At Galileo, our mission is to back exceptional emerging founders as they navigate the challenges of early-stage startup life – everything from building a world-class team, and shipping new technology to helping change customer behavior. 

As an operator-led VC firm, we align our investment approach with the needs of these visionary founders.

Our track record speaks for itself

In just 3.5 years, we've invested in over 20 companies founded by extraordinary emerging founders shaking up multi-billion dollar markets and launching game-changing products. Companies like Relevance AI, Lumi Interactive, Tixel, Andromeda, and many more.

Our diverse portfolio spans multiple sectors, reflecting our belief that talented founders can lead us into uncharted territories. We like to say that “interesting founders take us into interesting new markets” and our experience proves this.

Important deets you need to know

Every VC fund has its own secret sauce, but here's our recipe 📝 for founders we like to see seeking their first or second round of capital:

✅Investment Criteria: 

• We typically invest between $200,000 and $500,000 with flexible terms 
• We like to invest in your first (or sometimes second) round 
• We are open to leading or co-investing with other leading local and global VCs

👩🏻‍🔬Multi-Sector Investing: We operate with a founder-led thesis, believing that exceptional founders will guide us into exciting markets. We're one of the few pre-seed funds that invest across a range of sectors, from enterprise and consumer to deep tech.

‍🦾Hand-on Support: We provide more seed investment and hands-on support for every company we back, ensuring your success from day one.

Industries we're excited about in 2024

We're currently interested in exceptional founders building in AI/ML, generative AI, climate tech, and deep tech. 

We’re currently very excited by advancements in AI or applied AI with existing investments in companies like Relevance AI, building the new type of agent workforce, and Build AI, a leader in applied computer vision for construction.

Other founders we’ve recently backed include Kite Magnetics, creating a type of motor for electric aviation through materials science, and Andromeda, creating a new type of companion robot for aged care and children.

We're always on the lookout for new types of consumer applications and enterprise SaaS startups. If you’re curious about what we have invested in, take a look at our portfolio companies.

What we look for when assessing companies

🏃🏻♂️ Fast Execution and Iteration: We believe companies slow down as the business matures and you build processes. We only look to back founders who have executed and iterated very quickly in the lead-up to investing – they have ‘effective hustle’ and it's very obvious.  

Examples of what this may look like: 

• Founders communicate the multiple validation experiments they have run and many users they’ve spoken to before getting to this point. 
• We often dive into recent releases or experiments founders have conducted in building out their products.
• We set founders' tasks or challenges before we pull the trigger to invest. It has been rewarding to see founders come back to us with meaningful progress and interesting insights. 

🏎️ Exceptional Founders: We back ambitious founders with strong product sense and a clear vision for their technology. They tend to ruffle feathers by challenging industry norms and bringing fresh perspectives to their fields.

🔮 Category-defining Insights: Top emerging founders have deep insights into their industries and are often more successful in creating category-defining companies than industry veterans.

Our Investment Process

Fundraising can be a time sink for founders, so we aim to streamline the process and provide transparency at every stage.

1️⃣ Submit Your Pitch Deck Start: by filling out our Quick Application and submitting your pitch deck. It's the fastest way to get our attention (faster than an email).

2️⃣ Meet the Team: We aim to come to an investment decision within three calls with the founders, where we get to know your team and your business.

An example of what this typically looks like include:

• First call: An introductory conversation to understand your vision, tech, market insight, and team. We’ll give you an answer quickly if we don't think it's fit for us at this stage.
• ‍Second call: A deeper dive into your technology, traction, customer insights, and go-to-market strategy.
• ‍Third call: A pitch call with the whole Galileo team to tackle final questions. Post-call, we decide whether to offer a term sheet or proceed with further diligence.

3️⃣ Term Sheet, Diligence, and Support: If we're excited to invest in your mission and you’re enthusiastic about joining Galileo, we'll extend a term sheet. 

Our support begins immediately, helping you navigate the round-closing process and ensuring you’re off to a great start. 

Here's a peek into what we get up to with our portfolio companies post-investment:

• Annual Founder Conferences (Prev. Byron Bay, Airlie Beach and Gold Coast)
  • Gold Coast 2023 - 👉🏽 Check it out here
  • Airlee Beach 2022  👉🏽 Check it out here
  • Byron Bay 2021 -  👉🏽 Check it out here
• Bi-Yearly Mini-Conference in different cities 👉🏽 Check it out here

If you’re a founder raising your first round - we want to hear from you! Apply today. If you'd like to see more about how we support our founders, email us  at team@galileo.ventures