• About
  • Article PDF
  • White Papers
  • Listening Tours​
  • Contact
  • Support Us
  • Advertising & Sponsorships
Saturday, May 27, 2023
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
Times Of Entrepreneurship
Growth and Equity for a Changing World
Times Of Entrepreneurship
No Result
View All Result

VC Spotlight: Entrepreneur-Turned-Investor Lu Zhang Is On Her Third, $120M Fund

by Elizabeth Macbride
March 11, 2022
in Finance
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
Lu Zhang

Name: Fusion Fund

Location: Palo Alto, CA

Website: https://www.fusionfund.com/

Size: I just launched Fund III last year. It is $120M. My second fund, launched in 2018, is $85M.

What it is: Fusion Fund supports early-stage entrepreneurs who are looking to build globally disruptive companies using innovative technologies to drive systemic change. We are entering the next wave of technological advancement and foundational innovation is required to enable massive growth. We seek to support entrepreneurs who are building companies with strong technical barriers and advantages in their business models. We work in  established industries and nascent markets. Areas where we have strong conviction include: network technology, connected industry, AI, and health + medical.

Minimum investment: $1M -$3M

Leadership:

  • Lu Zhang, Founder and Managing Partner
  • Shane Wall, Partner and President of Fusion CXO network

Investment style/track record: I am an entrepreneur and investor with strong technical and operational experience. I sold my startup, Acetone Inc., focused on medical device for testing for Type II diabetes, developed a track record as an investor at Fenox Venture Capital and launched my own firm in 2014. We have more than 60 portfolio companies across the United States with 6 M&A exits and 3 upcoming IPOs. Portfolio companies include GrubMarket, Accern and Otter.ai.

The firm operates the Fusion CXO network, which has 44 CTO/CIO from global 100 companies and is led by Shane Wall, the former CTO of Hewlett Packard.

Quote: “We invest in the industry and sectors that we have strong domain expertise, understand the life cycle of early-stage startup very well, and leverage our former entrepreneurial experiences. … We focus on bringing in strong revenue traction to the founder post-investment.”

VC insights:

  • The keys to digital transformation are software-hardware integration. There are three layers: understanding data entrance, network technology that allows data transfer, and data processing.
  • AI in health care should focus on solving what I call the AAA problem: accessibility, affordability and accuracy
  • The future of health care innovation isn’t just about curing the disease. It’s also about improving the quality of life. Personalized diagnostics that detect diseases like cancer, heart disease and mental illness at super-early stages could be very important, too.
  • Diversity is critical to innovation!

This Q&A was developed with written answers to our VC spotlight questions, and then edited for clarity and length.



This story and others on Times of E are made possible by a sponsorship from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private, nonpartisan foundation that provides access to opportunities that help people achieve financial stability, upward mobility, and economic prosperity – regardless of race, gender, or geography. The Kansas City, Mo.-based foundation uses its grantmaking, research, programs, and initiatives to support the start and growth of new businesses, a more prepared workforce, and stronger communities. For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect with www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn.

Tags: Fusion FundLu Zhang
Elizabeth Macbride

Elizabeth Macbride

A business journalist for 20 years, am the founder of Times of Entrepreneurship and the co-author of The New Builders.

Related Posts

Venture Capital Spotlight: Zane Venture Fund in Atlanta Focuses on Diverse Founders in Southeast U.S.

Venture Capital Spotlight: Zane Venture Fund in Atlanta Focuses on Diverse Founders in Southeast U.S.

by Ellen Chang
May 4, 2023
0

Shila Burney is the founder of Zane Access and the founding and managing partner of Zane Venture Fund. Shila Burney...

Venture Spotlight:  VEST Her Ventures In Oklahoma Focuses on Future of Work, Care Economy

Venture Spotlight: VEST Her Ventures In Oklahoma Focuses on Future of Work, Care Economy

by Ellen Chang
March 30, 2023
0

Erika Lucas is the founder of StitchCrew and VEST Her Ventures in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Photo: courtesy of VEST After spending several years...

Silicon Valley Bank And The Tyranny Of The Commons

Silicon Valley Bank And The Tyranny Of The Commons

by Seth Levine
March 29, 2023
0

opened zipper and dollar bill with binary code This post originally appeared on VC Adventure, Seth Levine's blog. Like many...

Black man in a suit

VC Spotlight: Living Cities Raising $100M Fund of Funds To Help Close Wealth Gap

by Elizabeth Macbride
March 17, 2023
0

Joe Scantlebury, CEO of Living Cities If capital runs the world, then people of color need to have a bigger...

Venture Spotlight: Cake Ventures Invests in Demographic Change

Venture Spotlight: Cake Ventures Invests in Demographic Change

by Ellen Chang
March 2, 2023
0

Monique Woodard is the founder of Cake Ventures. Photo: Brendan Mainini Founded in 2021, Cake Ventures invests in areas where...

Venture Spotlight: Realist Ventures In Connecticut Focuses on Biotech, Healthcare

Venture Spotlight: Realist Ventures In Connecticut Focuses on Biotech, Healthcare

by Ellen Chang
January 26, 2023
0

Marie Rocha is the founder and general partner of Realist Ventures. Photo: Tiffany Hagler-Geard After spending over 20 years working...

Subscribe to Times of E’s Free Weekly Newsletter

Learn about the emerging ecosystem of diverse founders

Popular

  • Trailblazer: How Cotopaxi’s Founder Built a Cult Following and a $160M Salt Lake City-Based Company

    Trailblazer: How Cotopaxi’s Founder Built a Cult Following and a $160M Salt Lake City-Based Company

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Top 20 U.S. University Entrepreneurship Competitions

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Newsletter: Cotopaxi’s $160M Business Model; Atlanta VC Dollars; AI-Enabled Russian Propaganda

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Venture Capital Spotlight: Zane Venture Fund in Atlanta Focuses on Diverse Founders in Southeast U.S.

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Venture Capital Returns Are More Skewed Than People Realize

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Recent

Newsletter: Cotopaxi’s $160M Business Model; Atlanta VC Dollars; AI-Enabled Russian Propaganda

May 22, 2023
Editor’s Note:  One Guiding Principle for Bank Regulators

Editor’s Note: L’argent a une odeur

May 22, 2023
Trailblazer: How Cotopaxi’s Founder Built a Cult Following and a $160M Salt Lake City-Based Company

Trailblazer: How Cotopaxi’s Founder Built a Cult Following and a $160M Salt Lake City-Based Company

May 12, 2023

Recommended

  • Health
  • Climate
  • Deep Tech
  • Finance
  • Education
  • Women Entrepreneurs
  • Mentorship
Editor’s Note:  One Guiding Principle for Bank Regulators

Editor’s Note: One Guiding Principle for Bank Regulators

2 months ago
Circus Kaput

Coronavirus Brought About A Historic Shift: Microbusinesses Counted

3 years ago
  • About
  • Partner
  • Bespoke Research
  • Listening Tours​
  • Contact
  • Support Us
  • Privacy Policy

(703-966-7357)

© 2020 Mondial Publishing Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 
Facebook Twitter Linkedin
No Result
View All Result
  • Research
  • Finance
  • Women Entrepreneurs
  • New Builders
  • Ecosystem
  • Events
  • Newsletter
  • Editor’s Note

© 2022 Mondial Publishing Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Support Times of E

Times of E covers the emerging ecosystem of diverse founders.

With your support of our journalism, you will receive our weekly newsletter and one of these resources for free: 

Are you sure want to unlock this post?
Unlock left : 0
Are you sure want to cancel subscription?