UTAH COUNTY, Utah — Ollin Ventures, a Utah County based pre-seed and seed-stage venture firm, announced the close of Fund I. Since launching, the firm has invested in over 30 early-stage companies focused on building AI-native software.
Ollin was founded around a focused thesis: the next generation of enduring software companies will be AI-native from day one, built around proprietary data loops, disciplined capital deployment, and early evidence of real market demand. The firm targets founders building defensible, scalable businesses with the potential to define categories inside their verticals.
“We’re in a moment where AI is evolving incredibly fast,” said Tom Wilkinson, Founder and Managing Partner at Ollin Ventures. “The companies being formed right now have a structural advantage because they’re building AI into the foundation of their products, not trying to bolt it on later. We’re seeing teams of two reach multi-million-dollar ARR in under six months. That level of capital efficiency simply wasn’t possible in prior cycles.”
As Utah’s venture ecosystem has matured, many of the state’s more established firms have raised larger funds and shifted toward investing at later stages. That evolution has created an opportunity at the pre-seed level, a gap Ollin was designed to fill.
The firm collaborates closely with later-stage investors across the region. Larger funds frequently share promising companies that are too early for their mandate, and Ollin partners with those founders at inception, helping invest in, incubate, and mentor them through early product-market fit. As those companies mature, Ollin works alongside those same later-stage firms as they lead subsequent rounds.
“When you back the right founders early, the impact compounds,” said Stephen Smith, Co-Founder and General Partner at Ollin Ventures. “You’re helping create meaningful opportunities for employees, delivering real value to customers, and elevating Utah as a place where enduring companies are built. Venture, at its best, is a catalyst for positive impact and that’s what motivates us.”
Brady Harris, General Partner at Ollin Ventures, brings a long-term capital markets perspective to the firm. Over his career, Harris scaled four companies from early revenue stages to $100–$200+ million in revenue and sold each to private equity firms. He also serves on multiple advisory boards for later-stage funds.
“Having built and exited multiple companies, I’ve seen firsthand what private equity and later-stage investors are looking for,” Harris said. “Staying close to those markets allows us to recognize early which companies are building the kind of revenue quality, defensibility, and operational discipline that sophisticated capital will value down the road.”
Several of Ollin’s portfolio companies are already demonstrating revenue traction, enterprise adoption, and follow-on financing. With Fund I closed and additional investments planned, the firm expects to begin early conversations around Fund II later this summer.
Ollin remains focused on partnering with disciplined founders building AI-native software companies designed to endure.