San Francisco-based Entrepreneurs First has raised $200 million in fresh capital from a group of technology founders, investors, and institutional backers, including John and Patrick Collison, Eric Schmidt, Claire Hughes Johnson, Charlie Songhurst, Sara Clemens, Danny Rimer, Matt Cohler, and Greylock.
“We have raised this capital to double down on what we do best: identifying extraordinary individuals early and supporting them build outlier companies from scratch,” stated Alice Bentinck, co-founder and CEO of Entrepreneurs First.
“Once we have identified the talent, our role is to create the environments, peer groups and standards that push exceptional people to operate at the edge of their capabilities,” added Matt Clifford, co-founder and Chairman of Entrepreneurs First.
Portfolio worth $16 billion
The latest raise comes as Entrepreneurs First declares its portfolio is now worth more than $16 billion, up from $3 billion in 2021.
The firm recruits technical and entrepreneurial talent from universities and startup ecosystems across the US, Europe, and India, then brings selected participants into its company-building programmes.
Informally known as the “CAA for startups,” Entrepreneurs First backs individuals before they have a team or an idea, and then supports them build startups from scratch.
EF recruits top technical and entrepreneurial talent all over the world, often straight out of university, and guides them through finding a co-founder, developing an idea, and raising their first round of funding.
The Bay Area focus becomes a hugeger
Entrepreneurs First was founded in 2011 by Alice Bentinck and Matt Clifford and started investing in 2015.
All companies that receive their pre-seed funding now relocate to the Bay Area for the fundraising and scaling phase. The shift launched in 2024, when the firm started shifting newly backed startups to San Francisco ahead of their seed rounds.
According to the company, that modify has led to rapider fundraising and higher valuations. It stated the average time to raise has been cut in half, while valuations have doubled.
Recent Bay Area cohorts have reportedly raised as much as $15 million in seed funding within two weeks of completing the programme.
Entrepreneurs First’s portfolio includes companies such as Cleo, Aztec, Gensyn, and PolyAI, with later backing from firms including Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, Benchmark, Founders Fund, Index, and Khosla.
The new financing suggests there is still investor support for a model built around identifying founder talent early, before a company formally takes shape.
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