Augment Ventures November 2024

Augment Ventures Recognized as Founder Friendly Firm

We are incredibly proud to share that Augment Ventures has been named one of Inc.’s Top Founder-Friendly Investors of 2024!

Since 2011, Augment has had the privilege of working with over 30 remarkable founders across diverse industries. This recognition underscores Augment’s dedication to fostering deep partnerships with founders, providing them with the resources, guidance, and encouragement they need to succeed. Augment Ventures prioritizes a founder-first approach that aligns with its mission to invest in early-stage, transformative companies. This approach not only reflects Augment’s core values but also strengthens its reputation as a trusted, long-term partner for visionary founders.

Augment Ventures Founder, Sonali Vijayavargiya, commented on the recognition:
“Being founder-friendly is not just a value we hold; it’s fundamental to our success as an early-stage venture fund. When founders feel fully supported whether that’s through access to resources, strategic guidance, or simply having a partner who genuinely believes in their vision—they’re empowered to take risks and build transformative companies. At the end of the day, our success is tied directly to theirs. By putting founders at the center of our approach, we’re not only investing in great companies but also cultivating trusted, long-term relationships that drive meaningful impact. We’re incredibly grateful to Inc. for recognizing Augment Ventures as a founder-friendly firm, as it validates our commitment to empowering visionary entrepreneurs.”

To read more click here.

The Augment Team recently attended the 2024 MVCA Awards ceremony in Detroit. The awards recognize founders that have fostered a vibrant entrepreneurial community, companies that are producing groundbreaking solutions in their sectors, significant financing milestones that enable companies to grow and excel in Michigan, and individuals whose achievements have had pivotal influence on Michigan’s entrepreneurial and investment ecosystem.

Augment portfolio companies Optilogic and Rivet Work were both nominated for Up-and-Coming Company of the Year. The award recognizes Michigan companies across all stages of growth that are producing groundbreaking solutions in their sectors. Huge congratulations to Optilogic for winning the award and a massive shoutout to founder Donald Hicks and the entire team for this well-deserved recognition.

To read more on the event click here.

Augment recently hosted a ‘Funders & Founders AMA’ event in Ann Arbor. At the event the Augment Team and friends had the privilege of hearing from two inspiring founders, Donald Hicks of Optilogic and Ryan Meitl of Rivet Work, who shared invaluable insights into their entrepreneurial journeys, challenges, and the innovative solutions they are building.

Their stories sparked engaging discussions on navigating the startup ecosystem, scaling with purpose, and creating impactful ventures. We look forward to hosting more events like this to continue fostering innovation and deepening our relationships within the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Augment is excited to share our latest article on Medium! In “Founders & Funders: Two Sides of the Same Coin,” Sonali Vijayavargiya dives deep into the often-misunderstood dynamics between founders and funders. This piece sheds light on the symbiotic relationship that drives innovation, explores the shared challenges, and debunks common myths around venture capital and startup funding.

To read the article click here. Also be sure to follow us on Medium for more thought pieces on the world of entrepreneurship and venture capital by clicking here and selecting the highlighted “Follow” button.

Zenode Founder Featured on EE Journal Podcast
Zenode founder, Brandon Bourn, and Electrical Engineering Journal’s Amelia Dalton discuss how monotonous repetitive tasks and hardware design pain points motivated the creation of the Zenode platform, how large language models can be utilized to solve these issues and how Zenode is looking to revolutionize hardware design with their new electronic component search engine. To listen to the podcast please click here.

ConverSight Founder on Sustainable Supply Chain Podcast
CEO and Co-Founder, Ganesh Gandhieswaran, joined Tom Raftery on the Sustainable Supply Chain Podcast to discuss everything sustainability in supply chain: technology, integrating data, and small ways companies can commit to sustainability long-term. To listen to the podcast please click here.