The 2D data game is up
Of usable public text remain. A single 2024 frontier model run consumed 5% of it.
Bow Capital backs founders building AI for the real world: robots that handle, machines that make, and systems that defend. Anchored by the University of California, we shorten the path from science to society.
See the portfolioRead our thesisOur thesis
The web has been scraped. Models are converging. The durable moats of the next decade come from proprietary data generated where atoms meet algorithms.
Of usable public text remain. A single 2024 frontier model run consumed 5% of it.
The open vs. closed model gap has collapsed as labs run out of shared web data.
Share of physical-world data captured relative to the text data used to train today's LLMs.
Roadmaps
Industrial automation built on proprietary data: object handling, spatial reasoning, and software that controls the physical world.
Ambi Robotics · GrayMatter Robotics · LuffyAI → American ResilienceAutonomous systems and AI-native defense software for a re-industrializing America.
Perseus Defense · Victus → Real World FutureData platforms and intelligent marketplaces driving the future of work, freight, and last-mile delivery.
Nuro · Mothership · Motive → Digital BiologyAI-powered healthcare operations, diagnostics, and discovery grounded in UC science.
DeepCell · GenEdit · Linus Bio →Portfolio spotlight
AI-powered robotic sortation born in a UC Berkeley lab, now handling millions of parcels for the world's largest supply chains.
Founder story →Autonomous surface-finishing robots bringing skilled-trade precision to aerospace and heavy manufacturing.
Founder story →The UC Edge
Founded in partnership with the University of California, Bow sees breakthrough science and technology in its earliest form from pioneering students, faculty, and alumni. From UC Berkeley to UCLA, Davis to Irvine, we partner with centers for innovation and entrepreneurialism to back outstanding founders and their technology at their source. We also sponsor and support events such as our UCSD incubator, advancing national security through science, robotics, and manufacturing.
Portfolio
Bow Capital backs outstanding founders building the next generation of physical, industrial, and biological AI. Explore the companies we've backed from their earliest days.
Full portfolio
From materials discovery to autonomous defense systems, our portfolio spans the founders building the physical, industrial, and biological future.
Intelligent materials discovery through a proprietary AI platform that designs, predicts, and validates materials breakthroughs.
AI-powered robotic solutions for parcel sortation.
A native multi-model database supporting three major NoSQL data models with one core and one query language.
Build AI products with any pre-trained model, ship to production in minutes, and scale with confidence.
AI-assisted business data modeling.
Unlocking revenue opportunities for ecommerce businesses with predictable and scalable funding.
Carbon credit marketplace.
Enabling novel biological insights at the single-cell level for improved diagnosis and treatment of disease.
Continuous revenue optimization for trade marketing teams.
Maximizing farmers' profit potential with data, technology, and direct-to-farm commerce.
Analyze, watch, and personalize B2B user journeys based on who users are and what they've done.
Next-generation gene therapy to improve drug efficacy and cure illness.
Connecting consumers to pickup soccer, basketball, pickleball, and open-play games, leagues, and tournaments nearby.
AI for autonomous surface-finishing robots.
Rideshare for long distances.
Data labeling platform to prepare training data, fine-tune LLMs, and validate models.
Improving gut health for newborns through breakthroughs in probiotics.
Making car ownership easier and more affordable for every driver.
An elegant how-to platform, unlocking knowledge so the world can discover how it's done.
A unified API platform that makes it easy for developers and businesses to connect more efficiently.
Platform for real-time customer engagement and personalization.
Legal document automation software.
Precision medicine bridging genomics and the environment to diagnose and treat complex health conditions.
Uncover needs and attitudes within customer conversations, across all channels.
Adaptive intelligence for robotics and industrial control.
Discount e-commerce.
The first verified identity platform for real life.
Reliable final-mile freight shipping powered by technology.
Transforming the safety, productivity, and profitability of trucking operations.
Benefit navigation and selection.
Self-driving vehicles built to deliver local goods.
Platform for tenants to find apartments from highly rated landlords.
Leading training operations platform for multi-unit brands with frontline workforces.
Fintech solutions for Southeast Asia.
Software-defined parcel logistics for e-commerce.
Affordable, guided micro-missile pods for countering drones.
Quality incontinence products at a fraction of the cost, shipped discreetly to your doorstep each month.
Marketplace connecting buyers and sellers of small and mid-sized businesses to streamline acquisitions.
On-demand environments for development, staging & production.
AI-driven platform accelerating sales and engaging customers for businesses.
Advanced enterprise directory.
Modern shipping, tracking, and address verification APIs for USPS, FedEx, UPS, DHL, and more.
Labor platform for construction.
Home renovation via technology.
Digital design platform for electronics designers.
More affordable, more personal meds, with a personal pharmacist every step of the way.
Accessible, on-demand influencer content.
Software to power independent gig work.
Microlocation data platform.
Safely and easily share sensitive data amongst organizations.
Fast, automated identification and quantification of the causal drivers of business results.
Menstrual discs: the most substantial innovation in period products in nearly a century.
Resilient navigation and contested-environment autonomy for unmanned, manned, and robotic systems.
The all-in-one learning platform that drives business outcomes for the new era of work.
* These companies represent Bow Capital Fund I and II investments with a cost basis in excess of $1M. It should not be assumed that investments made in the future will be profitable or will equal the performance of the investments shown here. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Additional performance information available upon request.
UC Partnership
Bow Capital is a University of California ecosystem fund. We believe our UC access lets us see where markets are headed, based on the latest industry-changing discoveries in academia.
The UC edge
Five of the ten UCs are in the top 51 founder-producing universities in the US, giving Bow access to an unmatched pool of faculty, staff, students, and alumni.
The partnership
Bow is an early-stage venture fund founded in partnership with the University of California Board of Regents. Our UC partnership gives us broad access to the University's massive talent pool for sourcing and evaluating opportunities.
Our unique relationship with the UC enables Bow Capital to continuously develop connections with researchers and faculty spinning out companies from their labs. We also support seed funds and incubators across the UC system, including its alumni and student body, with collaborative investment beyond the seed stage.
When Bow entrepreneurs face technical challenges, we can help connect them with a wide range of preeminent experts from the UC ecosystem for help and advice.
UC San Diego Incubator
The Bow Capital x UC San Diego Incubator funds students, faculty, and alumni advancing national security through science, robotics, and advanced manufacturing.
Founders get funded on day one and build alongside operators who have done it before.
Funding lands on day one so founders start building immediately.
Direct access to founders from Ambi Robotics, GrayMatter, and the wider Bow portfolio.
Leaders across defense, robotics, and manufacturing, on campus with the cohort.
Distributed counter-UAS detection: RF, acoustic, and optical sensing fused into a self-healing mesh.
Shelf-stable, hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier for when donor blood is unavailable.
Ultra-high-performance evaporative cooling for AI accelerators.
Three of six summer 2026 companies shown.
Portfolio, sourced from UC
* The portfolio companies identified on this page do not represent all the investments made or recommended. See our complete list of portfolio companies.
Sources: PitchBook, "Universities: Top 100 colleges ranked by startup founders," October 31, 2022 · "The University of California At A Glance," March 2023 · "The 2022 UC Accountability Report," Chapter 9: Research.
Perspectives
Thought leadership and knowledge transfer are core tenets of how we build, invest, and partner, from published research to the founders we back.
Insights & essays
Research notes, thesis updates, and essays from the Bow team.
Vivek Ranadivé in Fortune: while Washington debates deepfakes and Silicon Valley chases chatbots, the real race is physical AI — machines that can change the world, not just describe it.
Read on Fortune →Scientific American on UC Berkeley's entrepreneurial science: Jennifer Doudna's CRISPR cures, Ken Goldberg's physically intelligent robots, and Omar Yaghi's carbon-capturing materials, all born in campus labs.
Read on Scientific American →Portfolio spotlights
Founder conversations and behind-the-scenes looks at what our portfolio companies are building.
Inside the warehouse: how Ambi Robotics sorts millions of parcels a day.
Watch →Precision at scale: automating surface finishing for aerospace and heavy manufacturing.
Watch →Training on the frontline: AI-powered platform that transforms workforce training and operational execution.
Watch →Team
Bow Capital is led by operators and investors who've built platforms before, now backing the founders building what's next.
Our Investment Team
Founder & Managing Director
LinkedIn →General Partner
LinkedIn →General Partner
LinkedIn →Partner
LinkedIn →CFO
LinkedIn →Partner
LinkedIn →Partner
LinkedIn →Principal
LinkedIn →Our approach
How we work with founders once we've backed them.
On how to grow platforms, without being prescriptive or controlling.
Applying operating skills where requested.
To accelerate a company's success.
Extended team
Beyond our five partners, Bow runs on a fabric of specialized AI agents woven through the firm, each named for a Renaissance master and built to compound the leverage of a lean team.
Sourcing
A continual drumbeat of new opportunities, with assisted outreach to founders.
Deck Review
Processing and triage of inbound materials relative to our benchmarks.
Networking
Charts the "path to" a person and assists with warm introductions.
Prospect Data Aggregation
A single source of truth that enables faster collaboration and decision making.
Portfolio Reporting
Instantly queryable portfolio data that reduces reporting overhead.
Content Direction
Guides our media presence to build the firm's founder magnet.
Contact
Reach out to the team directly, or stop by our Menlo Park office.
Get in touch
The fastest way to reach the team.
contact@bowcapital.com2440 Sand Hill Rd, Suite 101
Menlo Park, CA 94025
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