Tola Capital, specializing in investments in AI-driven enterprise software, has unveiled its latest fund, securing an impressive $230 million in capital commitments for its third fund, marking its largest fundraising achievement to date.
Recent weeks have seen a surge in the establishment of new venture capital funds, with Tola Capital joining the ranks of notable firms such as NXTP, Saviu Ventures, Kinterra Capital, Riverwood Capital, Twelve Below, SEVA, Ballistic Ventures, Founders Fund, and Avra, all successfully raising substantial funds.
Despite challenges faced by most venture capitalists in the past year’s fundraising landscape, Sheila Gulati, co-founder and managing director of Tola Capital, expressed optimism. She highlighted the robust interest in artificial intelligence as a driving force, making it an opportune time to launch a new fund.
Founded in 2010 by Gulati, a former leader of enterprise IT strategy at Microsoft, Tola Capital focuses on the transformative potential of AI. Gulati emphasized the profound impact AI can have on reshaping work processes and highlighted the unprecedented opportunities in investing early in this paradigm shift.
Tola Capital, which has raised a total of $688 million to date, concentrates on seed and early-stage investments in startups revolutionizing the enterprise software industry through AI integration. The firm targets the “enterprise scaffolding” layer of AI, including responsible AI, AI security, and app layer AI.
Gulati acknowledged the recent turmoil at OpenAI, a significant player in the AI field. Many of Tola Capital’s portfolio companies are built on OpenAI’s GPT, and the firm actively collaborated with them on contingency plans during the upheaval. Gulati praised the resolution of OpenAI’s governance model, foreseeing positive implications for the entire industry.
Tola Capital III plans to invest in 25 to 30 global companies, with average check sizes ranging from $1 million to $4 million for seed-stage ventures and $5 million to $15 million for Series A and B. Notable investments include Arcus, ESG Flo, FeatureByte, Fetcher, Holistic AI, Langsafe, Lumeus, and Zilla.
Gulati outlined the firm’s criteria for startup investments, emphasizing the importance of genuine innovation, a strong team, a sizable addressable market, and a culture conducive to building a talent-attracting company. Tola Capital seeks startups with ambitious visions and a willingness to scale into multibillion-dollar enterprises, aiming to be a strategic partner on their transformative journey.
