A venture capital firm based in Atlanta and Tel Aviv, Israel, closed a $65 million fund to help Israeli founders commercialize their products in the U.S.
Joule Ventures, formerly known as Janvest Capital Partners, also rebranded itself with the announcement of its fourth fund.
At a glance: Joule Ventures is led by Brian Rosenzweig, who’s based in Atlanta, Daniel Frankenstein in New York City and Dafna Winocur Biran in Tel Aviv. The three partners are the only employees at the firm, which Rosenzwieg says allows them to work more closely with their portfolio companies. The firm was founded under its former name about a decade ago with a small angel fund. The name change reflects the addition of a new partner — Winocur Biran — and more closely represents the focus of the firm, Rosenzweig said.
Inside the fund: The partners usually do around four deals per year and prefer to lead rounds between $1 million to $3 million, Rosenzweig said. About a quarter of the firm’s investors are individuals or family offices based in Atlanta. The firm has invested in three startups so far with the fourth fund, including Alpharetta-based development software startup Arnica. Joule Ventures invests in Israeli founders but is industry agnostic.
Why it matters: Joule Ventures’ fourth fund represents the increasing amount of venture capital located in Atlanta. A record number of venture capital firms raised first funds this past year. The firm also creates a tie between Atlanta and Israel, a country known for its technology acumen. The country has almost 100 unicorns, or startups valued at more than $1 billion. For comparison, Europe, which has a much bigger population, has 125, according to TechCrunch. Joule Ventures helps those Israeli founders commercialize products in the U.S. The firm doesn’t specifically encourage founders to set up offices in Atlanta, Rosenzweig said, but founders may choose to be close to their investor. Atlanta’s Fortune 500 corporate residents and international airport make the city an attractive U.S. hub.
What they're saying: "Israel is arguably one of the most dynamic technology markets in the world," Rosenzweig said. "You have a tremendous amount of intellectual capital that stems from two places: the military and its cyber warfare and intelligence units and the technical focus of Israel's universities."
