Trust Ventures

Investment decisions are led by Managing Partner Salen Churi alongside Partners Richard Deulofeut and Rob Newell. Deulofeut runs deal review and diligence, while Newell brings a background in technology and telecom investing from PRIMECAP Management. The firm's Venture Partners, including operators like Chris Ballard (ex-Uber) and policy experts like Zina Bash, contribute to sourcing and evaluation but do not appear to hold formal investment committee authority based on the firm's published team structure.

Trust Ventures's sourcing model relies heavily on its network of policy advisors and venture partners, many of whom have deep ties in regulated industries. Managing Partner Salen Churi's academic network — he founded the University of Chicago's Innovation Clinic — also provides access to regulatory-heavy startups emerging from university ecosystems. The firm frames its value proposition to founders as the ability to level the playing field against incumbents, which likely attracts companies preemptively searching for legal and policy firepower.

Trust Ventures operates as a private equity firm deploying third-party capital with a venture capital fund structure, not as a single-family office. It explicitly states that it 'invests like a venture capital fund' and focuses on early-stage equity stakes. The absence of disclosed AUM or fund filings limits visibility into the precise vehicle structure, but the business model and team composition point to a pooled, fund-based approach.

The firm explicitly targets startups in areas where regulation can entrench incumbents, naming energy, housing, and financial services as core focus areas. Portfolio companies like Oklo (advanced nuclear), ICON (3D-printed construction), and Black Ore (AI-driven tax preparation) reflect this emphasis on structurally inhibited markets. The firm's materials do not identify any sectors it formally excludes.

The firm's site emphasizes direct investing and in-house advisory support, with no mention of co-investment relationships, fund-of-funds allocations, or syndicated deal structures. Given its pooled-venture model, it is likely that Trust Ventures leads or participates in rounds alongside other early-stage VCs, but no specific co-investors are named in publicly available materials.