About LAGO
LAGO is a venture capital firm located in Chicago, United States. As of Mar 2026, LAGO is an active investor, having invested in 16 companies, with 2 new investments in the last 12 months. It primarily invests in Series A round in United States based startups. Its investments are spread across a wide range of sectors from Enterprise Applications to FinTech and Consumer. Most recently it participated in the $***** Seed round of Stake Overall, LAGO portfolio has seen 1 unicorn and 1 acquisition, namely Clara and ExoTerra. A lot of funds co-invest with LAGO, with names like Gaingels sharing a substantial percentage of its portfolio. LAGO has team of 16 people including 5 partners.Key Metrics
Team Members
Portfolio Sectors
Portfolio Locations
Rounds of Entry
Series A, Seed & 2 more
Portfolio Acquisitions
Portfolio Unicorns
LAGO's List of Top Investments
LAGO has a portfolio of 16 companies, one of which is a Unicorn. Their most notable investments are in Stio and Stake.Their portfolio spans across United States, Brazil, Canada and 3 more locations. They have invested in Enterprise Applications, FinTech, Consumer and 14 other sectors, across stages such as Series A, Seed and 2 more. Here is the list of top investments by LAGO:
1. Clara
Provider of corporate spend management software and business credit cards. This platform centralizes financial operations by offering automated expense reporting, approval workflows, and virtual or physical payment cards. It facilitates vendor payments, employee reimbursements, and travel expense tracking. The system integrates with existing accounting software to synchronize transaction data and receipts. Automated validation tools monitor spending against defined limits and policies to maintain financial oversight.
Key facts about Clara
- Founded Year: 2020
- Location: Sao Paulo (Brazil)
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series B
- Total Funding till date: $204M
- Employee Count: 718 as on Aug 31, 2026
- Investors: Goldman Sachs, Hone Capital and 42 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Conventional Debt, Nov 25, 2025, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
2. Stake
Operator of a digital platform for fractional real estate investment. This service enables individuals to purchase shares in residential and commercial properties. The platform facilitates the acquisition of ownership interests in assets, allowing for the distribution of rental income and capital appreciation to participants. Users manage their holdings and liquidity through an online interface.
Key facts about Stake
- Founded Year: 2020
- Location: Dubai (United Arab Emirates)
- Stage: Series B
- Total Funding till date: $65M
- Employee Count: 140 as on Aug 31, 2026
- Investors: Mubadala, Thrive Capital and 22 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Conventional Debt, Mar 11, 2026, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
3. Aura Frame
Provider of smart digital frames. It automatically detects and displays the best photos from the user's phone. Also, it creates photo collections based on the persons in the photos. The photos added in the frame get auto-updated with the latest pictures. Users can also share photos with others' frames. The application is available for download only on App Store.
Key facts about Aura Frame
- Founded Year: 2012
- Location: New York City (United States)
- Stage: Series B
- Total Funding till date: $46.9M
- Employee Count: 130 as on Aug 31, 2026
- Investors: Spark Capital, DCVC and 3 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series B, Nov 22, 2022, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
4. WIN Reality
Developer of VR-based softball and baseball training solutions. It offers virtual reality software for baseball and softball training. Its platform features a dashboard with key performance insights and is compatible with Oculus devices. It is available for download from the Oculus App Lab.
Key facts about WIN Reality
- Founded Year: 2018
- Location: Austin (United States)
- Stage: Series C
- Total Funding till date: $45M
- Employee Count: 51 as on Aug 31, 2026
- Investors: Spectrum Equity and LAGO
- Latest Funding Round: Series C, Jun 01, 2022, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
5. SynergySuite
AI-powered restaurant management software for streamlined operations and increased profitability. This is a comprehensive, module-based platform designed to optimize back-of-house operations for restaurants, pubs, and multi-unit franchises. The software offers a suite of tools including AI ordering and forecasting, inventory management, purchasing, labor and scheduling, reporting and analytics, operations, food safety, cash management, and HR. It provides real-time data, automated insights, and mobile apps to empower teams and improve efficiency across all locations. The platform is translatable and localized for global solutions, helping businesses predict smarter, operate faster, and waste less. It integrates with existing POS, payroll, and HR systems to unify operations and empower teams with a single source of truth. This is a SaaS solution that simplifies complex tasks, ensures compliance, and drives data-driven decisions to grow your business.
Key facts about SynergySuite
- Founded Year: 2011
- Location: Dublin (Ireland)
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series B
- Total Funding till date: $28.6M
- Employee Count: 89 as on Aug 31, 2026
- Investors: Oyster Capital, First Analysis and 16 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series B, Aug 20, 2025, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
LAGO's Year-on-Year Investment Trends
LAGO has invested in 16 companies over the last 5 years, with an average of 3 new investments annually in the last 5 years. In 2025, it made 1 investment, while as of Mar 2026, it has made 2 investments in this year. Its most recent first time investment was in Stake and most recent follow-on round was in SynergySuite.Year | No. of Investments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | Follow-on | Total | |
2026 (YTD) | 2 | 0 | 2 |
2025 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
2024 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2023 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
2022 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
2021 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
LAGO's Investments by Stage
LAGO has made 6 investments in Series A stage with an average round size of $7.51M, 4 investments in Seed stage with an average round size of $3.94M, 4 investments in Series B stage with an average round size of $28.5M and 2 investments in Conventional Debt stage with an average round size of $3.75M.Stage of entry | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Series A | 6 |
Seed | 4 |
Series B | 4 |
Conventional Debt | 2 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
LAGO's Investments by Sector
LAGO has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the Consumer, Enterprise Applications, FinTech, High Tech and Real Estate and Construction Tech. Notably, it has invested in 15 Tech companies, 10 Enterprise (B2B) companies, 8 Consumer (B2C) companies and at least 8 companies focusing on Software.Sector | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Consumer | 5 |
Enterprise Applications | 5 |
FinTech | 3 |
High Tech | 3 |
Real Estate and Construction Tech | 3 |
Others | 19 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
LAGO's Investments by Geography
LAGO has made most investments in United States (11), followed by Brazil where it has made 1 investment.Country | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
United States | 11 |
Brazil | 1 |
Canada | 1 |
Finland | 1 |
Ireland | 1 |
Others | 1 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
LAGO's recent investments
LAGO has made 2 investments in 2026 so far - Stake and Stake.Here are the most recent investments by LAGO:
Filter this listDate | Company | Location | Round Details | Round Amount | Co-Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mar 11, 2026 | United States | Seed | 7912 | [+5] | |
Mar 11, 2026 | United Arab Emirates | Series B | 6649 | [+6] | |
Aug 20, 2025 | Ireland | Conventional Debt | 1548 | - | |
Jun 20, 2024 | United States | Series A | 2833 | - | |
Dec 12, 2023 | United States | Conventional Debt | 8263 | - |
Unicorns in LAGO's Portfolio
LAGO has 1 unicorn in its portfolio - Clara. The most recent unicorn in their portfolio is Clara which became a unicorn in 2021, 1 years before LAGO first invested in it.Here is a list of unicorns in LAGO's portfolio:
Tracxn Score | Company | Short Description | Founded year | Sector | Location | Company Stage | First Investment/ Acquisition Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
71 | Provider of corporate spend management software and business credit cards | 2020 | Sao Paulo | Series B | {jwmzgr |
Acquired companies in LAGO's Portfolio
1 company from LAGO's portfolio has been acquired. The most recent acquisition was ExoTerra in Oct 2025 by Voyager Space for $*****.Here are LAGO's portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:
Company | Acquisition Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Oct 27, 2025 | Jun 20, 2024 | Series A | 1194 |
Team profile of LAGO
LAGO has a team of 16 members including 5 Partners and 5 Principals located in United States. LAGO's team does not sit on the board of any company as of now.Here is a list of top team members in LAGO:
Name | Designation | Location | Board Memberships | Contact Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Partner | Newport Beach | - | ||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | Menlo Park | - | ||
Principal | Chicago | - | ||
Principal | Atlanta | - | ||
Principal | Chicago | - | ||
Principal | United States | - | ||
Principal | Chicago | - | - |
Co-investors of LAGO
Over the past 5 years, 111 investors have co-invested in LAGO's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.
- Invested before LAGO: Techstars, Goldman Sachs and 48 others have invested in rounds before LAGO. There are 2 companies where Techstars has invested before LAGO and 1 company where Goldman Sachs has invested before LAGO.
- Top Co-investors of LAGO: 48 investors entered a company along with LAGO. These include investors like Gaingels (3 companies).
- Invested after LAGO: A total of 13 investors have invested in LAGO's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include Citi Ventures (1 company), BBVA Spark (1 company) and Covalto (1 company).
Recent News related to LAGO
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SynergySuite Raises $12 Million to Accelerate its AI Engine that's Redefining Restaurant Chain Ops
PR Newswire•Aug 20, 2025•LAGO, Oyster Ventures, First Analysis, SynergySuite and 1 other
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ExoTerra raises $8 million to boost propulsion system productionSpaceNews•Jun 20, 2024•ExoTerra, LAGO
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Organigram Invests in U.S. Based Open Book Extracts Representing Inaugural Jupiter InvestmentSurge Battery Metals Inc•Mar 26, 2024•Steady State, Organigram, ATB Capital Markets, Open Book Extracts and 4 others
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LAGO Innovation Fund Provides Growth Capital for Dextall: Transforming Sustainable, Affordable Building SolutionsEIN Presswire•Dec 13, 2023•Dextall, LAGO
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Safely raises $8m to spur growth and European expansionShortTermRentalz•Oct 03, 2023•Safely, Highgate, LAGO
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GGV Leads USD60m Series B+ for Mexico’s ClaraLAVCA•Apr 27, 2023•Notable Capital, Clara, Endeavor, Citi and 9 others
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Aura, the frame and photo startup, raises $26M as app users near 3M and frames sold pass 500KTechCrunch+•Nov 22, 2022•LAGO, Spark Capital, SV Angel, Betaworks and 2 others
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Safely Secures $12 Million to Extend Short-Term Home Rental Insurance LeadershipInsuranceNewsNet•Oct 19, 2022•LAGO, Safely, Highgate, Greenlight Re
