Draper Triangle Ventures is expanding its investment strategy to including Michigan and the Pittsburgh-based VC has its eyes set squarely on downtown Detroit.
The venture capital firm specializes in making early stage investments in tech startups, think young software and IT companies. It sees a number of its future targets coming from the emerging technology hub in downtown Detroit, specifically the
M@dison Block, and plans to open an office there to be close to the action.
"There are a dozen companies, maybe more, that are very interesting and worth taking a look at," says Jonathan Murray, managing director of
Draper Triangle Ventures.
Draper Triangle Ventures plans to open two small satellite offices in Michigan, one in downtown Detroit and the other in Ann Arbor. Murray will serve as the man on the ground in Michigan manning those two offices. He says Draper Triangle Ventures focused on those two areas because they both target rich environments for technology investors.
"Technology deal flow tends to originate in large metropolitan areas," Murray says.
Draper Triangle Ventures is raising a $100 million investment fund, of which it has commitments for $75 million. The firm plans to make 1-2 investments in a startup each year. Those investments are expected to be in the $1 million range. The firm is also deep into doing due diligence into one local startup and Murray is optimistic that an investment announcement could be made within the next few months.
Source: Jonathan Murray, managing director of Draper Triangle Ventures
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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