The OpenAI Startup Fund, a venture fund related to — but technically separate from — OpenAI that invests in early-stage, AI-related companies typically in education, law and science, has quietly closed a $15 million round. has done
According to one Filing Along with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, two unidentified investors contributed $15 million in new cash on or around April 19. The paperwork was filed on April 25, and lists Ian Hathaway as the manager and sole partner of the OpenAI startup fund.
The capital was transferred to a legal entity called a special purpose vehicle, or SPV, affiliated with OpenAI Startup Fund: OpenAI Startup Fund SPV II, LP
SPVs allow multiple investors to pool their resources and invest in one company or fund. In the VC sector, they are sometimes used to invest in startups that don’t fit the fund’s strategy or that fall outside the fund’s terms. SPVs can also be marketed to a wider range of non-institutional investors.
This is the second such time that an OpenAI startup fund has raised capital through an SPV – a first due to this happenings for a $10 million installment in February.
OpenAI Startup Fund, whose portfolio companies include legal tech startup Harvey, Ambience Healthcare and humanoid robotics firm FigureAI, came under scrutiny last year after it was revealed that OpenAI KCEO Sam Altman had long legally controlled the fund. Marketed like a standard corporate venture arm, Altman raised capital for the OpenAI Startup Fund from external limited partners, including Microsoft (a close OpenAI partner and investor) and had final say in the fund’s investments.
Neither OpenAI nor Altman had — or has — a financial interest in the OpenAI Startup Fund. But critics nonetheless argued that Altman’s ownership amounted to a conflict of interest. OpenAI claimed that the general partner structure was meant to be “temporary”.
In April, Altman transferred formal control of the OpenAI startup fund to Hathaway, previously an investor with VC firm Haystack, who has played a key role in managing the startup fund since 2021.
As of last year, the OpenAI Startup Fund — whose projects include an incubator program called Converge — had $175 million in commitments and $325 million in total assets.. It is backed by more than a dozen startups, including Descript, a collaborative multimedia editing platform that was valued at $553 million last year. language learning app Speak; AI-powered note-taking app Meme; and the IDE platform Anysphere.
OpenAI had not responded to TechCrunch’s request for comment by the time of publication. We’ll update this post if we hear back.
Credit : techcrunch.com
