Inspired Capital closes a $450M fourth fund, taking the New York firm founded by Alexa von Tobel and Penny Pritzker to nearly $1.4B under management

Inspired Capital has closed its fourth fund with $450 million in commitments, up from a $330 million Fund III in early 2024 and a $200 million debut fund in 2019, taking assets under management to nearly $1.4 billion.

Founded in 2019 by Alexa von Tobel, who sold LearnVest to Northwestern Mutual for a reported $375 million, and former US Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker, the firm backs around 10 companies a year from napkin stage to Series A with cheques of $1 million to $15 million; the portfolio is split about 45% East Coast, 45% West Coast.

Von Tobel says 12 companies from the first two funds have become unicorns, around 15% of the portfolio; exits include MosaicML, sold to Databricks for $1.3 billion, and fintech TeamShares, which went public through a SPAC in June. The close comes as Bay Area firms took 55% of new US venture commitments last year.