Touring Capital

Curious to know more about our general partner, Priya Saiprasad? Did you know her path into startups and VC started during the early days at Square? By the time she left, they had IPO’d! 🚀 Her episode on The Desi VC Podcast with host Akash Bhat is one you don't want to miss! Whether you're a seasoned investor or simply curious about the dynamics of VC, check out her episode as they explore: 🔍 Overcoming insecurities as an investor and the lessons learned along the way 🌱 How personal experiences influence investment decisions 🏆 The role of competition and perception in venture capital https://lnkd.in/et9twrnj

At Touring Capital, our collaborative decision-making process is the cornerstone of our success. Our founding General Partners — Nagraj Kashyap, Priya Saiprasad, and Samir Kumar — bring distinct strengths and experiences to the table, creating a robust and dynamic team. We make decisions by embodying 3 core values: 🤝Integrity: Doing the right thing for all constituents, whether that’s our entrepreneurs, LPs, or other VCs on the cap table. 💡Humility: We look for humbleness and a growth mindset in our entrepreneurs—people who want to learn and better themselves rather than think they’ve achieved everything. This means shying away from hubris or ego. 📈 Growth mindset: Resisting the temptation to stick to familiar patterns of thinking. By embracing new opportunities, being open-minded, and consistently learning, we can uncover new dimensions in deals that might be easily overlooked. With these core values as our north star, we continue to partner with visionary founders and transformative companies. If you’re building an AI-enabled software company with similar values, message us! 

As a firm, Touring Capital is exclusively focused on investing in AI-enabled software. When Nagraj Kashyap, Priya Saiprasad, and Samir Kumar started the firm in 2023, the team wanted to use their experience investing in the first and second waves of software to inform their strategy for investing in the new third wave of software that’s focused on advancements in AI. At the same time as this third wave, the new-age software buyer in the enterprise is fundamentally changing.  By 2025, almost 80% of enterprises will consist of Millennials and Gen Z team members. These younger generations are in charge of purchasing software, and their expectations are fundamentally different from previous generations. With that culmination, the third wave of software presents a massive opportunity. As a firm, we wanted to take what we’ve done well in the past and double down on this new wave of AI-enabled software. A large part of our investment portfolio will be focused on North America. But outside that, we also want to expand our horizons to other geos where we’ve seen success. This includes Australia, India, and some parts of Europe. That is why we’re called Touring Capital after all — we will aim ‘tour the world’ to find the best and brightest entrepreneurs. To learn more about the team at Touring Capital, visit our website https://lnkd.in/ec8HGEC9 

Which #AI startups are VCs really looking for? 👀 Fortune recently polled 9 VCs, including Touring’s Nagraj Kashyap, on which AI startup ideas they really want to hear. For Nagraj, he’s keeping an eye on open-source development interfaces for AI development — think an open-source Nvidia CUDA alternative. Check out the full list from Fortune to get an inside look into what VCs are most excited about in AI, linked in the comments below!

When you meet the right founder building the right company that fits an investment thesis you’ve been developing for years — magic happens. ✨ Touring Capital co-founder and General Partner Priya Saiprasad recently spoke to IT Brew and shared the genesis story behind Touring’s investment in SafeBase and where she believes AI in software is headed next. Read more: https://lnkd.in/e-84myjA

Software that works with you, for you, starts with the companies that create them. Now more than ever, AI SaaS companies are equipped to present new solutions for industry problems. What does Touring look for from these founders? Check out Samir Kumar’s interview with Oakley Capital Investments.

We believe in investing in companies and founders who are creating purpose-built software powered by #AI. Our roadmap is clearer than ever. With our co-founders, Priya Saiprasad, Nagraj Kashyap and Samir Kumar, each contributing their unique perspectives, we are eager to continue investing in more opportunities and working with software leaders who are addressing industry needs with AI. Thank you to Venture Capital Journal for highlighting Touring Capital and how we work! https://lnkd.in/egCAbRp6

👏 Brilliant insights, Al Yang, and powerful inside-baseball advice for founders at any stage who are considering raising their next round! At Touring, we believe in stepping outside of the traditional investor role when working with our founders so that we all succeed together. We aim to be their true partners. This means opening doors, tapping into our network for introductions and partnership opportunities, and sharing our experience as global operators. When our founders and their companies win, we win. We’re proud to partner with you and the whole team at SafeBase!

Congratulations to founders Max Welling and Alyn Chad Edwards and the entire team at CuspAI, as they announce a $30m Seed funding round led by Hoxton Ventures, with participation from Basis Set and Lightspeed Venture Partners, and us at Touring Capital! CuspAI leverages cutting-edge generative AI, deep learning, and molecular simulation to streamline and accelerate productivity in the material design process. Their platform functions like a search engine for materials, allowing users to request specific properties for new materials on demand. Touring Capital General Partner Samir Kumar, who drove our investment in CuspAI shared, “One of the things I admire about Max and his team is that they connect profound concepts from one field to another, taking ideas from fundamental and theoretical physics and applying those implications to how we think about the behavior of AI models of neural networks and deep learning. You get novel ideas and inspirations from experiences, understanding, and expertise in other areas. And I think that's really, really exciting.” Read more about CuspAI and why Touring chose to invest in this innovative technology on our blog https://lnkd.in/eW6DF7Pb

Generative AI is at the forefront of tech innovation, but how do we separate genuine opportunities from fleeting hype? In his recent byline in VentureBeat, Touring Capital co-founder Samir Kumar explores AI's transition over the last year and shares the key factors that determine a startup's potential, from data strategy to regulatory readiness. Don't miss out on these essential insights https://lnkd.in/eUcG6nyj