LAUNCH ANNOUNCEMENT
A New Association for Startup Investors Launches in Response to Unprecedented Venture Capital Growth in Austin
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUSTIN, TEXAS — A newly formed non-profit in Austin aims to help bring the startup investor community together by establishing an organization focused on professional development, organizing the local greater venture community, and encouraging more and better startup support to the region.
Massive shifts and growth have occurred in the venture capital space during the recent years. Part of those trends sweeping the industry are that more venture capitalists have moved to Austin, or have at least established a presence in some capacity. This activity is only expected to advance even more in the years to come. Last year, Austin broke yet another record by attracting over $5 billion in venture capital to startups in the city.
The cofounding team involved with creating the Association are: serial entrepreneur, CS Freeland as Executive Director, along with Chris Shonk, cofounder and partner at venture capital firm, ATX Venture Partners, Carl Grant, EVP of Global Business Development at international law firm, Cooley, and Ari Salafia, founder and CEO of local startup, TaxTaker, as Executive Board Members.
“After spending over fifteen years in Austin and having seen many of the changes happen first-hand in both the startup and venture worlds, the explosion of growth in just the past year has proven a challenge for anyone to keep up with,” said Freeland. “Two years ago maybe twenty venture capital firms considered Austin their headquarters. Now, in our Venture Directory, we’re seeing that number is closer to seventy— meaning the actual majority of venture capitalists here are new. That’s not even including the 50+ remote workers usually from a fund on the east or west coasts. It’s a huge moment in time and tremendous opportunity for startup investors to really come together.”
The Austin Venture Association focuses on the greater venture community of over 150 organizations including: venture capital firms, accelerators, incubators, family offices, corporates, startup studios, angel networks/funds, LPs, growth and private equity.
A variety of programming that the Association is launching focuses on: job opportunities, mentorship, thought leadership, deal flow, curated events exclusive to selected networks, and other efforts in career growth.
“Both the quality and quantity of talented founders here rivals any tech market save Bay Area. It’s also spilling over to the VP, director and entry-level tech, sales, marketing and operations needed to truly scale a company. It’s wonderful to see so many capable people joining the ecosystem.” said Shonk. “We’re excited about the first quarter getting off to a great start. The energy in Austin is very high, and we appreciate the overwhelming response from early supporters in town. It’s great to see how this city will develop, and we encourage our community to take an active role in shaping that growth.”
The Association had a soft launch event in October 2021 exclusive to under a hundred attendees. Earlier this month, they hosted a second event with over three hundred venture professionals, venture-backed founders, and visitors flying in for SXSW.
A few early founding partners and supporters of the Association include: Brex, TriNet, Cooley, EarlyGrowth, Cherry Bekaert, CBRE, Silicon Valley Bank, Astrella, SR Group | Compass, and more.
Announcements will continue to be made about how to join as a sponsor, board, committee, or obtain a standard membership. Professionals from Austin’s greater venture community are encouraged to get in touch via the website about participating.
Sign up for updates via the newsletter on the Austin Venture Association website, www.austinventureassociation.org.
ABOUT THE AUSTIN VENTURE ASSOCIATION
The Austin Venture Association is a non-profit focused on the local greater venture community supporting the startup ecosystem.
CONTACT
CS Freeland
Cofounder & Executive Director
cs@austinventureassociation.org
