Elephants & Ventures

Elephants & Ventures SAS is the regulated asset management company. It wholly owns and operates the Hardware Club brand, the HCVC fund franchise, and the Hardware Club community network. The firm's AMF license (GP-16000031) sits at the Elephants & Ventures parent level, meaning all fund management and investor activity runs through that regulated entity. Hardware Club operates beneath it as both a commercial brand and a membership community for hardware founders.

The firm concentrates on seed and early-stage rounds, consistent with its Hardware Club thesis of backing startups at formation. Its community model is designed to surface companies before they reach institutional Series A rounds. No later-stage or growth-equity activity has been disclosed.

The firm operates dedicated venture funds under the HCVC brand that make direct investments into portfolio companies. It does not publicly describe itself as a fund-of-funds, nor does it indicate participation in third-party fund commitments. The community network is a deal-sourcing mechanism, not a separate investment vehicle.

Hardware Club is described as a community-based venture fund, suggesting that the membership network plays a pipeline role in identifying and evaluating potential portfolio companies. The firm has not disclosed a formal investment committee structure, but the overlapping identities of the fund and the community imply that founder referrals and peer vetting are core to deal origination.

The firm's mandate is hardware and software companies at early stages. It does not publicly list exclusions, but its branding and fund strategy signal a preference for startups with a physical component — robotics, industrial technology, automation, and devices — rather than pure-play consumer internet or services businesses.