Investor Profile: Collide Capital — Thesis, Cheque Size & How to Apply

Collide Capital is a New York-based early-stage firm founded in 2021 by Brian Hollins and Aaron Samuels, built on the belief that the innovation economy needs a broader, more representative set of people directing capital. Its mission, in its founders' own words, is to guide founders on their institutional capital journey with the resources, capital and support they need to win. From a $1.3 million exploratory Fund Zero in 2019, it has grown into an institutionally recognised firm based in New York City, with an office in San Francisco.

The investment thesis is focused. Collide Capital invests in pre-seed through Series A companies across fintech, supply chain and the future of work, with an emphasis on enterprise software, automation and data-driven decision-making. The founders argue that category-defining companies will be forged through collision, of culture and code, of policy and product, and of perspectives too often overlooked by capital.

Fund size is publicly documented and recent. In April 2026, Collide Capital announced an oversubscribed $95 million Fund II, up from a $66 million Fund I in 2022, bringing total assets under management above $170 million. Fund II cheques typically run from $1 million to $3 million, with the firm writing lead and co-lead cheques and aiming to back at least 30 companies over roughly three and a half years. The firm began by writing $25K cheques in its earliest days.

The portfolio now spans more than 75 companies, with five successful exits and more than 20 markups, and Fund Zero delivering top-quartile returns. Named portfolio companies include Butter, Culina Health, Helios, OneCarNow, Revi, Rheaply, Slang.ai and Tandem, while Fund II's early investments include Art Lab, Jelou, Ocho, Prefix and Sytrex. Its limited partners include the University of California Endowment, Accolade Partners, Fairview Capital, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.

What sets Collide Capital apart is the operating platform around the capital.

Programmes are a core part of the firm. Through Collide Campus, it runs undergraduate training programmes and MBA fellowships for students interested in entrepreneurship and venture capital, with more than 50 students graduated so far. Participants have sourced real deals, completed real diligence, and stepped into roles at venture firms and high-growth startups, including at Collide Capital itself. The founders bring complementary backgrounds: Hollins spent a decade investing at Goldman Sachs, Lightspeed and Slow Ventures and founded the Takeoff Institute, while Samuels spent fifteen years at Blavity Inc., Bain & Company, Lightspeed and Telesign, and co-founded AfroTech.

How to apply for funding

Collide Capital invites founders to reach out directly through its official website, collidecap.com; its founders' letter closes by encouraging anyone who sees themselves in its story to reach out via the form linked there. A strong approach names the fintech, supply chain or future-of-work problem precisely, shows a credible path to Fortune 500 customers, and states a raise in the $1 million to $3 million cheque range.