Berkeley SkyDeck Fund, the official investment partner for top global startup accelerator UC Berkeley SkyDeck, is proud to announce a major milestone today. The $23.5 million fund has completed more than 100 investments in just three years, making it one of the world’s most active seed funds. The SkyDeck Fund is backed by Sequoia Capital, Sierra Ventures, Mayfield Fund, and Canvas Ventures, along with additional venture capital firms, individuals, and large corporations.
The SkyDeck Fund, which was founded in December 2017, invests in every startup that goes through the SkyDeck accelerator program as well as later-stage startups with Berkeley founders. One such later-stage investment is Iota Biosciences, founded by UC Berkeley professors, which was acquired in 2020 by Astellas Pharma. The fund has had remarkable early success; in its first two full years of operation, 41 out of 75 companies coming out of the SkyDeck accelerator have successfully raised funding from institutional venture investors.
With more than 40 investments per year, the fund supports a wide range of startups including biotech and hardware to consumer, enterprise, and more. The fund’s investments include a global reach of companies from 25 countries. In addition to the United States, the startups are based in Asia, Europe, South America, Canada, the Middle East, and Australia.
“We are proud to support the fantastic entrepreneurial activity and leadership we have the privilege to witness through the Berkeley SkyDeck accelerator,” said Chon Tang, the Fund’s managing partner. “There’s no other fund like ours. Not only do we invest in the future of innovative startups from every corner of the globe, but we also share half of the management’s profits with UC Berkeley to help continue the university’s mission of delivering excellence in education. Together, the university and the SkyDeck program are working to change the world.”
