Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

Symphonic Capital:

Symphonic Capital, an early stage venture capital firm investing in the next generation of institutions serving overlooked and underserved communities, has officially closed its $13.5 million debut fund.

Led by Sydney Thomas, the inaugural fund will focus on investments in founders closing access gaps across healthcare and financial services. The fund supports visionary founders addressing some of the world’s most pressing challenges while driving meaningful impact for communities and limited partners. As part of the official fund launch, Shruti Shah joins Symphonic Capital as a Partner.

“We’re excited to announce the launch of our first fund and deeply honored to have the backing of an incredible group of like-minded partners,” said Thomas, Founder and Managing Director of Symphonic Capital. “We believe in the vision we’re building at Symphonic and look forward to putting our thesis to work: investing in founders committed to creating a more equitable future for all.”

Symphonic targets the earliest stage of investment, emphasizing companies outside of traditional coastal tech hubs. The firm partners with founders who have developed a minimum viable product and whose companies are valued at $10 million or less. Many promising start-ups at this stage are overlooked by larger venture capital firms, often leaving them without crucial support. Symphonic fills this gap by investing early and guiding founders through critical growth phases to build impactful, scalable businesses.

Smith Point Capital:

Smith Point Capital Management LLC, an operator-led venture capital firm shaping the intelligent enterprise, has announced the final closing of its inaugural fund, Smith Point Capital Fund I L.P., with more than $360 million in aggregate commitments, exceeding its target of $300 million.

According to a news release, Smith Point Capital’s operator-led investment approach attracted significant interest from emerging technology companies as well as institutional investors, foundations, endowments, family offices, and strategic investors. As of the final closing, the fund already holds six portfolio investments representing $145 million of invested capital – a testament to both the strength of the firm’s strategy and the market’s appetite for its differentiated value proposition.

Fund I focuses on investing in enterprise software companies that deliver mission-critical technologies that reshape business processes, operations, and customer experiences. Leveraging an operator-led model, the Fund is designed to capitalize on emerging opportunities and guide portfolio companies through the complexities of growing and scaling across the enterprise software landscape.

Bosch Ventures:

The venture arm of Bosch has a new $270 million fund that will continue its tradition of investing in deep-tech start-ups. This time, however, Bosch Ventures plans to put more of its money into North American start-ups.

Launched in 2007, Bosch Ventures is now on its sixth fund. And while the corporate venture capital arm is technically a global firm, its focus today is weighted more heavily towards North America. Ingo Ramesohl, Bosch Ventures’ Managing Director, told TechCrunch the deal flow in North America is stronger than ever.

“I see a lot of positive energy,” he said. “People are not stopping to innovate and not stopping to disrupt. So for me, it’s really a great time for new investments.”

According to an article posted on MSN, the firm is still investing in automotive, climate tech, cybersecurity, semiconductor manufacturing, energy efficiency, and enterprise software. Generative AI, more specifically, applying AI tools to the physical world like manufacturing, is also high on the list.

Aligned Climate Capital:

As demand for clean, reliable energy continues to rise across the U.S., Aligned Climate Capital has announced the final close of its sixth distributed solar fund, Aligned Solar Partners 6 LP (ASP6), with commitments above the $200 million target fund size. ASP6 achieved final close with participation from leading institutional investors in the U.S. and globally, including insurance companies, endowments, foundations, and family offices.

Aligned has been investing in the distributed solar market since 2018, and this fund represents its largest investment partnership to date. Aligned has achieved strong financial returns in this strategy to date, with significant realized returns to investors and consistent annual cash distributions. ASP6 acquires construction-ready distributed solar projects from development partners across the U.S., finances their build-out, and delivers returns through tax credit monetization, operating income distributions, and portfolio sales to institutional infrastructure investors.

“The U.S. needs new power generation to meet growing electricity demand, and solar energy is the cheapest, fastest, and cleanest technology in the market,” said Peter W. Davidson, Chief Executive Officer of Aligned Climate Capital. “We have been investors in this market for more than a decade and understand how solar can deliver consistent cash returns for our investors each year.”

---