VC Exec Champions Overlooked Founders in New Market
▼ Summary
– Stacy Brown-Philpot’s firm, Cherryrock Capital, focuses on writing smaller Series A and B checks for overlooked “underinvested entrepreneurs,” contrasting with larger firms chasing mega-deals.
– She launched the fund after identifying a persistent market gap for capital access at the growth stage, drawing on her experience from Google, TaskRabbit, and the SoftBank Opportunity Fund.
– Cherryrock takes a concentrated, measured investment approach, planning 12-15 deals from its first fund and having backed five companies a year after its launch.
– The firm’s focus on diverse founders aligns with new California transparency laws, and Brown-Philpot is unfazed by political debates around DEI, emphasizing generating returns for investors.
– Her investment thesis is reflected in portfolio companies like Coactive AI and Vitable Health, and she holds a pragmatic view on exits, noting most successful companies are acquired rather than going public.
While much of the venture capital world remains captivated by massive funding rounds and artificial intelligence hype, a different approach is gaining traction. Stacy Brown-Philpot, a former Google executive and TaskRabbit CEO, is building Cherryrock Capital with a distinct focus: providing crucial Series A and B funding to founders often bypassed by larger firms. Her strategy represents a deliberate return to venture capital’s foundational principles of concentrated, hands-on investing.
After leading TaskRabbit to a successful acquisition by IKEA, Brown-Philpot identified a persistent market gap. She observed that numerous talented entrepreneurs building software companies at the growth stage struggled to secure necessary capital. This realization prompted her to launch Cherryrock a year ago, fulfilling a career ambition she first outlined decades ago in her Stanford Business School application.
Her conviction was solidified during her tenure on the investment committee for the SoftBank Opportunity Fund, a $100 million initiative for underserved founders. That experience revealed a vast pipeline of overlooked companies with strong potential. When SoftBank divested from that fund in late 2023, Brown-Philpot decided to double down, independently launching Cherryrock. By the time she closed its debut fund in February 2025, she had already evaluated over 2,000 companies.
Cherryrock plans to make just 12 to 15 investments from its first fund, a concentrated strategy that contrasts sharply with seed funds making dozens of bets or mega-funds writing nine-figure checks. The pace is intentionally measured. A year after announcing the fund, Brown-Philpot and her team, including cofounder and IVP veteran Saydeah Howard, have invested in only five companies. This patient, selective deployment of capital is a hallmark of an earlier venture generation.
The firm specifically targets “underinvested” founders, a term chosen with care in today’s climate. This means backing entrepreneurs who may not fit the conventional Silicon Valley profile. When questioned about the current political environment where diversity initiatives face scrutiny, Brown-Philpot remains focused. “It doesn’t change the pitch at all,” she states, noting that limited partners like JPMorgan and Bank of America expect financial returns above all. Her investor roster also includes Goldman Sachs Asset Management, MassMutual, and Melinda Gates’s Pivotal Ventures.
Brown-Philpot may find an unexpected advantage in new regulations. A California law now requires venture firms with state ties to report demographic data on founding teams, with the first reports due in April. This law emphasizes transparency without mandating quotas. For Cherryrock, which already prioritizes this data, compliance is straightforward. “You accomplish what you measure,” Brown-Philpot remarks.
Her investment perspective is informed by a broad vantage point. In addition to leading Cherryrock, she serves on the boards of HP, StockX, and Stanford University, offering insights into both enterprise buyers and emerging founders. Her portfolio directly reflects her thesis. One investment is Coactive AI, led by MIT and Stanford graduate Cody Coleman, which provides multimodal AI infrastructure to the media industry. Cherryrock co-led its Series B. Another is Vitable Health, founded by Joseph Kitonga, which offers on-demand health insurance for hourly workers, a demographic Brown-Philpot understands well from her TaskRabbit days.
On the topic of exits, Brown-Philpot offers pragmatic clarity. “It’s very difficult to go public,” she says. “Most companies don’t go public, they do get acquired.” She points to TaskRabbit’s sale to IKEA as a model for creating lasting value through strategic acquisition.
Looking ahead, her priority for 2026 is unambiguous: actively deploying capital. She seeks Series A and B companies that have demonstrably found product-market fit, allowing founders to define that milestone themselves. As debates about diversity in venture capital continue, her mission remains centered on discovering exceptional founders, regardless of background. “I’m from Detroit,” she says. “Hard things are hard, but we know how to do hard things.”
(Source: TechCrunch)
