# Vela Partners

Vela Partners is a Private Equity based in San Francisco, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Private Equity
- **Headquarters:** San Francisco, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** San Francisco, CA, United States
- **Founded:** 2017
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** vela.partners
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/vela-partners

## Regulatory record

- **CRD number:** 309662
- **Registration status:** Registered
- **Reports private funds:** Yes
- **IAPD record:** https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/309662

## About

Vela Partners invests in companies that utilize AI and autonomous systems, such as Agentic AI, LLM-powered planning tools, and no-code AI agents for enterprises. Their portfolio includes companies like Bito, RadiantOps, and Thunk. They focus on active companies in the AI and autonomous systems sector.

## Sectors

- AI/ML
- Enterprise Software
- FinTech
- Digital Health

## People

- Yiğit Ihlamur — Co-Founder & General Partner

## Questions

### How does Vela Partners source its investments?

Vela uses a proprietary machine-learning engine that ingests alternative data—developer-community activity, product-usage metrics, open-source contributions, and hiring patterns—to identify and rank early-stage companies before they appear on competitors' radars. The quant-generated pipeline is then filtered through traditional venture due diligence by the firm's partners. This systematic approach is designed to reduce cognitive bias and expand the top-of-funnel beyond network-driven deal flow.

### Who makes the final investment decision at Vela?

Co-Founder and General Partner Yiğit Ihlamur leads the investment committee and personally architects the firm's quantitative sourcing model. Investment decisions combine signals from the machine-learning engine with human judgment applied during diligence. The lean team structure means Ihlamur's technical and investment judgment is central to every portfolio addition.

### Which geographies does Vela cover?

The firm invests in North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Its quantitative sourcing model enables coverage in markets that are often underserved by network-dependent venture firms, such as Southeast Asia, where Vela has backed Singapore-based Locad.

### What is Vela's relationship to AI and machine learning beyond its portfolio?

Machine learning is Vela's internal operating system for deal sourcing, not just a thesis area. The firm runs a proprietary model to generate its investment pipeline. This dual identity—investing in AI-native companies while using AI to invest—sets its architecture apart from standard venture firms that only apply AI as a sector theme.

### Does Vela participate in follow-on rounds or only initial investments?

Vela leads or co-leads Seed and Series A rounds and maintains reserves for follow-on investments in portfolio companies that meet performance milestones. The firm is not a passive seed investor; it intends to support companies through subsequent financing stages when the initial thesis plays out.

## Related profiles

- [Velan Capital](https://altss.com/profile/velan-capital)
- [Velocior Ventures](https://altss.com/profile/velocior-ventures)

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Last updated: 2026-07-10T13:07:09.000Z

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