Pitbull Ventures

Pitbull Ventures is a Los Angeles-based pre-seed venture capital firm founded in 2021 by Brad Zions, who serves as Founder and Managing General Partner. Zions has been an active early-stage investor for more than 25 years, previously as a partner at Structure Fund and as a prolific individual angel, before institutionalizing his practice under the Pitbull brand. Pitbull closed its $5 million Fund I with a specific thesis: backing AI-enabled industry-vertical SaaS startups during a challenging funding environment for pre-seed companies. The fund's strategy centers on founding teams that leverage artificial intelligence within specific industry verticals and have already demonstrated early product-market fit. Pitbull targets a portfolio of 50-plus companies per fund, with sector interests spanning health tech, enterprise applications, consumer, and business products. Typical check sizes range from $100,000 to $250,000. Across Brad Zions' angel and institutional activity, Pitbull Ventures has made 36 disclosed investments; the Fund I vehicle has actively backed 15 vertical SaaS startups. Notable portfolio companies include Cartwheel (multimedia and design software), OptimHire, LOST iN, Harri, VidMob, and Embrace. Recent exits include Podsights, Jukin Media, and Donut Media. Zions brings a deliberate philosophical stance to the portfolio: he is publicly skeptical of Web3 and crypto theses, preferring AI-first vertical SaaS as the more durable opportunity. This focused conviction allows Pitbull Ventures to move quickly at the pre-seed stage, where founder-market fit and early traction signals matter more than sector diversification. The firm's compact size and Zions' long track record as an angel underpin its ability to act as a genuine first-check partner.