Copyright © 2023 Iolar Ventures. All Rights Reserved.
Our investing model and hands-on approach are based on more than a decade of investing success with a diverse group of entrepreneurs.
New tools and technologies are enabling founders to build startups in a more streamlined manner than ever before. Yet the approach of mainstream venture, with an emphasis on outlier outcomes, rapid growth at all costs, high burn rates, and a large portfolio to mitigate high risk, may not always be the best choice for founders. At Iolar Ventures, we believe there is a better way to align investors and founders. We strive to deliver not just capital but the critical resources that create real impact for a company.
We believe that the capital-efficient approach is a better way to build a successful company. Iolar Ventures offers our portfolio companies world-class venture capital expertise while enabling founders and teams to start lean and stay lean all the way through their growth journey. Everything we do centers around enabling great outcomes for our founders, and we have crafted an investment approach that uniquely serves the needs of capital-efficient companies. In particular, we believe that:
We value clarity, simplicity, and focus. Amazing things can happen when we stay focused on what is essential. And – as every entrepreneur knows – nothing takes more discipline than focus.
We have purposefully kept our funds small in order to match the needs of our entrepreneurs. That way we don’t need to force companies to take excess capital in order to “move the needle” on returns to our funds. Like our companies, we can then remain highly focused on resourcefulness and delivering a great value proposition.
Most importantly, we look for opportunities where we can squarely align with the founders in a meaningful, trusted, long-term relationship.
Our partners have decades of venture capital investment experience. We’ve built products, teams, ecosystems, and founded companies ourselves. We understand how to help founders achieve their dreams, from start to exit.
Managing Partner
Managing Partner
Copyright © 2023 Iolar Ventures. All Rights Reserved.
Susan Mason has more than three decades of operating, management, and venture capital experience. Prior to co-founding Iolar Ventures, she spent more than a decade as a co-founder of Aligned Partners, and 15 years as a General Partner at ONSET Ventures. Susan has specialized in information technology investing, specifically communications and security. As an investor and board member, Susan has played a pivotal role in the development of companies including Securent, Alteon, Gadzoox, SilverTail Systems, Actineon, and many others.
Prior to joining ONSET Ventures as a Kauffman Fellow in 1996, Susan held positions in high-technology engineering, marketing, and business development. She led a highly successful consulting practice, helping Fortune 1000 corporations capitalize on emerging markets and technologies. Early in her career, she held positions in marketing and engineering design of high-performance systems and microprocessors for Fujitsu Microelectronics, Fairchild Semiconductor, and NCR Microelectronics.
Susan received a BS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of Colorado, and an MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles. She is a regular guest speaker on entrepreneurial topics at Stanford University, UCLA, and many local events in Silicon Valley.
Susan is a founding board member of the Center for Venture Education, which operates the Kauffman Fellows Program. She currently serves as its Chairman Emeritus. Susan is also the Chairman of the Finance and Investment Committee for the town of Los Altos Hills, California.
Patrick Sagisi has three decades of product development, operations, management, and venture capital experience. Prior to co-founding Iolar Ventures, Patrick was the Director & Head of Corporate Ventures at Acario Innovation/TokyoGas, investing in climate and new energy companies including Electriphi, Heila, and Geli. Before Acario, Patrick spent his early venture career at DBL Investors/DBL Partners, where he worked closely with companies such as Mapbox, Kateeva, Urbansitter, Siva Power, Trove, Brightsource Energy, ZincFive, OPX Biotechnologies, Brainscope, View, The RealReal, Planet Labs, and SpaceX.
Prior to joining DBL as a Kauffman Fellow, Patrick spent more than 15 years in global product management, new product development, marketing, strategy, operations, and sales at Samsung, Ventana Medical Systems, Adobe, and Xerox PARC.
Patrick received dual MBA and MS-Engineering degrees from Stanford University, and has a dual-degree BS in Electrical Engineering/Computer Science and Materials Science Engineering from UC Berkeley.
Patrick is a three-time Olympian in swimming, and was Guam’s Opening Ceremonies Flag-bearer in the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games.
Fill out your information below, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
We collect information about your visit through cookies and web beacons. You can opt out through your browser, but then you will not have access to all the functions of the website. To learn more, read our Privacy Notice.