Arena Ventures

Arena Ventures is a seed-stage venture capital firm based in Los Angeles and San Francisco, founded in 2015 by Jeff Lo and Paige Craig. The firm backs technology startups led by entrepreneurs who are uniquely positioned to transform their industry — with particular focus on what the team calls atypical founding teams: people whose unconventional backgrounds give them asymmetric insight into the problems they are solving. Arena is also notable as the first venture firm built from the ground up to collaborate with equity crowdfunding, helping AngelList backers become more effective investors. With 45 investments and eight portfolio exits — most recently Betterview in December 2023 — Arena Ventures has backed Clover Health, which went public via SPAC, and Andela, the talent marketplace that became a unicorn. Atrium LTS represents the firm's legal technology exposure. The fund writes checks of $100K to $1 million at Seed and Series A stages and invests exclusively in North America across software, fintech, healthtech, food and beverage, education, and real estate. Arena Ventures takes a disciplined approach to founder selection: the team invests heavily in understanding each founder's personal background and psychological makeup before committing capital. This founder-first philosophy translates into a small annual deal count — two to six investments per year — and sustained support well past the initial check, with the team described as willing to fight hard alongside founders through difficult stretches.