• Latch

  Participated · Series A · Feb 2016

  Latch builds smart lock and access systems for apartment buildings, enabling residents to open doors with a smartphone, keycard, or door code. Its platform lets residents create temporary access codes for guests and service providers and manage building credentials. The company announced a pilot with UPS to give drivers unique credentials for making deliveries. As part of the financing lead, Brookfield Properties will install Latch systems in multi-family properties currently under development. Latch was founded five years ago and remained in stealth until 2016. Prior to this round it had raised $26 million; it has now announced a $70 million Series B. Latch builds Internet-connected locks and a subscription digital entry management service for building owners, targeting enterprise customers such as large commercial offices and multi-occupancy apartment blocks. Its initial Latch lock works with mortise locks and includes a physical handle and a slot for a traditional key; the company added a second, purely electronic access product in March to broaden building compatibility. Latch has opened availability nationwide across the U.S. and emphasizes software and digital product experience as a competitive edge—two of the three co-founders are ex-Apple. The company faces incumbents like Assa Abloy, Allegion, and DormaKaba and cites the slow adoption curve among real estate owners as its primary market challenge. Latch is focusing on supporting a national sales team and plans to push into new U.S. markets such as Miami and Los Angeles, with an aim to complete a premier apartment project in each of the top 25 U.S. markets within a year. The company is early-stage and is not disclosing customer or usage metrics at this time. Latch develops the Latch Lock, a replacement mortise smart lock and access system aimed at multi-occupancy apartment blocks and offices. The device combines a physical mortise mechanism with touchscreen, camera, Bluetooth, Apple Touch ID support, one-time entry codes, tamper detection and access logging. The company spent two years in stealth building the product; the founding team includes CEO Luke Schoenfelder and chief design officer Thomas Meyerhoffer, both ex-Apple employees. Latch plans pilot deployments in Q1 in New York and will use new funding to scale manufacturing and operations for U.S. rollouts, with international expansion noted as possible. Financially, Latch announced a $10.5M Series A led by Lux Capital and has raised $16M in total funding to date since being founded in 2014. Per-lock pricing has not been disclosed; the company says it will offer flexible options including upfront capex purchases or subscription-style packages.

• iRingly

  Participated · Equity · Jan 2015

  iRingly produces a smart ring that hides email and text-message alerts in a jewelry-style band. The product exemplifies the trend of camouflaging technology in consumer wellness wearables to appeal to users—particularly women—who prefer subtle designs. iRingly’s ring does not yet include health or wellness applications. The company gained attention amid a broader smart-jewelry wave showcased at CES. This week iRingly raised $5.1 million from a mix of new and returning venture investors.

• Ringly

  Participated · Series A · Jan 2015

  Ringly designs wearable smart jewelry, initially selling a notification ring that buzzes and lights to alert users to calls, texts and app updates and syncs with an iOS/Android app for configurable alerts. The product line includes a premium “Launch” collection (18K matte gold with precious and semi-precious stones) and a “Limited” collection (rhodium-plated settings with tourmalated quartz), with multiple stone options and different band styles. The ring currently runs on a battery lasting about two to three days and charges in a case that doubles as a USB charger. Ringly sold out its pre-orders, exceeded its sales goal within eight hours of launch, and sold its first 1,000 rings within 24 hours; the company declined to disclose exact unit sales. The team of 12 full-time employees includes designers and engineers from MIT, Carnegie Mellon and Stanford; the company plans to hire more engineers and designers, expand its jewelry collection and add features. Ringly also intends to pursue partnerships with fashion brands and designers and introduce other form factors such as bracelets. Ringly is a stealth, pre-launch wearable-technology startup focused on changing users’ relationships with their devices and reducing obsessive digital interaction. The founder and CEO is Christina Mercando, an eBay/Hunch alumna; she also notes an unnamed cofounder. The company has articulated three core values: redefining your relationship with technology, less is often more, and embracing quirky users. AngelList lists Ringly as an early-stage hardware startup; the site is not fully launched but accepts sign-ups for an announcement. Mercando has promoted themes around presence and fashion in wearables via links to The New York Times and Wired in social posts. Financially, Ringly has secured a $1 million initial investment but has not disclosed further operating metrics or investor identities in the article.

• Fresco

  Participated · Seed · Oct 2014

  Fresco builds KitchenOS and the AI Cooking Companion, software that links and orchestrates appliances from brands such as Panasonic, Instant Pot Brands, Viking, Kenwood, Bosch, GE Appliances, and LG. The platform recommends recipes, guides home cooks in real time, and automatically sets and syncs connected devices through screens or voice to ensure meals turn out correctly. Recent OEM integrations with E.G.O. and Arda position Fresco to be embedded at the component level, enabling rapid onboarding and potentially shipping on every appliance those manufacturers produce. Operating in more than 15 languages, the company already supports global scalability and promises increasingly smarter, more effortless cooking as additional partners join the ecosystem. Fresco plans to use fresh capital to evolve its AI Cooking Companion into a globally distributed, appliance-aware sous-chef and to deepen partnerships with leading appliance brands. The company maintains offices in Dublin and Madrid and is focused on reshaping the €60 billion-plus smart-kitchen market expected by 2030. Its recent €15 million Series C round underscores investor confidence in Fresco’s vision and growth trajectory.

• Drop

  Participated · Seed · Oct 2014

  Drop builds a software-enabled cooking experience that combines a free app with a Bluetooth-connected kitchen scale to help home bakers achieve consistent results. The silicone-covered red scale communicates with an iPad to automatically adjust ingredient quantities, suggest substitutions, and walk users through hundreds of curated recipes. Founded in 2012 by a team of Dublin-based designers, the company positions the scale as the first of several planned smart kitchen products. The scale will retail for $99, with pre-order customers receiving an $80 promotional price before its holiday-season launch. Proceeds from the current financing will expand engineering, customer support, community, and marketing functions. While revenue or user numbers have not been disclosed, management cites strong pre-order interest as validation of consumer demand for connected kitchen devices.

No current team members are available.