Leading Edge Ventures

Leading Edge Ventures is a micro venture capital firm founded in 2014 and based in Newark, Delaware, investing in seed and early-stage technology companies in the Mid-Atlantic corridor. The firm raised approximately $10 million in its first fund to back entrepreneurs in Delaware, Eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland, and New Jersey. The team of seven includes six partners: Doug Petillo, Rick Birkmeyer (CEO of CD Diagnostics), Vance Kershner (Founder and CEO of LabWare Inc.), and Mike Bowman (Associate Director at the University of Delaware's Office of Economic Innovation and Partnerships), among others. The partnership brings strong ties to the University of Delaware and the regional business and academic community. Leading Edge invests $50,000 to $250,000 initially with the ability to follow on up to $750,000 per company over time, focusing on IT (software, cloud-based applications, and tech-enabled services) and MedTech (devices, equipment, and diagnostics) sectors. The fund has made 20 investments, achieving 4 acquisitions including College Ave, Pliant, and OThot. Other named portfolio companies include scaleMatters (most recent investment, June 2021) and Bonsai. The fund appears fully deployed and in harvest mode with no investments tracked since mid-2021. Leading Edge's partners bring operational expertise as founders and CEOs alongside academic and government innovation roles, giving the firm a credible position among early-stage entrepreneurs in a region that has traditionally been underserved by institutional venture capital. The firm emphasizes backing exceptionally talented entrepreneurs with innovative technologies in high-demand markets, with the goal of catalyzing a broader Mid-Atlantic startup ecosystem.