Canvas Ventures launches $300 million fund for early-stage software and services startups

Canvas Ventures has announced a new $300 million fund, as the Silicon Valley VC firm looks to continue investing in early-stage U.S. startups, with a focus on software and services firms in the Valley.

Founded out of Portola Valley, California, in 2013, Canvas Ventures has hitherto invested in startups such as CrowdFlower, HealthLoop, and Zola from its inaugural $175 million fund, though its partners — Rebecca Lynn, Gary Little, Paul Hsiao, and Ben Narasi — have invested in myriad notable startups between them in the past, including Dropcam, Houzz, Lending Club, and Evernote, among others.

With Canvas Ventures 2 now out of the starting gate, the company says it will be looking to invest largely in Series A and B rounds, with investment size ranging between $5 million and $20 million over the company’s pre-exit time frame, and initial investments typically falling in the $250,000 to $10 million ballpark.

The company says that it originally set out to raise $250 million but was oversubscribed by $50 million when it closed back in June. Canvas says that it will look at companies working across a range of areas, including artificial intelligence (A.I.), fintech, digital health, and network marketplaces.

“Canvas is a team of passionate investors who have all been successful entrepreneurs or operators,” explained Little, who has served as partner, investor, board member, and more at a number of notable tech companies. “Paul and Ben each founded startups and guided their companies through their respective M&A and IPO. Rebecca and I have run and scaled marketing and sales operations at pioneering tech companies. Each partner at our firm has had profit-and-loss responsibilities or started technology companies from scratch, and therefore has a high level of commitment and empathy for our startup founders.”

Today’s news comes two weeks after fellow Valley VC firm Sapphire Ventures closed its third fund at $1 billion, which in turn came hot on the heels of a number of new funds around the U.S. and further afield. In 2016 alone, Accel unveiled a new $500 million fund; Index Ventures closed a $550 million pot; Partech Ventures announced a $440 million fund; Northzone launched a $335 million fund; E.ventures lifted the lid on a $150 million fund; and a new Silicon Valley VC firm cropped up in the form of Clear Ventures, which launched with $120 million for early-stage companies.