About Obvious Ventures
Obvious Ventures is a venture capital firm founded in 2014. It is primarily based out of San Francisco, United States. As of Jul 2026, Obvious Ventures is an active investor, having invested in 118 companies, with 8 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 High Tech and Consumer. Most recently it participated in the $***** Series A round of Gritt Robotics Overall, Obvious Ventures portfolio has seen 6 unicorns, 5 IPOs and 16 acquisitions including key companies like Planet, Virta and Proterra. A lot of funds co-invest with Obvious Ventures, with names like Andreessen Horowitz sharing a substantial percentage of its portfolio. Obvious Ventures has team of 9 people including 2 partners.Key Metrics
Team Members
Portfolio Sectors
Portfolio Locations
Rounds of Entry
Series A, Seed & 4 more
Portfolio Unicorns
Deals in last 12 months
Obvious Ventures' List of Top Investments
Obvious Ventures has a portfolio of 118 companies, including 6 unicorns. Their most notable investments are in Visor and Inato.Their portfolio spans across United States, Canada, Germany and 7 more locations. They have invested in Enterprise Applications, High Tech, Consumer and 30 other sectors, across stages such as Series A, Seed and 4 more. Here is the list of top investments by Obvious Ventures:1. Medium
Online publishing platform thet allows users to read and write blogs. It allow users to write, publish, and read articles or blogs on many topics such as technology, business, personal development, and politics. The mobile application is available for Android and iOS users.
Key facts about Medium
- Founded Year: 2012
- Location: San Francisco (United States)
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series C
- Total Funding till date: $163M
- Employee Count: 9,975 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Sarissa Capital, Spark Capital and 27 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series C, Nov 05, 2021, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
2. Gusto
Cloud-based payroll, benefits, and HR software for small and medium-sized businesses. Its core offering is software delivered online, with API integrations and automation features designed to help SMBs manage back-office operations more efficiently.
Key facts about Gusto
- Founded Year: 2012
- Location: San Francisco (United States)
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series E
- Total Funding till date: $718M
- Employee Count: 4,474 as on Jun 30, 2026
- Investors: Western Technology Investment, Glynn Capital and 85 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series E, May 13, 2022, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
3. Planet
Provider of daily satellite imagery and geospatial data analytics services. The organization offers high-frequency imagery, mosaics, on-demand tasking, and analytic feeds. It transforms imagery into insights, providing data for monitoring, change detection, and analysis. The company delivers data products and cloud-based tools, offering solutions across various industries.
Key facts about Planet
- Founded Year: 2010
- Location: San Francisco (United States)
- Stage: Public
- Total Funding till date: $602M
- Employee Count: 1,683 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Western Technology Investment, HighGear Ventures and 54 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Post IPO, Sep 12, 2025, $*****
- Highlight: Public
4. Virta
Virta Health develops and delivers clinically proven and individualized therapies to restore metabolic health in chronic disease patients. The clinically proven therapies are possible by combining advanced biochemistry, clinical expertise, data science, and digital tools. The also provides therapies for treating diabetes.
Key facts about Virta
- Founded Year: 2014
- Location: San Francisco (United States)
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series E
- Total Funding till date: $402M
- Employee Count: 902 as on Jun 30, 2026
- Investors: Allen & Company, Redmile Group and 28 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series E, Apr 19, 2021, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
5. Proterra
Manufacturer of battery systems for electric vehicles and commercial equipment. The company provides battery solutions for heavy-duty trucks, commercial transit, school buses, and off-highway equipment. Batteries are designed with safety features, durable enclosures, and scalable platforms. The company offers engineering expertise, vehicle integration, and servicing for original equipment manufacturers.
Key facts about Proterra
- Founded Year: 2004
- Location: Burlingame (United States)
- Annual Revenue: $100M - $500M as on Dec 31, 2022
- Stage: Public
- Total Funding till date: $858M
- Employee Count: 425 as on Jun 30, 2026
- Investors: Section Partners, Generation Investment Management and 38 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series H, Oct 15, 2020, $*****
- Highlight: Public
Obvious Ventures' Year-on-Year Investment Trends
Obvious Ventures has invested in 118 companies over the last 15 years, with an average of 8 new investments annually in the last 10 years. In 2025, it made 9 investments, while as of Jul 2026, it has made 8 investments in this year. Its most recent first time investment was in Gritt Robotics and most recent follow-on round was in Halcyon.Year | No. of Investments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | Follow-on | Total | |
2026 (YTD) | 6 | 2 | 8 |
2025 | 6 | 3 | 9 |
2024 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
2023 | 4 | 4 | 8 |
2022 | 15 | 8 | 23 |
2021 | 15 | 9 | 24 |
2020 | 5 | 7 | 12 |
2019 | 9 | 2 | 11 |
2018 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
2017 | 6 | 3 | 9 |
Obvious Ventures' Investments by Stage
Obvious Ventures has made 48 investments in Series A stage with an average round size of $21.8M, 25 investments in Seed stage with an average round size of $9.57M and 17 investments in Series B stage with an average round size of $76.7M.Stage of entry | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Series A | 48 |
Seed | 25 |
Series B | 17 |
Series C | 4 |
Series D | 2 |
Others | 1 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Obvious Ventures' Investments by Sector
Obvious Ventures has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the Enterprise Applications, HealthTech, Consumer, High Tech and Sustainability Tech. Notably, it has invested in 99 Tech companies, 69 Enterprise (B2B) companies, 56 Software companies and at least 46 companies focusing on Consumer (B2C).Sector | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Enterprise Applications | 38 |
HealthTech | 25 |
Consumer | 24 |
High Tech | 21 |
Sustainability Tech | 17 |
Others | 144 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Obvious Ventures' Investments by Geography
Obvious Ventures has made most investments in United States (84), followed by Canada where it has made 5 investments.Country | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
United States | 84 |
Canada | 5 |
Germany | 2 |
Anguilla | 1 |
France | 1 |
Others | 4 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Obvious Ventures' recent investments
Obvious Ventures has made 8 investments in 2026 so far. Gritt Robotics and Hostie are the latest among them.Here are the most recent investments by Obvious Ventures:
Filter this listDate | Company | Location | Round Details | Round Amount | Co-Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jul 21, 2026 | United States | Series A | 6156 | ||
Jul 08, 2026 | United States | Series A | 3944 | [+4] | |
Jun 15, 2026 | United States | Seed | 2416 | [+3] | |
May 29, 2026 | United States | Series A | 7301 | [+5] | |
Feb 24, 2026 | United States | Series A | 8956 | [+3] |
Unicorns in Obvious Ventures' Portfolio
Obvious Ventures has 6 unicorns in its portfolio - Iterative Health, Incredible Health, Dexterity and others. The most recent unicorn in their portfolio is Iterative Health. It became a unicorn in 2026, 4 years after Obvious Ventures first invested in it.Here is a list of unicorns in Obvious Ventures' portfolio:
Tracxn Score | Company | Short Description | Founded year | Sector | Location | Company Stage | First Investment/ Acquisition Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
60 | Provider of AI-based device for endoscopic images of gastroenterological diseases | 2017 | Cambridge | Series C | wabut{n | ||
69 | Online job board platform for healthcare nurse jobs | 2017 | San Francisco | Series B | sziqinr | ||
65 | AI that powers robots to do physical tasks | 2017 | Redwood City | Series B | ooxffzt | ||
70 | Provider of a cloud based clinical trail management tool for researchers | 2012 | Palo Alto | Series D | {rukar{ | ||
78 | Provider of therapies for metabolic health in chronic disease patients | 2014 | San Francisco | Series E | qwzhpla |
IPOs and Publicly Listed companies in Obvious Ventures' Portfolio
5 of Obvious Ventures' portfolio companies have become public. Lilium got listed on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ), in Sep 2021 at marketcap of $4.78B and Planet got listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).Here are Obvious Ventures' portfolio companies that went public:
Company | IPO Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Sep 07, 2021 | Sep 05, 2017 | Series B | 3786 | |
Apr 30, 2021 | - | - | 7515 | |
Apr 16, 2021 | Sep 14, 2016 | Series A | 1868 | |
Nov 27, 2020 | - | - | 3503 | |
May 02, 2019 | Jul 29, 2014 | Series D | 4154 |
Acquired companies in Obvious Ventures' Portfolio
16 companies from Obvious Ventures' portfolio have been acquired. The most recent acquisition was Canvas in Jan 2026 by JLG Industries for $*****.Here are Obvious Ventures' portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:
Company | Acquisition Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Jan 07, 2026 | Apr 15, 2021 | Series B | 9421 | |
Aug 06, 2024 | Jul 17, 2016 | Series B | 6192 | |
Mar 14, 2024 | Sep 18, 2018 | Seed | 3137 | |
Nov 03, 2023 | Dec 19, 2019 | Series B | 6419 | |
Oct 26, 2023 | Apr 19, 2022 | Series A | 8745 |
Team profile of Obvious Ventures
Obvious Ventures has a team of 9 members including 2 Partners, 1 Venture Partner and 2 Principals located in United States. Obvious Ventures' team does not sit on the board of any company as of now.Here is a list of all team members in Obvious Ventures:
Name | Designation | Location | Board Memberships | Contact Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Partner | San Francisco | - | ||
Partner | - | - | - | |
Venture Partner | San Francisco | - | - | |
Principal | San Francisco | - | ||
Principal | - | - | - |
Co-investors of Obvious Ventures
Over the past 15 years, 771 investors have co-invested in Obvious Ventures's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.
- Invested before Obvious Ventures: Y Combinator, Andreessen Horowitz and 208 others have invested in rounds before Obvious Ventures. There are 8 companies where Y Combinator has invested before Obvious Ventures and 4 companies where Andreessen Horowitz has invested before Obvious Ventures.
- Top Co-investors of Obvious Ventures: 277 investors entered a company along with Obvious Ventures. These include investors like Andreessen Horowitz (7 companies).
- Invested after Obvious Ventures: A total of 284 investors have invested in Obvious Ventures's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include Google Ventures (4 companies), Tiger Global Management (3 companies) and Baillie Gifford (3 companies).
Recent News related to Obvious Ventures
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Gritt Secures $32.4 Million in Series A Funding Roundintelligence360•Aug 21, 2026•First Round Capital, Union Square Ventures, Gritt Robotics, Obvious Ventures
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Gritt Launches with $32.4M to Accelerate Infrastructure Buildout Using Physical AIRoboticstomorrow•Jul 21, 2026•Gritt Robotics, Obvious Ventures
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Gritt Raises $26M to Expand AI-Powered Construction RoboticsVentureburn•Jul 21, 2026•Gritt Robotics, Active Impact Investments, Climactic, First Round Capital and 4 others
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Hostie Secures $12M Series A Led by Obvious Ventures to Expand AI Concierge PlatformThe SaaS News•Jul 09, 2026•Hostie, Obvious Ventures
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Radical Numerics Raises $50M in Seed FundingFinSMEs•Jun 15, 2026•Radicalnumerics, Triatomic, First Spark Ventures, Emergence Capital and 2 others
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AI Security Company Gray Swan Raises $40 Million Series ACIO Influence•May 29, 2026•Madrona, Wing Venture Capital, Gray Swan AI, HRT and 4 others
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Iterative Health Secures $77 Million in Series C Funding to Advance AI-Driven Clinical Researchclinicaltrialsarena.com•May 01, 2026•Iterative Health, Intrepid Growth Partners, Insight Partners, Google Ventures and 1 other
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Halcyon Raises $21M in Series A FundingFinSMEs•Mar 16, 2026•Halcyon, Energize Capital, Zero Infinity Partners, Congruent Ventures and 3 others
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Geothermal explorer Zanskar raises USD 115m in Series C roundRenewables Now•Jan 22, 2026•Zanskar, Spring Lane Capital, Gvpclimate, Susquehanna International Group and 14 others
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Fleetzero Raises $43 Million Series A to Scale Shipping Electrification and AutonomyPR Newswire•Jan 17, 2026•Fleetzero, Maersk, Obvious Ventures, Breakthrough Energy and 5 others
