We back SoCal's biggest dreamers at the earliest stages.

We back SoCal's biggest dreamers at the earliest stages.

Southern California's first student-run angel syndicate.

Southern California's first student-run angel syndicate.

Apply for funding

Apply for funding

Apply for funding

Apply for funding

We're a community of students backing outlier startups in Southern California.

With 20 partners spanning 12+ universities, we build relationships with SoCal's best founders and companies. As students, we connect with alumni and founders before they're founders. We run a syndicate, connecting SoCal's biggest dreamers with funding from our community of angels.

SoCal has a gap between founders and capital.

SoCal universities produce top technical talent but its founders have little access to early-stage venture capital.
Deal flow from regional universities is opaque for institutional investors— meaning most miss out on the region's outlier returns.

And we've bridged it once before.

SoCal has a gap between founders and capital.

At California Crescent Fund, we invested 20+ portfolio companies to bridge SoCal's best talent with the capital they need. We've worked with our LPs to back outlier companies and make our impact— now, we're spinning out and ready to do it again through a new Syndicate.

SoCal has top technical talent and universities but its founders have little access to early-stage venture capital.
Deal flow from regional universities is opaque for institutional investors— meaning most miss out on the region's outlier returns.

And we've bridged this gap once before.

At California Crescent Fund, we deployed $1M across 23 portfolio companies to bridge SoCal's best talent with the capital they need. We've worked with our LPs to back outlier companies and make our impact— now, we're spinning out and ready to do it again through a new Syndicate.

We're looking for founders who…

01

Have SoCal in their DNA

1+ founding member being a SoCal student, dropout, or alum.

01

Have SoCal in their DNA

1+ founding member being a SoCal student, dropout, or alum.

01

Have SoCal in their DNA

1+ founding member being a SoCal student, dropout, or recent grad.

02

Hold an Unfair GTM Advantage

What makes you the right team to build and sell this product?

02

Hold an Unfair GTM Advantage

What makes you the right team to build and sell this product?

02

Hold an Unfair GTM Advantage

Why are you the right team to build and sell this product?

03

Build & Test Quickly

Focused on building product, launching fast, and iterating.

03

Build & Test Quickly

Focused on building product, launching fast, and iterating.

03

Build & Test Quickly

Focused on building product, launching fast, and iterating.

04

Chase a "Why Now?"

Timing matters: how do you see the world around you right now?

04

Chase a "Why Now?"

Timing matters: how do you see the world around you right now?

04

Chase a "Why Now?"

Timing matters— how do you see the world right now?

Apply for Funding

Apply for Funding

Apply for Funding

Apply for Funding

Past Investments

These investments were made through California Crescent Fund, a separate investment vehicle.

Invested Alongside:

Our team.

We're a community of SoCal's most driven students, dedicated to backing founders chasing impact.

Harrison Berger

Managing Partner, USC

Harrison Berger

Managing Partner, USC

Harrison Berger

Managing Partner

Rohan Desai

Managing Partner, HMC

Rohan Desai

Managing Partner, HMC

Rohan Desai

Managing Partner

Blake Lindblad

Managing Partner, Cal Poly

Blake Lindblad

Managing Partner, Cal Poly

Blake Lindblad

Managing Partner

Angelina Lue

Partner, UCLA

Angelina Lue

Partner, UCLA

Angelina Lue

Partner, UCLA

Michael Zbyszewski

Partner, LMU

Michael Zbyszewski

Partner, LMU

Michael Zbyszewski

Partner, LMU

Antonio Li

Partner, UCI

Antonio Li

Partner, UCI

Antonio Li

Partner, UCI

Anant Somani

Investor, UCSB

Anant Somani

Investor, UCSB

Anant Somani

Investor, UCSB

William Li

Investor, UCLA

William Li

Investor, UCLA

William Li

Investor, UCLA

Jayhyun Suh

Investor, Pomona

Jayhyun Suh

Investor, Pomona

Jayhyun Suh

Investor, Pomona

Kairi Tanaka

Investor, UCSD

Kairi Tanaka

Investor, UCSD

Kairi Tanaka

Investor, UCSD

Kristof Balasanian

Investor, SDSU

Kristof Balasanian

Investor, SDSU

Kristof Balasanian

Investor, SDSU