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Tech Square Ventures
Founded by Blake Patton, a Georgia Tech alum who previously ran the university’s Advanced Technology Development Center, Tech Square Ventures is an...
Tech Square Ventures
Founded by Blake Patton, a Georgia Tech alum who previously ran the university’s Advanced Technology Development Center, Tech Square Ventures is an early-stage venture firm headquartered in Atlanta’s Technology Square innovation district. The firm’s origin is tied directly to the campus ecosystem: Patton’s ATDC tenure, later board roles at Venture Atlanta and the Center for American Entrepreneurship, and the firm’s own Engage corporate-innovation program all reflect a model built on proximity to academic research, corporate partners, and regional engineering talent. Tech Square Ventures writes initial checks of $500,000 to $3 million, primarily at the seed stage, with selective pre-seed and Series A follow-ons. The portfolio exposes enterprise and marketplace technology across applied AI, logistics and supply chain, vertical SaaS, infrastructure, and sustainability. Confirmed positions include warehousing robotics-as-a-service company Slip Robotics, live-demo platform Saleo, embedded-payments provider Rainforest, geospatial search engine Danti, and returns-logistics platform Nok. The firm concentrates roughly 80% of its capital in the Southeast — an area it brands the Super South — while selectively backing deals in other US innovation corridors. Tech Square Ventures reports more than $10 billion in aggregate portfolio-company value across over 110 startups. The team, led by Patton alongside Partners Bill Nussey — a former Greylock investor and IBM VP — Scott Lopano, CFO Joelle Fox, and Principal Jason Kuo, blends operating and financial backgrounds. The Engage platform, a corporate-startup accelerator, connects portfolio companies with large enterprises for proof-of-concept trials and commercial traction, effectively serving as a structured demand layer alongside the venture fund. Engage itself constitutes the firm’s structural edge: few early-stage firms run a dedicated corporate-innovation platform integrated directly into deal sourcing and portfolio acceleration. The model links global enterprises with Georgia Tech-spawned and Southeast-based startups, giving TSV both proprietary pipeline access and a built-in customer-discovery channel. That architecture sustains a hybrid posture — venture capital fund plus corporate-innovation utility — that reduces customer-acquisition friction for founders long before a Series A.
General information
Firm type
Private Equity
Year founded
—
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Atlanta
Corporate office
Atlanta, GA, United States
Principals
Blake Patton
Founder & Managing Partner
Bill Nussey
Partner
Scott Lopano
Partner
Joelle Fox
CFO & Operating Partner
Jason Kuo
Principal
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
How does Tech Square Ventures source and evaluate deals?
The firm leans heavily on its location within Atlanta’s Technology Square and its Engage corporate-innovation platform, which links enterprise partners with early-stage startups. That proximity to Georgia Tech, combined with Patton’s legacy network from his ATDC leadership and Venture Atlanta board roles, creates a proprietary pipeline of Southeast-based enterprise founders. The investment team, led by Partner Scott Lopano, runs a structured investment process, while Engage provides a live environment for testing product–corporate fit before a funding decision.
What stage and check size does Tech Square Ventures target?
Tech Square Ventures invests primarily at the seed stage, cutting initial checks between $500,000 and $3 million. The firm states it selectively considers pre-seed and Series A opportunities. Follow-on capital is reserved for portfolio companies demonstrating meaningful commercial traction.
How is the Engage program connected to the fund?
Engage is an affiliated startup accelerator and corporate-innovation network run alongside the venture fund. It connects large enterprises — predominantly Southeast-headquartered — with startups in the TSV orbit for pilot projects, customer discovery, and commercial partnerships. The program effectively serves as a sourcing engine and market-access mechanism, giving portfolio companies a structured path to enterprise revenue while providing corporate partners visibility on emerging technologies.
Which sectors does Tech Square Ventures concentrate on?
The firm describes itself as enterprise-focused and sector-agnostic within B2B and marketplace technology, with thematic emphasis on applied AI, logistics and supply chain, vertical solutions, infrastructure and productivity, and sustainability and energy. Portfolio evidence confirms activity in warehouse robotics (Slip Robotics), geospatial intelligence (Danti), embedded payments (Rainforest), and sales-demo software (Saleo), among others.
Where does Tech Square Ventures invest geographically?
Roughly 80% of the firm’s investments are concentrated in what it calls the Super South — the Southeast US innovation corridor anchored by Atlanta. The firm selectively backs companies in other US regions when the founder, technology, or corporate-partner relationship justifies the exception.
Who runs investment decisions at Tech Square Ventures?
Founder and Managing General Partner Blake Patton leads the firm, with Partner Scott Lopano responsible for managing the investment team and co-investment network. Partner Bill Nussey, a former Greylock investor and serial enterprise CEO, supports early-stage investments and oversees the Engage program. The investment committee draws on this senior partnership group.
Does Tech Square Ventures participate in fund commitments, or only direct deals?
All publicly available information describes Tech Square Ventures as a direct-investment venture capital firm writing equity checks into operating companies. No fund-of-funds or LP commitments to external managers are disclosed.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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