Uncork Capital


Uncork Capital is a venture capital firm in Palo Alto, California founded by Jeff Clavier. Considered one of the most active established seed funds in Silicon Valley, it has invested in companies such as Postmates, Eventbrite, Fitbit, SendGrid, and Survata.

History

The firm was founded in 2004 by angel investor Jeff Clavier when he transitioned his portfolio into a formal venture firm. Partners include Andy McLoughlin, formerly of Huddle, and Stephanie Palmeri. As of 2014, the firm had invested in over 150 early stage start-ups.
In 2017, the firm changed its name from SoftTech VC to Uncork Capital.

Investments

The firm primarily invests in e-commerce, mobile services, and SaaS ventures. With a focus on seed-stage and Series A funding, the firm generally aims to secure between 7-10% ownership of the companies it invests in.
The firm's first fund raised less than $1 million, while the second fund raised $15 million in 2007, including exits in Milo, Tapulous and Goodrec. In 2012, Fund III oversubscribed at $55 million, and in 2014 they closed their fourth fund at $85 million, bringing their capital under management to $155 million. In 2016, the firm raised $100 million for SoftTechVC V and $50 million for a breakout fund.
Notable investments have included Eventbrite, Fitbit, Postmates, SendGrid, Survata, Gnip, BrightRoll, Vidyard and LiveRamp.