AiS Update: Why We Invest in <1% of the Companies We See 📈 💵

Adventures in Syncopation supports entrepreneurs with performing arts experience in two ways: (1) by building community and championing performer-entrepreneurs and (2) through investment in select performer-founded companies via our syndicate.

Over the past year, we have looked at 100s of companies while applying our investment thesis and criteria. Many companies were referred by AiS community members and potential co-investors. We met others through our engagement with accelerators such as Techstars, early stage venture funds, universities, and at CES. Some founders reached out directly to us.

As part of the AiS community, we want to be sure you know about our investment criteria and process.

We’re unique in that we invest in companies that have at least one founder with experience in the performing arts because we believe that the skills necessary for entrepreneurship, such as creativity, resilience, improvisation, collaboration, self-motivation, risk tolerance and discipline, are essential in the performing arts, whether music, dance or drama. 

Once we’ve found a performer-founded company, we assess whether the company meets additional investment criteria:

• Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
  

• Clear path to product/market fit, if not already achieved

• Demonstrated traction

• Minimum $1 billion serviceable market 

• Strong founding team

We do not invest only in a particular industry because we believe that there are strong returns to be had in different industries. For example, two recent investments were Type Five which builds customizable backyard homes (aka ADUs), and Knowtex which uses artificial intelligence (AI) to automate clinical workflows straight from medical conversations.

In our diligence, we not only consider information provided by the company, we speak to third parties such as customers and current investors, and do our own research about the company and the industry. We ask lots of questions and follow up on the answers we receive. In every aspect, we leverage our team’s 80+ years of experience as executives, entrepreneurs, operators, investors and subject matter experts in technology, product, finance, law and public affairs. Fewer than 1% of companies we see make it through this rigorous process and are presented to our syndicate for investment.

If you’re an accredited investor, please apply to join the AiS syndicate. There’s no cost to join and no obligation to invest in any particular deal. 

If you know of early stage companies that meet our investment criteria and are raising a pre-seed or seed round of funding, please tell us about them.

(The information contained herein should not be construed as advertising or investment advice, and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any security.)