# Outcast Ventures

> Outcast Ventures is a pre-seed and seed venture firm in San Francisco investing $500K–$1M in AI, enterprise, consumer, vertical SaaS, healthtech, hardtech, and fintech. We believe founding teams matter more than founding ideas.

Outcast Ventures backs founders at the earliest stages — pre-seed and seed. We write $500K–$1M checks. Some teams come to us fully formed. Others form through Catalyst, our founder formation engine where exceptional builders meet, work together, and decide whether to found a company. If they do, Outcast writes the first check.

Founded by Andy Chen and Amy Lin. Andy previously co-led Coatue's venture practice as a General Partner. Amy was Chief Product Officer at NFX where she scaled the fund to $1.5B AUM. Their portfolio includes investments in Figma, Scale AI, Chime, Persona, and Distyl.

## Pages

- [Home](https://outcastventures.com/): Overview of the firm, Catalyst program, and portfolio highlights
- [About](https://outcastventures.com/about/): Firm belief, founding story, and team bios
- [Catalyst](https://outcastventures.com/catalyst/): Founder formation engine — how it works, what you get, FAQ, and application
- [Investments](https://outcastventures.com/investments/): Portfolio companies across AI, enterprise, consumer, vertical SaaS, healthtech, hardtech, and fintech
- [Essays](https://outcastventures.com/essays/): Research and writing on co-founders, first hires, and team decisions

## Team

- [Andy Chen](https://outcastventures.com/team/andy-chen/): Co-Founder & Managing Partner — former GP at Coatue, founded KPCB Fellows at Kleiner Perkins
- [Amy Lin](https://outcastventures.com/team/amy-lin/): Co-Founder & Managing Partner — former CPO at NFX, YC founder, 7 patents

## Research

- [The Billion-Dollar Founder Study](https://outcastventures.com/essays/billion-dollar-founder-study/): 20 years of billion-dollar exits reveal that co-founders who already knew each other consistently exit for less — challenging startup mythology about founding teams
- [Outcast Launches Fund and Catalyst Program](https://outcastventures.com/essays/outcast-launches-fund/): Announcement of the inaugural fund and the Catalyst program for top 1% of builders who take co-founder selection seriously

## Optional

- [Apply to Catalyst](https://catalyst.outcastventures.com/): Application form for the Catalyst program