Instrument
YC Post-Money SAFE
How We Invest
Fast. Fair.
Founder-first.
Our Process
Three steps from first contact to wire.
01
Reach out.
Tell us who you are and what you're building.
If you have a prototype, deck, video, or paper, please share them!
02
One meeting.
We'll ask questions like:
- How did you and your co-founders end up working on this together?
- How does it actually work?
- Is this first, best, or unique — and why does that matter?
- Why will this work now but hasn't worked before?
We're not going to grill you, so don't be nervous. We're just trying to understand super important things that are often left out of decks.
03
Get an answer.
You'll get an answer within days.
If it's a yes, we'll review your formation docs, cab table, and other legals and then send a wire.
If it's a no, we'll tell you exactly why.
How We're Different
Not a typical
VC fund.
Attribute
Typical VC Fund
McNamara Family Investments
Primary Mission
Returns for LPs
Build huge companies
Risk Tolerance
Low to moderate
Very high — DARPA-style
Investment Horizon
5–7 year fund cycle
As long as it takes
Decision Speed
Weeks to months
Days
Lead Investor
Usually required
Happy to co-invest
Terms
Investor-friendly
YC SAFE — founder-friendly
Investor Background
Finance or MBA
Founder + engineer
Our Terms
Our terms are standard and very founder-friendly.
Cheque Size
Up to $250,000
Valuation
Case by Case
Pro Rata
No
Board Seat
No
Updates
Quarterly Email
We appreciate getting a quarterly investor update email. The best founders usually send them anyway.
Common Questions
What stage of company do you invest in?
As early as possible.
What stage of fundraising do you invest at?
Angel to Seed.
Do you lead rounds?
Angel rounds are often party rounds, but we're happy to be the first angel cheque.
Where do you invest?
Canada. We used to invest in the US, too, but have paused that while the current administration is in office and is being hostile towards others.
How do you help beyond capital?
Intros to other great deep-tech investors we co-invest with, and mentorship from someone who's scaled a startup to a multi-billion dollar public company. Beyond that, we stay out of your way and let you build.
Do you follow on in future rounds?
Not usually. Our goal is to help founders get started, and the best founders will have no problem raising future rounds from world-class investors.
Do you expect a board seat or specific rights?
We don't take a board seat, but we'd appreciate staying on investor update emails, even when later stage VCs come in and ask you to stop updating early investors (which they will).
What's your ideal investment outcome?
A hundred-year company. We're not optimising for a quick flip or a fund-cycle exit. We want to back founders building companies that matter for generations — companies that change what's possible.
Do you invest in other funds?
Yes. We back fund managers with deep sector expertise or access to founders we wouldn't reach on our own. If you're raising a fund aligned with our thesis, reach out.