About iventure.illinois.edu
iventure.illinois.edu, an accelerator and incubator program founded in 2015, is based in Champaign, United States. With a presence in 2 countries, it has supported around 19 startups in sectors like High Tech, EdTech. As of Jul 2026, iventure.illinois.edu has witnessed 2 portfolio exits. Most notable companies in
its portfolio include QuillBot, PSYONIC and Trala. The program is backed by a team of 4 people who primarily support Seed startups based in United States. Its latest investment was a $75K Grant (prize money) round in DeepWalk on Apr 12, 2019.
Key Metrics
Founded Year
2015
Location
Champaign, United States
Stages of Investment
Seed & Grant (prize money)
Locations of Investment
iventure.illinois.edu's List of Top Investments
iventure.illinois.edu has a portfolio of 19 companies. Their most notable investments are in Red Clover Reader and Yummy Future.Their portfolio spans across United States and India. They have invested in High Tech, EdTech, HealthTech and 12 other sectors, across stages such as Seed, Grant (prize money) stages. Here is the list of top investments by iventure.illinois.edu:
1. QuillBot
QuillBot is the provider of an AI-based paraphrasing tool. Its features include multiple writing modes such as creative, suggestive, fluent, concise and standard, simultaneous processing of several sentences, add-ins and extensions for Google Chrome and Docs, as well as Microsoft.
Key facts about QuillBot
- Founded Year: 2017
- Location: Chicago (United States)
- Stage: Acquired
- Total Funding till date: $4.28M
- Employee Count: 158 as on Jan 31, 2025
- Investors: Sierra Ventures, GSV Ventures and 2 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Seed, Apr 21, 2020, $*****
- Highlight: Acquired
2. PSYONIC
Developer of bionic limbs for people with amputations. Its product offering is called Ability Hand which is a bionic hand with a multi-articulated prosthesis and multi-touch feedback.
Key facts about PSYONIC
- Founded Year: 2015
- Location: Champaign (United States)
- Annual Revenue: $1M - $10M as on Dec 31, 2023
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Seed
- Total Funding till date: $2.19M
- Employee Count: 39 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Illinois Ventures, America’s Seed Fund and 5 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Angel, Feb 26, 2024, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
3. Trala
App-based platform providing violin-related learning solutions. It offers tutorial videos and daily lessons for the students. It also allows them to chat with the instructor and enables the instructors to provide instant feedback to the students. It also provides a practice journal. Available on both Android and iOS devices.
Key facts about Trala
- Founded Year: 2016
- Location: Chicago (United States)
- Stage: Series A
- Total Funding till date: $19.5M
- Employee Count: 16 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Webb Investment Network, Next Play Ventures and 14 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series A, May 23, 2023, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
4. DeepWalk
LiDAR-based scanning software to automate the inspection of sidewalk systems. The platform offers software that uses LiDAR systems to automatically scan and identify non-compliant areas.
Key facts about DeepWalk
- Founded Year: 2018
- Location: Chicago (United States)
- Stage: Seed
- Total Funding till date: $1.8M
- Employee Count: 21 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: CEAS Investments, Illinois Ventures and 1 Other
- Latest Funding Round: Seed, May 01, 2023, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
5. Mesh++
Mesh++ provides solar powered mesh networking nodes that do not require cabling or wiring. Company collaborated with Hax Accelerator to prototype and develops the solar powered nodes. Powering the nodes with solar energy eliminates the need for infrastructure when implementing wireless communication networks. These nodes are used in remote areas enabling users to save time and money on installation and maintenance of their networks.
Key facts about Mesh++
- Founded Year: 2017
- Location: Chicago (United States)
- Stage: Seed
- Total Funding till date: $6.64M
- Employee Count: 8 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Lateral Frontiers, Lateral Capital and 12 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Seed, Jun 21, 2021, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
iventure.illinois.edu's Year-on-Year Investment Trends
iventure.illinois.edu has invested in 19 companies over the last 11 years, with an average of 0 new investment annually in the last 10 years. Its most recent first time investment was in DeepWalk and most recent follow-on round was in Trala.Year | No. of Investments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | Follow-on | Total | |
2026 (YTD) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2025 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2024 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2023 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2022 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2019 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2018 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2017 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
iventure.illinois.edu's Investments by Stage
iventure.illinois.edu has made 4 investments in Seed stage with an average round size of $10K and 1 investment in Grant (prize money) stage with an average round size of $75K.Stage of entry | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Seed | 4 |
Grant (prize money) | 1 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
iventure.illinois.edu's Investments by Sector
iventure.illinois.edu has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the High Tech, Consumer, Enterprise Applications, Life Sciences and 3D Printing - Industry Applications. Notably, it has invested in 14 Tech companies, 10 Consumer (B2C) companies, 8 Software companies and at least 6 companies focusing on Enterprise (B2B).Sector | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
High Tech | 3 |
Consumer | 2 |
Enterprise Applications | 2 |
Life Sciences | 2 |
3D Printing - Industry Applications | 1 |
Others | 6 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
iventure.illinois.edu's Investments by Geography
iventure.illinois.edu has made most investments in United States (5).iventure.illinois.edu's recent investments
iventure.illinois.edu has not made any investment in 2026 so far.Here are the most recent investments by iventure.illinois.edu:
Filter this listDate | Company | Location | Round Details | Round Amount | Co-Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apr 12, 2019 | United States | Grant (prize money) | 2861 | - | |
Jul 18, 2018 | United States | Seed | 8546 | - | |
2017 | United States | Seed | 2277 | - | |
Mar 16, 2016 | United States | Seed | 1677 | - | |
2015 | United States | Seed | 7299 | - |
Acquired companies in iventure.illinois.edu's Portfolio
2 companies from iventure.illinois.edu's portfolio have been acquired. The most recent acquisition was QuillBot in Aug 2021 by Course Hero for $*****.Here are iventure.illinois.edu's portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:
Company | Acquisition Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Aug 19, 2021 | 2017 | Seed | 9174 | |
Aug 10, 2020 | - | - | 9782 |
Team profile of iventure.illinois.edu
iventure.illinois.edu has a team of 4 members including 3 Partners located in United States. iventure.illinois.edu's team does not sit on the board of any company as of now.Here is a list of all team members in iventure.illinois.edu:
Name | Designation | Location | Board Memberships | Contact Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Partner | Chicago | - | - | |
Partner | St Charles | - | - | |
Partner | Champaign | - | - |
Co-investors of iventure.illinois.edu
Over the past 11 years, 13 investors have co-invested in iventure.illinois.edu's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.
- Invested after iventure.illinois.edu: A total of 13 investors have invested in iventure.illinois.edu's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include GSV Ventures (1 company) and Sierra Ventures (1 company).
