Industry 4.0

Systems of Intelligence Definition and Thesis Over the past 36 months, it’s been clear that opportunities innovating around manufacturing have percolated to the top.  Here we explain why we’re excited about the future of Industrial Technologies, how we look at this world, what we look for in Founders building the next generation of solutions, and … Read more

Honored to Continue Our Support for the Hansoo Lee Fellowship

We would like to congratulate Leon Rodriguez of NecesitoDoc for being selected for the Hansoo Lee Fellowship. The Fellowship is an opportunity for Berkeley-Haas MBA students to pursue their passion similarly to our friend Hansoo Lee and we are so honored to partner with Leon to help improve people’s lives. Four years ago, Bee Partners lost an … Read more

Our Investment in RBC Signals and the NewSpace Stack

At Bee Partners, we consistently favor experienced Founders with deep market insights, just as much as we consider the core business opportunity or technological defensibility.  Our decision to invest in RBC Signals was motivated by the depth of knowledge of Co-Founders Christopher Richins, Olga Gershenzon, and Rani Hellerman. This global, multi-dimensional team is well respected in the … Read more

Welcome to the Bee Team, Tim Smith!

We are thrilled to announce that Tim Smith has joined us here at Bee Partners! We have known Tim for years through our mutual connection into UC Berkeley’s SkyDeck accelerator program, and we’ve been impressed with the quality of advisory services that he’s provided to earliest-stage teams. With an experience set packed with founder war stories, and a … Read more

Congratulations to Identify3D on Closing a Multi-Million Dollar Seed Round

In a strong showing of grit, a quality we strive for in our Bee Founder teams, Co-Founders Stephan Thomas and Joe Inkenbrandt of Identify3D have closed a multi-million investment round led by our friends at SoftTech VC.  Identify3D provides design protection, quality assurance, and data logistics for digital manufacturing computer-based 3D visualization, analytics and collaboration tools.  The capital will … Read more

Our Investments in Market Networks and a Congrats to Knowde

Market Networks blog featured image: laboratory samples

We’re thrilled to announce our investment in Knowde, a market network for chemicals and ingredients. By enabling chemists and other researchers to intelligently search in the course of new product development, Knowde reinvents the discovery process and marketplace experience for both chemical producers and consumers. We led the round, with participation from Refactor Capital, 8VC, FJ … Read more

The NewSpace Stack

It’s Still Rocket Science … Introduction The NewSpace value chain has never been as exciting as it appears today.  New entrants (e.g., SpaceX, RocketLabs, and Virgin Galactic) have democratized access to low Earth (LEO) and geosynchronous Earth orbits (GEO), thereby disrupting the near monopoly that federally subsidized incumbents have enjoyed for decades.  Competition yields new … Read more

The Growth in Enabling Drone Technologies & How to Approach Drone Investments with Caution

PREFACE The growth in drone technology to serve as an enabling tool has attracted the attention of many investors; currently the industry is valued at $127 billion. As the space becomes increasingly crowded, it is important to identify optimal investing strategies. In the following white paper, as well as in our recent TechCrunch publication, we at … Read more

Embroker Launches First Digital Brokerage for Business Insurance

We are honored to announce the launch of our portfolio company Embroker’s insurance platform technology. The insurance industry has failed to conform to the ever-evolving modern world. Embroker has recognized the opportunity for innovation in the currently inefficient insurance landscape. Today, Embroker launches its free platform that allows businesses to effectively manage risk. The company has partnered … Read more

What Founders Should Expect from preSeed Investors

In May, we posted about the various characteristics and actions we expect from Founders at the preSeed stage. We described the size of the raise needed ($250-750K) to attract talent, explore a market insight, approach product/market fit and gain conviction regarding the company’s direction. We encourage anyone wishing to meet up with us to read that post … Read more