Notation Capital

Notation Capital is a pre-seed venture capital firm specializing in early-stage investments for software startups. The firm provides initial capital to technical founding teams, often writing the first check at company creation. This allows them to support nascent technological innovations from their earliest developmental stages, establishing a foundational relationship with emerging enterprises.

Co-founded in 2015 by Nick Chirls and Alex Lines, Notation Capital emerged from recognizing the unique needs and distinct risk profile of pre-seed companies. This insight led them to establish one of New York City's first dedicated funds focused exclusively on this nascent phase, leveraging their prior experience to support early technical teams and foster a robust ecosystem.

The firm's primary customers are founders of early-stage software companies, particularly those building technically intensive products. Notation Capital’s vision extends beyond capital, aiming to foster a supportive community where founders, advisors, and limited partners collaborate. They aspire to be a foundational partner, laying the groundwork for future successful enterprises.

High-Level Overview

Notation Capital is a Brooklyn-based pre-seed venture capital firm that backs technical, product-obsessed founding teams at the very earliest stages—often at the idea or “day zero” phase. Its mission is to be the first institutional partner for founders building hard tech, infrastructure, and product-centric software startups, providing not just capital but deep operational support and access to a tight-knit community of founders, advisors, and LPs.

The firm operates as a generalist, investing across sectors like Web3/crypto, AI, fintech, health tech, logistics, and enterprise software, with a strong bias toward technical founders and ambitious, category-defining products. Based in New York City, Notation has helped shape the city’s maturing pre-seed ecosystem by acting as one of the first dedicated pre-seed funds in the region, supporting startups at the fragile inception point when most traditional VCs are still waiting for traction.

Origin Story

Founded in 2015 by Nicholas Chirls and Alex Lines, Notation Capital emerged from a shared belief that the earliest moments of a startup’s journey—when the idea is still raw and the team is small—are when founders need the most thoughtful, hands-on support. Both partners brought deep operational experience: Nick from betaworks, where he led seed investing and product for early-stage ventures, and Alex as a seasoned software engineer with a background in distributed systems and scalable product development in New York’s tech scene.

From the beginning, Notation positioned itself as a pre-seed specialist, focusing on leading first institutional rounds with checks typically in the $250K–$750K range. Over time, the firm has raised multiple funds and built a reputation for backing technically strong teams in infrastructure-heavy, product-driven domains like blockchain (e.g., Bison Trails, Livepeer), developer tools, and deep tech. Their roots in Brooklyn and close ties to the NYC tech ecosystem have made them a cornerstone of the city’s early-stage venture landscape.

Core Differentiators

Pre-Seed First-Mover in NYC
Notation is widely recognized as the first dedicated pre-seed fund in New York City. This focus on “day zero” investing—often at the idea or founding team stage—sets them apart from traditional seed or early-stage funds that wait for product-market fit or early revenue.

Product-Obsessed, Generalist Approach
Rather than being thesis-driven by sector, Notation looks for exceptional technical founders and strong product vision. They invest across Web3, AI, fintech, health, logistics, and enterprise software, but always with a bias toward hard tech, infrastructure, and product-centric startups.

Deep Operational Involvement
Notation doesn’t just write checks. They actively help founders with product strategy, hiring, fundraising, and go-to-market from day one. Both partners have strong product and engineering backgrounds, allowing them to engage deeply with technical teams.

Community-Driven Model
Notation describes itself as a “community of people helping one another succeed,” including founders, advisors, LPs, and the broader network. This collaborative ethos amplifies support for portfolio companies through intros, mentorship, and shared resources.

Track Record in Hard Tech & Infrastructure
Their portfolio includes notable early bets like Bison Trails (acquired by Coinbase), Livepeer, Spruce, and Parsec—companies that sit at the infrastructure layer of emerging tech stacks. This demonstrates a consistent ability to identify and back technically ambitious teams.

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Notation Capital sits at the intersection of several powerful trends in venture and technology: the rise of pre-seed as a distinct, institutionalized stage; the decentralization of startup hubs beyond Silicon Valley; and the growing importance of infrastructure and developer tools in Web3, AI, and cloud-native ecosystems.

By focusing on the earliest, riskiest phase of company building, Notation helps de-risk the path for technical founders who might otherwise struggle to raise institutional capital before having a product or users. This is especially valuable in capital-intensive areas like blockchain and AI, where long build cycles are the norm.

Their presence in Brooklyn also reflects and accelerates the maturation of New York as a major tech hub. By backing local founders and attracting talent to the region, Notation contributes to a denser, more resilient ecosystem where hard tech and product innovation can thrive outside the traditional West Coast orbit.

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Notation Capital is well-positioned to continue shaping the next generation of infrastructure and product-led startups, particularly as emerging technologies like decentralized systems, AI agents, and next-gen developer tools require patient, technically fluent capital at the earliest stages.

Going forward, their influence will likely grow not just through fund size, but through the density and quality of their community: the more successful founders they back, the stronger their network effects become. As pre-seed becomes increasingly competitive, Notation’s reputation for deep founder partnership and technical fluency will remain a key advantage.

In a world where early-stage capital is abundant but truly hands-on, product-savvy partners are rare, Notation’s model—community-driven, founder-first, and deeply technical—offers a compelling blueprint for how venture can add real value at the very beginning of the startup journey.