Base10 Partners closes $850M across two funds, hits $2.6B in assets
What's the deal? San Francisco-based venture capital firm Base10 PartnersDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, one of the largest Black-led venture firms, closed $850M in new capital across two funds, bringing its total assets under management to $2.6B. The firm, which debuted its first fund in 2018, focuses on backing early-stage companies (seed through Series B) that apply AI to what it calls the "real economy" — industries like logistics, finance and food service.
Base10's portfolio includes Reddit, Nubank, Brex, Instacart, Notion, Motive, Blank Street and HappyRobot. The fundraise drew commitments from endowments, pensions, sovereign wealth funds and other institutional investors, including Sofina and CalPERS.
Why now? Co-founder and managing partner Adeyemi AjaoDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → says the applied-AI moment his firm bet on years ago has arrived. "When we raised Fund I we called ourselves the first fund focused on Applied AI for the Real Economy, and LPs told us applied AI was too 'niche,'" Ajao said. "Today, we have several portfolio companies applying AI to the Real Economy that are growing from 0 to tens of millions in revenue in under 12 months — that is unprecedented."
Ajao, who co-founded the firm with TJ NahigianDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, joined the board of fleet-management platform Motive in December 2025, signalling Base10's deepening involvement with its most prominent real-economy bets.
What could go wrong? The "applied AI" thesis is no longer contrarian — nearly every venture firm now claims some version of it. As competition for AI-native startups intensifies, Base10 will need to prove it can win deals and generate returns against much larger, better-resourced funds chasing the same category.
The signal: Base10's fundraise reflects a broader shift in venture capital toward AI companies that serve traditional industries rather than building foundational models. The firm is also doubling down on its Advancement Initiative, which donates up to 50% of carried interest to support students from underrepresented backgrounds entering tech — a programme that now partners with AnthropicDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and CodePathDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → on AI education. "Base10 has earned our continued confidence through their focus, their portfolio, and the way they show up for founders," said Benjamin Sabatier, principal at Sofina, one of the firm's limited partners.
Read more: Bloomberg · Base10 (press release)
