Who We Invest In

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McNamara Family
Investments

Angel investors in deep-tech for a better future.

Who We Are

Hi! I'm Adam.

I'm a computer scientist, entrepreneur, angel investor, and dad. I co-founded Select Start Studios, acquired by Shopify, and helped build Shopify as its first VP Product.

For over a decade, I've been angel-investing in founders working on "moonshots" - wildly ambitious solutions to big, hard, and important problems.

McNamara Family Investments is my family's investment fund, and our mission is to build a better future.

More on that below.

Our Mission

We invest in deep-tech founders building a better future.

4,000,000 years.

That's how long us humans have been around for, give or take a bit.

For the first 3,999,800 years, fire and hand tools were the best technologies we could come up with. Life was really hard.

Then, just 200 years ago, the Scientific Revolution happened.

Since then, life has gotten really good, really fast, and it's all thanks to science and technology.

Just look at the image below from Our World in Data. 4,000,000 years of wandering around in the dark and then BOOM! Science lights the path to progress.

4,000,000 years.

That's how long us humans have been around for, give or take a bit.

For the first 3,999,800 years, fire and hand tools were the best techn we could come up with.

Then, just 200 years ago, the Scientific Revolution happened and we invented…everything. Life got really good, really fast, all thanks to science and technology.

The image below from Our World in Data helps illustrate this explosion.

Our mission is to be the first investor in new science and technology that will accelerate this progress even more.

We're proud investors in dozens of "planet-positive moonshots" like nuclear micro-reactors, grid-scale batteries, and stem cell therapies.

We can back these kinds of high-risk, high-reward startups because, as a family investment fund, we can act more like DARPA than a VC.

VC Funds

Mission: make money for its investors.

Risk Tolerance: low

Invests In: businesses

Support: must exit in 5-7 years

Investor: may have startup experience

Decision Speed: weeks to months

Terms: Investor-friendly

Us

Mission: to build a better future.

Risk Tolerance: very high

Invests In: founders

Support: as long as its takes

Investor: founder and computer scientist

Decision Speed: a day

Terms: Founder-friendly

If you're working on a moonshot and need an angel investor who specializes in that kind of thing, say "hi" and tell us what you're working on.

Featured Investments

Vessl Self-Adjusting Prosthetic

Vessl Self-Adjusting Prosthetic

Vessl Self-Adjusting Prosthetic

Fifty Years VC Seth Banon

Fifty Years VC Seth Banon

Fifty Years VC Seth Banon

What We Invest In

Founder-Led

We invest in founders, not companies, and believe that the best companies are built by founding engineers.

We invest in people, not companies. We believe that the best companies are lead by founders.

Moonshot

We back wildly ambitious solutions to big, hard, and important problems.

Deep Tech

We invest in companies solving problems with deep science, technology, and engineering.

In North America

We back founders where we can use our network to help them.

Early Stage

We invest at the Angel, Pre-Seed, and Seed stages.

How We Invest

One Meeting

We just need to meet once. You Explain Like I'm Five (ELI5) what you're working on and we'll listen and learn.

Quick Decision

We get to "yes" or "no" in a few days, not weeks or months.

$250,000 Cheque

We invest up to $250,000 in the first round and follow-on later.

Founder-Friendly Terms

We invest using the YC Post-Money SAFE because it's fast, fair, and founder-friendly.

FAQ

What stage do you invest in?

Do you lead?

How do you help companies that you invest in?

Do you take a board seat?

Do you invest in other funds?

Get In Touch

Tell us what you're working on!

Tell us what you're working on and how we can help!