For Entrepreneurs
More than a check. A network of 215 operators.
QCA Ventures backs high-growth, technology-driven startups whose founders are looking for more than just capital. You raise from 215+ former CEOs and founders who have built, scaled and exited companies of their own — and who stay in the trenches with you afterward.
Smart Capital
Much more than a source for money.
QCA is passionate about supporting entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs drive the economy, solve problems, make lives better and create jobs — they are QCA Ventures’ primary reason for being. That conviction is why we lead with smart capital, not just a wire transfer.
Smart capital is what happens when a check arrives with everything else a founder actually needs to win:
- Capital — direct member investment, plus the co-investors and follow-on funds our members rally around your round.
- Mentoring & coaching — hands-on counsel from operators who have already solved the problem in front of you.
- A 215-member operator network — former CEOs and founders across IT, life sciences and advanced materials, on call for introductions, diligence and hard questions.
- Startup College® — structured education that has trained more than 1,000 entrepreneurs to raise and build.
The Multiplier · From the Founder Side
One QCA member dollar tends to bring seven more with it.
Every $1 a QCA member commits has historically helped rally ~$8 of total capital for the founder.
Over 25 years, $128M of member capital has syndicated into more than $1B of total capital across 375 investments in 123 companies. When QCA writes a check, co-investors and follow-on funds tend to follow.
The Founder Funnel
How it works.
Apply
Submit your company. Tell us what you’re building, the market you’re disrupting and what you need beyond the money.
Pitch
Present to the members — the former CEOs and founders who will diligence, invest and mentor if it’s a fit.
Due Diligence
Member operators diligence with you, not just about you — pressure-testing the plan the way they would their own company.
Invest
QCA members write checks and syndicate co-investors and follow-on funds — the multiplier that turns one commitment into a full round.
Build together
A board seat, QCA Morning Mentoring™ and ongoing counsel. The relationship starts at the wire, it doesn’t end there.
What We Look For
Earliest-stage, high-growth, technology-driven startups.
Information Technology
Software companies backed by members who built and ran software companies themselves.
- B2B SaaS
- Enterprise software
- IoT
Life Sciences
Diligenced by members with deep clinical and commercial experience.
- Therapeutics
- Med-tech
- Healthcare platforms
Advanced Materials
The industrial backbone of the Midwest, funded at the earliest stage.
- Advanced manufacturing
- Materials science
Stage: the earliest, high-growth, technology-driven startups — with founders who are looking for more than just capital.
Programs for Founders
Education and counsel, built into the model.
Startup College®
Run by the QCA Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3). More than 1,000 entrepreneurs trained to raise and build.
eKickstart
Early-stage guidance for founders preparing to raise their first institutional capital.
QCA Morning Mentoring™
Direct working sessions with member operators and investors — the standing counsel behind every portfolio company.
Entrepreneur Boot Camp
Intensive preparation for the realities of company building, before and after the raise.
Ready when you are.
Whether you’re raising now or getting ready, these programs meet founders where they are — no check required to start learning.
Bring us more than a business plan — bring us a company worth building together.
Submit your startup to QCA Ventures. If it’s a fit, you get a check, a board partner and 215 operators in your corner.
