---
title: "July 2025 Emerging Manager: Sarah Smith Fund Closes $16M AI-Native Solo GP Fund I"
description: "Solo GP Sarah Smith closed Fund I at $16 million in July 2025, deploying AI-native tools to back up to 50 pre-seed and seed companies with $250K average checks."
date: 2025-07-11T00:00:00.000Z
tags: ["fund-close", "emerging-manager", "venture-capital", "2026-vc-news", "investor-education"]
source: https://venturecapitaltracker.com/nyc-vc-fund-news-2025-07-11-sarah-smith-fund-16m-fund-i
---

# July 2025 Emerging Manager: Sarah Smith Fund Closes $16M AI-Native Solo GP Fund I

> Solo GP Sarah Smith closed Fund I at $16 million in July 2025, deploying AI-native tools to back up to 50 pre-seed and seed companies with $250K average checks.

Sarah Smith closed **Fund I at $16 million** in July 2025 — a solo GP vehicle using **AI-native workflows** to scale early-stage investing across up to 50 companies.

## Key facts

- **Firm:** Sarah Smith Fund
- **Date announced:** July 11, 2025
- **Fund size:** $16 million
- **Check size:** ~$250K average
- **Portfolio target:** ~50 companies (17 already invested at close)
- **Stage:** Pre-seed and seed
- **GP:** Sarah Smith (solo) — formerly Bain Capital Ventures (7 years)
- **Platform:** AngelList fund administration

## LP roster

Pear VC, Ulu Ventures, Verdis Investment Management.

## Portfolio includes

Pika, Casca, Bandana, Takeoff AI, Costa Security, Howie AI, Skyfire.

## Why this matters

Sarah Smith represents the **AI-enabled solo GP** trend — one investor running a 50-company portfolio using AI tooling, relevant for founders seeking fast decisions and concentrated partner attention without platform overhead.

## Sources

1. TechCrunch (July 11, 2025): https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/11/sarah-smith-launches-16m-fund-says-ai-can-unlock-so-much-for-solo-gps-like-herself/
2. AngelList: https://www.angellist.com/blog/from-bain-capital-ventures-to-solo-gp-how-sarah-smith-raised-fund-i-on-angellist