Two Sigma Ventures backs early-stage companies built at the intersection of exploding information, increasing computing power, and exceptional founders. The firm is thesis-driven around data science, machine learning, and advanced engineering, and is especially active as a lead investor at Series A while using the broader Two Sigma platform to help companies accelerate technical and commercial learning.
Evaluation weights
How much weight this firm places on each dimension. Totals 100%.
Revenue, growth, and unit economics
Size, timing, and competitive landscape
Founder experience and execution ability
Differentiation and technical quality
- Prefers technically sophisticated companies where data and computation are central to value creation
- More willing to absorb technical and market risk in frontier categories than in crowded software markets
- Strong bias toward founders they can build conviction with over time
- Looks for businesses that can compound advantage through data, infrastructure, or platform effects
Pitch difficulty
How hard it is to get a meeting and close funding from this firm.
- Funded / yr
- 10Deals closed in a typical year.
- Led / yr
- 3Rounds led in the last 12 months.
- Pitches / yr
- ~3536Decks reviewed in a typical year.
- Acceptance rate
- 0.3%Share of pitches that get funded.
Estimated — public data is not fully disclosed.
Why it's hard
- Narrow thesis fit around information growth, computing power, and advanced engineering
- Particularly high standards for execution and metrics in established or crowded categories
- Partner-led, structured diligence informed by proprietary tools and multiple perspectives
- Preference for founder relationships built over time before committing capital
Two Sigma Ventures is a high-conviction, thesis-driven firm with a strong Series A lead posture, structured diligence, and a clear preference for companies where data and computing are truly core. It is not universally inaccessible because it invests across multiple sectors and can tolerate early technical risk, but the bar for thesis fit, founder quality, and eventual company-building potential is meaningfully above average.
Green flags
What drives a yes for this firm.
- A product where information advantage and computing power are fundamental, not cosmetic
- Founders who pair deep technical credibility with strong market and business-model insight
- Evidence the company can become a scalable business, not just an impressive technical project
- Clear wedge into a large market, with differentiated execution in crowded categories
- A relationship-based conviction built through high-signal progress and strong partner interactions
Red flags
What kills deals and gets a fast no.
- A company marketed as AI-driven without true technical defensibility
- Great science or engineering paired with weak business-model thinking
- Mediocre traction in a crowded market with no exceptional execution signal
- A founder who cannot connect the product to a large, durable market outcome
- Lack of trust, weak follow-through, or poor quality of engagement during diligence
How to win
Patterns that lead to successful pitches.
- Show that data/ML/computation is the engine of the business, not an add-on
- Demonstrate both technical depth and a concrete path to scalable commercial outcomes
- Come prepared with crisp evidence of learning velocity: product, customer, and hiring progress
- Frame the market in terms of structural change driven by software, data, or compute
- Build the relationship early and use interim updates to increase conviction
Fund strategy & identity
Who they are and how they operate.
- Invest seed through Series B, with primary lead ownership at Series A
- Back companies where data, ML, software, or advanced computation is core to the product advantage
- Apply structured, data-informed sourcing and diligence tools to build conviction
- Support winners through later rounds and growth via dedicated opportunity capital
- Invest across U.S. and select international markets when thesis fit is strong
Firm identity
Investment focus
Industries, themes, and typical ARR expectations.
Industries
Investment themes
Typical check by stage
Typical ARR by stage
Investment thesis
Core beliefs and strategy behind their investing approach.
Two Sigma Ventures’ core thesis is that the most important companies of the future will combine three forces: exponentially growing information, rapid advances in computing, and visionary founders. The firm explicitly backs “transformative companies harnessing information growth and computing power,” supporting teams that use data science, machine learning, and advanced engineering to build defensible products and platforms. TSV invests early—seed through Series B—and remains a long‑term partner, applying the broader Two Sigma network’s deep expertise in software engineering, data science, quantitative modeling, and machine learning to help portfolio companies accelerate product and go‑to‑market learning cycles. Sectorally, TSV is industry‑agnostic but thesis‑driven around data and computing intensity. It invests across enterprise SaaS and tooling, fintech, developer tools and infrastructure, cybersecurity, healthcare/tech‑enabled life sciences (techbio), and select consumer technologies. The firm also allocates a measured portion of capital to crypto/Web3 where data and computing‑driven primitives can unlock new capabilities. TSV’s investment practice spans both software and hard‑tech where advanced computation is a core enabler. Geographically, TSV looks across the U.S. and internationally, and has led landmark transactions outside the U.S. where fit with thesis and local dynamics are compelling (e.g., LatAm fintech). TSV’s belief system emphasizes that technology alone isn’t sufficient; durable value creation stems from marrying technical advantage with strong business‑model insight, market timing, and execution. The team applies a scientific approach to sourcing and diligence, including proprietary data‑driven tools and structured evaluation frameworks, while maintaining a relationship‑first posture with founders. With dedicated early‑stage and opportunity funds, TSV can initiate at seed/Series A and continue supporting winners through growth rounds.
Decision patterns
How they evaluate and make investment decisions.
Two Sigma Ventures invests when a company aligns with the “information + computing + people” thesis: data/AI or advanced engineering must be central to the business, founders must demonstrate strong market insight, and the team must be capable of building a scalable company, not just impressive technology. TSV uses a structured, data‑informed sourcing and diligence process—including an internal tool called “George”—to surface high‑signal opportunities, then deepens conviction through partner‑led diligence. When weighing factors, TSV notes that the winning company isn’t always the one with the best technology; business fundamentals, market structure, and execution matter. In established categories, TSV requires top‑tier execution and clear metrics; in frontier categories, it tolerates more technical or market risk for potential upside. Trust and long‑term relationship building with founders are central; TSV often engages months before a raise, tracking progress and moving quickly when the moment is right. TSV primarily leads Series A rounds, writing $5‑10M checks, and can move from introduction to decision in weeks when conviction is high. The firm brings additional partners into later meetings to triangulate perspectives, then conducts an intensive, short‑duration diligence sprint to reach a partnership decision. In later or growth rounds, TSV may co‑lead or follow selectively, leveraging its Opportunity Fund to support portfolio companies that have demonstrated product‑market fit and scaling potential.
Risk appetite
TSV is a conviction‑driven but measured lead investor at early stages—especially at Series A—where it typically writes $5‑10M lead checks and takes an active role. The firm is comfortable underwriting significant technical and commercialization risk where data and computing are core, including pre‑revenue techbio and deep‑tech opportunities, provided there’s a clear scientific/technical rationale and credible execution path. In well‑understood, crowded markets TSV demands exceptional execution and metrics; in novel, less‑competed spaces it accepts higher technical/market risk for asymmetric upside. While often leading early rounds, TSV may co‑lead or follow in later growth rounds alongside high‑quality syndicates, leveraging its Opportunity Fund to continue backing outliers.
Notable investments
Key portfolio companies and why they fit the thesis.
- RemoteLeadGlobal employment platform that uses data and automation to simplify cross-border hiring, matching TSV's focus on data-driven enterprise solutions.
- NeloLeadLatAm BNPL/consumer-finance firm leveraging data-driven underwriting, aligning with TSV's interest in fintech that applies AI/ML to underserved markets.
- CerbyLeadSecurity solution for shadow-IT apps that automates risk management, fitting TSV's emphasis on enterprise software with strong data analytics.
- CanduLeadNo-code, data-informed in-app UX platform for B2B SaaS, exemplifying TSV's preference for tools that empower product teams with analytics.
- TreetLeadBranded resale marketplace that provides analytics on resale behavior, aligning with TSV's data-centric approach to new commerce models.
- Swarm AeroLeadAI-enabled UAV systems that combine advanced hardware with data and AI, matching TSV's interest in deep-tech and AI-driven infrastructure.
- NetBox LabsOpen-source network automation platform; TSV participates to support data-infrastructure and OSS ecosystems, following on through Series B without leading.
Co-invested with
Other firms in this catalog who've backed the same companies.
Partners
Full firm roster — key partners, partners, and the wider team.
Key partners
Colin Beirne
Partner
Two Sigma Ventures
Colin Beirne is a Partner at Two Sigma Ventures investing in companies using data and advanced computing across sectors including fintech, AI, robotics, real estate, and healthcare.
Dusan Perovic
Partner
Two Sigma Ventures
NOTE: Dusan Perovic has departed Two Sigma Ventures. As of May 2026, he is Founding Partner at Deviation Capital, launched as a spinout of Two Sigma Ventures alongside Colin Beirne, Jonathan Golden, and Sidney Costabile. Two Sigma Ventures' website is no longer accessible; the promotion blog article source URL returned 404. Dusan was a Partner at TSV focused on techbio, life sciences, and healthcare AI. Engineering school gave him a deep fascination with biology, and his early career in biotech cemented his belief that the most enduring impact on humanity will come from companies applying engineering principles to improve human health. At Deviation, he continues to back founders fluent in both life sciences and engineering, with conviction that advances in data science, computing, and AI are unlocking previously unreachable problems in biology and medicine. He holds a degree from Princeton University. Notable TSV investments include Gameto (Series B lead; women's health/IVF; board director), Xaira Therapeutics ($1B raise; AI drug discovery), Terray Therapeutics ($120M Series B; AI-driven drug discovery), Arda Therapeutics (fibrosis; cell-depleting technology), and Freeform (AI metal 3D printing; $14M from NVIDIA and Boeing).
Dan Abelon
Partner
Two Sigma Ventures
Dan Abelon is listed in public profiles as a partner at Two Sigma Ventures focused on data-driven enterprise and consumer startups.
Frances Schwiep
Partner
Two Sigma Ventures
Frances Schwiep is a Partner at Two Sigma Ventures. Public profiles describe her as a former data scientist who partners with founders building B2B applications, infrastructure, applied AI, DataOps, fintech, and vertical software.
Partners
Team
Rohit Rao
Investor
Two Sigma Ventures
Investor focused on enterprise software, robotics, devices, infrastructure, and DevTools.
Xinyi (Lucy) Ke, CPA
Finance
Two Sigma Ventures
Finance professional focused on VC fund operations, valuations, reporting, and analytics.
Elianna (Elizabeth) Knight
Investor
Two Sigma Ventures
Two Sigma Ventures investor with Yale medicine and Stanford statistics/genomics research background.
Riz Thakir
Vice President - Finance
Two Sigma Ventures
Finance VP overseeing valuations, investor reporting, analytics, and fund operations.
Public voice
Notable statements and public positions.
- "Ten years ago, we recognized an emerging differential that can accelerate innovation and unlock potential for companies to have a transformative impact: data + computing + human ingenuity." — Colin Beirne (2022 new funds announcement)
- "Zymergen epitomizes the type of company that is emblematic of our meta thesis at Two Sigma Ventures — to partner with companies using data science and advanced engineering capabilities to transform or build an industry." — TSV blog (Why we’re doubling down on Zymergen)
- "We invest in seed, Series A, and Series B stage companies. We primarily lead Series A investments, generally in the range of a $5-10 million check." — TSV FAQ
Similar firms
Firms with overlapping stage and industry focus.
Bessemer Venture Partners
0.2%
Accel
0.5%
Lightspeed Venture Partners
0.8%