An expert-led investment network

Expertise and capital for founders

Red Bear Ventures (RBV) backs private companies founded or led by Cornell students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Capital follows expert conviction, deal by deal.

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What we are

Not a fund. A network.

RBV is not a traditional venture capital fund. We are a network of tens of thousands of people who back companies one deal at a time using special purpose vehicles (SPVs). Capital follows the conviction of domain-specific experts - operators, founders, and industry leaders whose judgment is grounded in relevant experience.

Cornell is our founding community because the university's reach spans every industry, geography, and stage. That breadth of expertise makes it the natural first community for RBV – a network designed to grow thoughtfully over time, while maintaining a highly curated standard.

Who we serve

Three constituents

Founders

Cornell-affiliated founders raising capital for private companies (pre-seed through Series Z, both primaries and secondaries).

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Experts

Operators, senior executives, academics - thought leaders whose engagement can change the trajectory of an investment.

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Investors

Individuals, family offices, and other LPs who want deal-by-deal allocation in competitive, vetted, expert-led investments.

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The model

Capital follows expert conviction

Successful deals tend to share three signals: 1) a great team, 2) commercial traction and/or defensible technology, and 3) respected co-investors and experts who lean in. We organize our process around finding and verifying these signals before we put capital to work. For a deeper walkthrough of how a deal moves from intro to close, see how it works.

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