Berkeley SkyDeck Fund

What they do

Berkeley SkyDeck Fund operates under a unique public-private partnership model, serving as the financial engine behind UC Berkeley's premier academic accelerator. The firm provides standardized seed funding to startups accepted into the highly competitive SkyDeck cohort. What makes the fund distinctive is its commitment to the university ecosystem: it donates 50% of its carried interest (profits) back to UC Berkeley to support ongoing research and education. The fund bridges the gap between academic innovation, global entrepreneurship, and Silicon Valley capital, helping founders scale and secure institutional funding.

What they look for

The firm believes that academic founders are brilliant, energetic, and a source of innovation that will fundamentally change lives. They operate on the principle that "science has no territorial boundaries" and aim to enable global change by backing highly technical, high-growth potential startups.

Stage

Pre-seed, Seed, Series A, Series B+

Sectors

Deeptech, AI, Healthcare, Climate, SaaS, Fintech

Based

Berkeley, US