Frequently Asked Questions
How / Why is this good for San Diego?
Our goal is to build a large evergreen fund that continually gives back to San Diego in perpetuity. Hopefully a $15M fund becomes $30M, which grows to $100M years from now. Those dollars will get invested back into the startup community, creating high-quality jobs across the region. We believe a strong, diverse base of innovation companies creates a strong macro economy. Our intention is to be a tier one global innovation hub. Not necessarily the biggest – but the best innovation ecosystem on the planet.
Does any other region have anything like this?
No, San Diego is the first. This is for San Diego by San Diegans – people who are passionate about the future of our region, and making it better for generations to come. San Diego is awesome, and we intend to make it even better.
How is this different from a traditional accelerator?
There isn’t an 8-week cohort approach. Working with Connect, we are there to help your company scale well beyond the 8 weeks, for many years ahead. We can access different industry experts and advisors over the lifecycle of the company, depending on the needs and stage of the company. Connect is uniquely successful with a long history of helping local companies raise venture funding, further enhancing the trajectory of companies selected.
What kind of companies are you seeking to invest in?
Much like traditional venture firms, we are looking for tech, life science and CPG companies that are highly scalable. This is an early seed investment. We expect to help these companies raise venture capital. We will seek to build a diverse portfolio across the tech and life sciences arenas.
What are the near and long term goals of the Foundation?
Admittedly, the early years are focused on getting positive returns, and growing the size of the fund. Once we get to sufficient size, the board has the ability to make grants and other investments to help the broader mission of creating economic opportunity across the region. The bigger the fund, the greater the impact the Foundation can make.
Who can be a philanthropic investor and why is it important?
Anyone who believes that a strong innovation economy is important to the future prosperity of San Diego and all families across our megaregion. If you’re interested in learning more, we’d love to talk to you. We are extremely grateful to our initial backers, Buzz Woolley and Malin Burnham.
Nonprofits designed to support economic opportunity are strangely hard to build. We’re just not high on philanthropic radars. Yet what we do, building a strong economy, is foundational to the region’s future.
Who is running the fund?
Mike Krenn is the Founder of the Fund, with zero upside. Mike is the former founder of Tech Coast Angels (now NuFund) and has helped more than 100 companies raise venture capital, well in excess of $800M.
Dave Titus, a former venture capitalist who has a long history in San Diego as the founder of Windward Ventures, will oversee the application and investment process. A separate investment committee will approve all investments.
When were the first investments made?
The first wave of investments were made in September 2024. Check out the press release!
What is the inspiration for creating the Foundation and taking it forward?
Connect was founded by amazing individuals – people like Buzz Woolley, Irwin Jacobs, David Hale, and Mary Walshok – who paved the way for San Diego to have an amazing innovation ecosystem. At the same time, San Diego has benefited from the generous philanthropy of a handful of individuals, people like Buzz, Malin Burnham, Irwin Jacobs, Ernest Rady, Conrad Prebys, David Hale and Denny Sanford. These people largely created the San Diego we love. We hope to inspire the next generation of leaders in their likeness.
How is this different from a traditional venture fund?
From the company’s perspective – not much at all. Companies will receive a traditional, founder-friendly investment. From the fund’s perspective – it is entirely different. No one gets rich but San Diego. The investors will not get their money back, their investment is 100% philanthropic. Similarly, the managers of the fund will get neither a carry (typically 20% of the returns), nor a management fee (typically 2% of assets under management. Instead, all returns will go right back into the Foundation to be redistributed back into the ecosystem.
What does evergreen mean?
Evergreen means the TL Fund never stops growing. We reinvest 100% of our gains back into the fund — no payouts, no end date. We’re built to last and plan to be here 50 years from now, continuously fueling San Diego’s innovation ecosystem for generations to come.
What companies has TL Foundation already funded?
We chose our inaugural companies in 2024. We are continuing to expand the portfolio.
How are returns reinvested into the community?
Every return goes back into the fund to support more founders and companies in San Diego. As we grow, we hope to use some of our gains to support those organizations building the innovation ecosystem in San Diego.
