Backing Founders Who Build Before the Market Is Ready

Backing Founders Who Build Before the Market Is Ready

One of the things I enjoy most about early-stage investing is that every week I get to meet founders who see the world a little differently.

The best founders rarely start by asking, "What's everyone else building?" Instead, they notice a shift that's just beginning to happen, form a strong conviction about where it's headed, and start building long before it's obvious to everyone else.

This week, we had the opportunity to back three companies that, while operating in completely different industries, all share that mindset.

AuraCode is building AI-powered coding agents that help engineering teams develop software faster and more effectively. AI is changing the way software gets built, but we're still in the early innings. The teams creating the tools developers rely on over the next decade are being built today.

GlycoX is taking on one of healthcare's biggest challenges with a new approach to metabolic disease. Rather than focusing on a single biological pathway, they're developing a platform designed to address the complexity of these diseases more holistically. It's a difficult problem—but those are often the opportunities worth pursuing.

Magic is rethinking how people interact with technology altogether. Instead of another device demanding more screen time, they're building an AI-powered smart ring that makes interacting with AI feel ambient through voice, touch, and gestures. As AI becomes part of everyday life, the interface matters just as much as the intelligence behind it.

At first glance, there isn't an obvious connection between enterprise software, biotech, and wearable hardware.

But that's never really been how we think about investing.

We look for people who have a unique perspective, a deep understanding of the problem they're solving, and the ability to execute against a vision that may take years for the rest of the market to fully appreciate.

The companies we back don't all fit into the same category, but they tend to share a few characteristics. They're solving problems that matter. They're building products that are hard to replicate. And they're creating businesses around long-term shifts rather than short-term trends.

Of course, early-stage investing comes with uncertainty. Most companies are still years away from reaching their full potential. That's part of what makes this stage so exciting. You're not investing in polished outcomes. You're investing in people, conviction, and the willingness to tackle problems that others overlook.

These three companies are at different points in their journeys, and each has its own challenges ahead. But after spending time with the founders, we came away with the same feeling: they're building with purpose, they understand their markets deeply, and they're creating something they genuinely believe should exist.

We're excited to partner with the teams at AuraCode, GlycoX, and Magic, and we're looking forward to supporting them as they continue building.

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