VC Spotlight: Boost VC
Boost VC is not in the business of incremental change, it is in the business of warp drives. Since 2012, Adam Draper and Brayton Williams have been running a live experiment in what happens when you back founders chasing the frontier. One deal a week, every week, for over a decade, has made them the world's most active deep tech investor. Where other firms tiptoe, they accelerate. Where the market hesitates, they hit ignition.
Adam Draper, a fourth-generation venture capitalist, had already placed early bets on Coinbase, Amplitude, and PlanGrid before founding Boost VC. He saw a gap: there was no institutional capital at pre-seed dedicated to deep tech, no home for the founders who were too early, too technical, too audacious. Brayton Williams, Co-Founder and Partner, turned that thesis into operational firepower, creating a model where conviction meets execution. Together, they built a fund that didn't just invest, it incubated entire industries.
Today, that vision is carried forward by a leadership bench that runs wide and deep. Adam Draper and Brayton Williams are joined by Maddie Callander, promoted to Partner in 2023 after years of driving founder success. On the investment side, Gus Domel serves as Principal and Emily Yu as Investor. The community and operations core is anchored by Danielle Sosnick (Post Investment, Community & Events), Derek Brown (Controller), and Alex San Agustin (Executive Assistant). The team functions less like a traditional fund and more like a launch facility.
The model is tight but potent: $500K pre-seed checks as lead investor, $50K Founder Start checks to spark prototyping, and an unapologetic focus on "scifi" verticals, blockchain, space, robotics, AI, bio, climate, VR, energy, ocean tech. The filtering mechanism is founder quality, with an emphasis on resilience, technical mastery, and what they call "default movement." In short: cockroaches, the founders who survive anything.
The proof sits in their portfolio. Coinbase's 2021 direct listing, which peaked over $100 billion in valuation, remains the landmark. Unstoppable Domains achieved unicorn status, validating early conviction in decentralized identity. Hundreds of others across space, bio, AI, robotics, and crypto now make up a portfolio of 300+ startups, with 30+ exits and multiple billion-dollar outcomes.
But the power of Boost VC is not just what they invest in, it's the rhythm. One deep tech deal per week, backed by $250M in assets under management, biannual demo days that attract global investors, BitcoinFi accelerators with Draper Associates and Thesis, biotech residencies, and a community infrastructure designed to keep founders moving. The cadence is as much the differentiator as the capital.
The bet is simple but seismic: if the future looks like science fiction, Boost VC wants to be in the script. Their portfolio companies are hiring now across AI, crypto, robotics, biotech, climate, and space. If you want to build tomorrow, this is where the launchpad begins.
Follow this firm. Study their founders. Track their plays.
Let’s connect and keep the momentum going across the tech ecosystem. Whether you’re a founder shaping the future, a leader driving change, a VC backing bold ideas, or an investor spotting the next big thing, together, we’re pushing boundaries. Proud to be building the future with you.
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