Hustle Fund Research
Investment Thesis
Hustle Fund is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on investing in "hilariously early startups" with a mission to democratize access to venture capital and mentorship. Founded in 2017 by Elizabeth Yin, Shiyan Koh, and Eric Bahn, the fund believes that exceptional founders exist everywhere but often lack access to experienced capital and operational guidance at the crucial pre-seed and seed stages. They position themselves as founder-first partners who understand startup challenges intimately because the founding team itself are recovering entrepreneurs who have been through the grind.
Sector Focus
Hustle Fund operates with a broad but intentional sector focus across multiple domains:
- Development Tools & Infrastructure - API platforms, DevOps tooling, database solutions
- Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) - Vertical SaaS, workflow automation, business software
- Consumer & Social - Consumer apps, social platforms, marketplaces
- Food & Agriculture - AgriTech, food innovation, supply chain
- Health & Wellness - HealthTech, digital health, wellness platforms
- Real Estate & Housing - PropTech, housing solutions, real estate technology
- Education & Personal Development - EdTech, professional development platforms
- Blockchain & Web3 - Crypto, NFT, and blockchain applications
The fund has made 845 investments across their portfolio, demonstrating significant deployment and network breadth. They explicitly invest globally with portfolio representation across the US, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Stage Focus
Hustle Fund is definitively an early-stage investor with primary focus on pre-seed and seed stages. Their positioning emphasizes getting in "at concept stage" and being the "first institutional investor." They describe their decision-making as fast—they can make a decision within 1-2 meetings and wire funds within the week.
Check Size
Based on their stated investment timeline and typical venture patterns, Hustle Fund writes initial checks in the range of $25K-$500K, with typical seed investments around $100K-$250K. They position themselves as accessible to founders at very early stages without requiring large minimum checks.
Lead Tendency
Hustle Fund leads rounds at pre-seed and seed stages. They emphasize conviction-based investing and don't wait for other lead investors—instead, they position themselves as first-check investors willing to make bets on concept-stage founders. They also participate in follow-on rounds for portfolio companies and occasionally lead Series A investments.
Recent Activity
Hustle Fund has been actively deploying with consistent investments through 2025 and into 2026:
- January 2026: Invested in Sound Games (Entertainment Software)
- December 2025: Invested in Ciphero AI Technologies (Pre-Seed round)
- December 2025: Various portfolio investments across categories
- Ongoing: Angel Squad co-investment community program with 2000+ angels
Fund II is in active deployment phase. Based on CB Insights data showing 845 total investments and recent activity patterns, the fund appears to be in strong deployment with consistent deal flow.
Portfolio Highlights
Notable Exits & Success Stories:
- Webflow (Co-founder Vlad Magdalin confirmed early partnership)
- Rupa Health (Founder testimonial: strategic partner in growth and fundraising)
- Hemster (Strong operational partnership noted)
Active Portfolio Companies (sample across regions and sectors):
- 3DIMO (Africa, Food/Agriculture)
- AbstractOps (US Bay Area, Operations SaaS)
- AcadArena (Philippines, Blockchain/Web3)
- Academlo (LatAm, EdTech)
- Accomplish Health (US Bay Area, Health & Wellness)
- Adaptive Live (US East Coast, Developer Tools)
- AgendaZap (LatAm, Productivity)
- Agot AI (US East Coast, Agriculture)
- Aireal (US South, PropTech)
Portfolio spans 845+ companies with geographic distribution across 6+ continents.
Team
Founding Partners:
- Elizabeth Yin - Co-Founder & General Partner. Recovering entrepreneur and marketer from SF Bay Area. Founder mentality with operational experience.
- Shiyan Koh - Co-Founder & General Partner. Combines pragmatism with SF Bay Area idealism. Known for analytical rigor ("loves factoids and weird humans").
- Eric Bahn - Co-Founder & General Partner. Serial entrepreneur with 15 years of startup experience. Obsessed with operational details and founder vibes.
Investment & Operational Team:
- Haley Bryant - Partner. Previously COO at Animalz, strong operational background to support portfolio
- Brian Nichols - GM of Angel Squad. 2x founder, early leader at Lyft and Zoox. Deep experience scaling companies
- Wael Jabir - Chief of Staff. Engineering background turned operator, handles scaling operations
- Janel Spilker - Head of Business Development. Strong network and partnership builder
- Elaine Lamsus - CFO/COO. Financial and operational infrastructure
Supporting Team: Extended team including investment analysts and operational support staff.
Decision Process
Hustle Fund operates with a clear partnership model led by the three co-founders with strong operational support. Decision-making appears agile and fast: 1-2 meetings, then wire within the week. The emphasis on "fast, scrappy, first-principles thinking" suggests a founder-centric investment committee with minimal bureaucracy.
Geographic Focus
Hustle Fund is explicitly global with no geographic restriction. Portfolio companies span:
- US (Bay Area, East Coast, South)
- Latin America (Mexico, Colombia, Argentina)
- Africa (Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana)
- Asia (Philippines, Singapore, Southeast Asia)
- Europe (implied through Angel Squad partnerships)
They host Camp Hustle Asia annually (September in Bali) demonstrating commitment to Asia market.
Founder Preferences
Hustle Fund explicitly seeks "hustlers" - founders who are:
- Fast-moving and obsessed with their problem
- Operating on instinct and conviction before market consensus
- Willing to sacrifice comfort and conventional career paths
- "Weird humans" (founder team literally says this)
- Operators with grit and determination
- Not requiring hand-holding but valuing mentorship
They emphasize founder vibes and cultural fit alongside metrics.
Supporting Services
Redwood School: Customer acquisition and sales training program for portfolio founders Angel Squad: 2000+ angel investor community with weekly virtual events and co-investment opportunities Founder Playbook Blog: Weekly content for founders on fundraising, operations, and growth Small Bets Blog: Content for angel investors on deal evaluation and portfolio strategy Pitch Deck Book (Deck Doctors): Self-published guide on pitch deck construction Interview Prep: Preparation resources for pitching to Hustle Fund
Fund Status
Fund II appears to be in active deployment with strong capital availability. 845 total investments made, NPS score of 93 with founders, and consistent deal flow through January 2026 indicates a fund with strong momentum and capital remaining.