, Modiqo, Exaforce, Cognichip, and EPIC Microsystems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Seligman Ventures Fund

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bessemer Venture Partners: Multi-stage venture firm with strong early-stage practice in cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and AI. Highly comparable in stage preference (Series A lead), sector focus, and lead-investor posture.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners: Early-to-growth-stage venture firm with a dedicated enterprise and infrastructure practice, including significant AI and data-center investment activity. Comparable in stage, check size, and thematic focus to Seligman Ventures.
• Battery Ventures: Early-to-growth-stage venture firm investing across enterprise infrastructure, AI, and semiconductors — a comparable stage and sector mandate to Seligman Ventures, with overlapping thesis around AI infrastructure and data-center hardware.
• Mayfield Fund: Early-stage enterprise and AI infrastructure venture firm. Directly co-invested alongside Seligman Ventures in Exaforce's $125M Series B, making it a literal co-investor on one of Seligman's flagship AI cybersecurity bets.
• Khosla Ventures: Long-established early-stage venture firm with deep AI and infrastructure investing focus. Co-invested with Seligman Ventures in Exaforce's Series B, sharing deal flow and stage focus on enterprise AI and cybersecurity.
• Greylock Partners: Early-stage venture firm focused on enterprise AI, infrastructure, and cybersecurity — closely aligned with Seligman's stage preference and thematic mandate, and a likely competitor on Series A rounds.

Broad incumbents

• Sequoia Capital: Premier venture firm with extensive AI, cloud infrastructure, and cybersecurity portfolios. Larger and longer-tenured than Seligman, but competes head-to-head on many AI infrastructure deals.
• Insight Partners: Multi-stage venture and growth firm with massive scale in enterprise software and AI infrastructure. Provides comparable capital deployment capability, though skews toward growth-stage rounds.
• General Catalyst: Large multi-stage venture firm with broad enterprise and AI exposure. Operates a wider portfolio across consumer and fintech, but has overlapping bets in AI infrastructure, cybersecurity, and cloud.
• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z): Major multi-stage venture firm with a dedicated $7B+ AI fund and significant infrastructure thesis. Operates broader than Seligman but is a frequent co-investor and competitor on AI infrastructure rounds.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments12 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Seligman Ventures