Long Journey Ventures
UnclaimedAt a Glance
- Check Size
- $100K – $1M
- Stage
- Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A
- Sectors
- AI, Fintech, Digital Health
- Founded
- 2019
- HQ
- San Francisco, CA
About Long Journey Ventures
Long Journey Ventures is a San Francisco-based seed-stage venture firm founded in 2019 that deliberately backs founders other investors dismiss. Its stated preference is for unusual people working on unusual problems, and it invests at pre-seed, seed and Series A, often writing the first institutional check into a company and then staying close to the founder through later rounds.
The partnership includes co-founder Cyan Banister and general partner Arielle Zuckerberg. Brian Balfour and Elaine Wherry are listed on the firm's site as advisers rather than partners, a distinction worth keeping straight when reading third-party profiles of the firm.
The companies the firm publishes on its own site include Uber, SpaceX, Anduril, Notion, Niantic, Loom, Postmates, Crusoe Energy, Together.ai, TrueMed, General Matter and Substrate. That list reflects a mix of early positions in companies that became very large and current holdings in defense technology, energy, industrial manufacturing and AI infrastructure, rather than a single sector thesis.
In practice the firm operates less like a stage-specialist fund and more like a group of individual investors with unusually wide taste. It does not publish an assets-under-management figure, it keeps a small team, and it describes its own culture in terms of character and conviction rather than sector coverage or check-size discipline. Its selection filter is the founder: the firm looks for people whose approach reads as strange to conventional investors, on the theory that consensus-friendly founders are already well funded and priced accordingly.
Investment Thesis
“Champions founders that others dismiss, providing devoted partner support for underrepresented entrepreneurs.”
Sector Focus
Investment Stage
Notable Portfolio Companies
Fund History
- Long Journey Ventures does not file its earlier vehicles under the Long Journey name, and Funds I through III do not appear in SEC EDGAR full-text search.
- The firm's institutional scale becomes visible with Long Journey Fund IV, L.P., which filed a Form D on March 29, 2024 for a $175 million offering, with Lee Jacobs signing on behalf of Long Journey Fund IV GP, LLC. Long Journey Fund V, L.P. followed on March 6, 2026 with a $236 million offering, again with Jacobs as the signing general partner.
- Both are Delaware-organized California-based partnerships, and neither had reported a first sale at the time of filing.
- Alongside the flagship funds the firm runs deal-by-deal co-investment vehicles.
- Activate MegaWatts LJ, L.P. filed in November 2024, and Long Journey Activate MegaWatts II, a series of Long Journey SPVs, LP, filed in October 2025.
- The firm was founded in 2019 and invests at pre-seed, seed and Series A from San Francisco.
SEC Fund Filings
- Vehicles filed, last 24 months
- 1
- Latest filing
Long Journey Ventures filed a Form D for 1 fund vehicle between Sep 30, 2024 and Sep 29, 2026.
| Fund vehicle | Source |
|---|---|
| Long Journey Fund V, L.P. | SEC Form D, filed |
A Form D is the notice a fund files with the SEC when it raises money in a private offering. Feeder funds, parallel funds and SPVs each file their own, so the count measures filing activity, not the number of flagship funds.
Source: SEC EDGAR Form D filings for pooled investment funds, original filings only (amendments excluded). Our filing data starts Jul 1, 2024. Vehicles are matched to Long Journey Ventures by fund name and checked against the sponsor address and named principals on each filing; offering amounts are not shown. Each “SEC Form D” link opens an EDGAR full-text search for that vehicle’s exact name, where the filing itself is listed. See every new fund filing on the Form D Radar.
Team (4)
Related Articles (1)
Frequently Asked Questions
What stage does Long Journey Ventures invest at?
Long Journey Ventures primarily invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages. This means they focus on companies that are at the earliest idea or prototype phase.
Where is Long Journey Ventures located?
Long Journey Ventures is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. Many of their portfolio companies are also based in this region, though they invest across geographies.
What sectors does Long Journey Ventures focus on?
Long Journey Ventures focuses on investments in AI, Fintech, Digital Health. Their portfolio reflects deep expertise and networks within these sectors.
What is Long Journey Ventures's typical check size?
Long Journey Ventures's typical investment check size ranges from $100K to $1M. Actual amounts may vary based on the stage, sector, and specific opportunity.
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