8VC founding partner Jake Medwell speaks to FreightWaves about the firms new fund. (Photo: 8VC)

Venture capital firm 8VC has announced the launch of Fund VI, securing $998 million in new limited partner capital to fuel its ambitious investment strategy. This substantial raise comes at a pivotal time in the venture capital landscape, particularly in the supply chain and logistics sectors, which have seen significant disruption and innovation in recent years.

The venture capital market in Q4 2024 was characterized by a sharp spike in deal activity, especially in the supply chain tech vertical, according to Pitchbook reports.

Deal values for enterprise supply chain management solutions reached $752 million in Q4, marking its highest level since the end of 2022. Last-mile delivery also saw solid quarter-over-quarter growth during the same period. Warehouse technology saw a slight decline yet maintained one of its strongest quarters since Q2 2023. FreightTech itself was essentially flat quarter over quarter.

8VC’s new fund aims to build on those trends going into 2025 with a particular focus on transformative technologies in supply chain and logistics. As stated in its announcement, in logistics, “the old world order is yielding to intelligent new supply chains, capacity and strongholds of independence.”

This sentiment is echoed in a promotional video in which the firm emphasizes its commitment to tackling complex challenges in logistics, proclaiming its goal of bringing “new capacity and efficiency to shifting landscapes.”

The company’s track record in the logistics space is noteworthy, with several high-profile companies in its portfolio. Among those companies are Platform Science, Joby Aviation (NYSE:JOBY), Waabi, Elon Musk’s The Boring Co. and project44, a supply chain visibility platform that has seen significant growth and adoption across the industry.

8VC has also seen successful exits in the logistics space. A prime example is Deliverr, an e-commerce fulfillment company acquired by Shopify for $2.1 billion in 2022 and later acquired by Flexport when the freight forwarder purchased Shopify in 2023.

This exit not only validated 8VC’s investment approach but also demonstrated the growing importance of efficient logistics solutions in e-commerce.

Jake Medwell, co-founder and partner at 8VC, spoke to FreightWaves about the firm’s leadership in logistics investments over the past decade, with a particular focus on future investments in the intersection of supply chain technology and government efficiency.

He stresses that 8VC’s approach goes beyond traditional venture investing, instead focusing on building companies in partnership with major industry players like Prologis (NYSE:PLD), Ryder (NYSE:R), NFI, Penske (NYSE:PAG), Lineage (NASDAQ:LINE) and Daimler.

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The firm also leverages its network of industry advisers, including former President and CEO of Walmart Transportation Chris Sultemeier, who currently serves as an operating partner at NewRoad Capital, and Alan Gershenhorn, former executive vice president and chief commercial officer at UPS.

“We don’t just invest and take a backseat,” Medwell said. “We work with our portfolio companies and spend meaningful time integrating them with the best partners and people for success on all sides.”

Medwell also described the firm’s unique position of continuing to build companies directly through the 8VC Build program, where it creates and launches supply chain-related companies. There have been several notable launches, including companies like Baton, which was acquired by Ryder in August 2022; making Baton part of Ryder’s technology lab; and Terminal, whose latest raise in 2023 was led by 8VC and global warehouse provider Prologis.

RELATED: Ryder and Terminal tout success of AI-based yard traffic-monitoring pilot

“A portion of our fund goes towards our Build program,” he explained. “We have a few really interesting companies in the pipeline that we plan to launch in the upcoming months that we have been heads down on for the last year or so. … It’s pretty exciting to see a lot of opportunities for us to build with innovators and large companies hand in hand.”

8VC’s new fund represents a vote of confidence in the future of supply chain and logistics innovation. As the sector continues to evolve, driven by advancements in AI, automation and data analytics, 8VC is positioning itself to play a key role in shaping the next generation of industry-defining companies.

Disclosure: 8VC is an investor in SONAR.

Articles by Grace Sharkey

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