What we see
When capital moves heavily toward one thing, everything else has to work harder to be seen, regardless of how well it performs.
All eyes on one story
Capital is moving toward AI at a pace rarely seen in investing history. By early 2026, AI companies were capturing the large majority of all global venture investment in a single quarter, with a handful of companies accounting for most of it. That kind of concentration changes the baseline for everyone else trying to raise capital.
Working product and early revenue, once signals that set a company apart, are now baseline expectations for any founder building outside the AI thesis. The opportunity that creates is exactly where Former operates.
A practical view
AI is a genuinely transformative technology, and the capital flowing toward it reflects real conviction. Foundation models, AI-native applications, AI-enabled software, and the infrastructure behind all of it are well-capitalized and well-served by the current venture ecosystem. Former looks at what sits outside that: domain-specific, profit-first startups in vertical markets, built by founders with deep sector experience.
The founders Former backs are solving problems they’ve spent years living inside. Many use AI directly in how they build, moving faster with smaller teams and lower overhead than would have been possible a few years ago. As AI takes on more of the execution layer, the judgment that comes from real domain depth, knowing what matters, what to trust, and when to deviate, becomes the scarcer and more valuable asset, not a less important one.
Capital is only part of the answer
Founders who do find capital at this stage often discover it arrives alone. Most early-stage investors operate from the outside: advice, introductions, occasional guidance, while the daily work of building the startup stays entirely with the founder. Former works differently. The founding partners take on real operational roles inside the business, working alongside the founder toward the same outcome.
That kind of embedded partnership gives a startup capability it couldn’t yet afford or build on its own, delivered by someone with as much at stake in the outcome as the founder, at no cost to the business.
Every conversation starts somewhere.
We are always interested in meeting people who are building with conviction.