New VC Fund In Atlanta Looks to Boost Media-Focused Startups

Atlanta has another venture capital firm.

Sound Media Ventures, led by Shachar Oren, announced the initial closing of its Fund I, with a target to reach $25 million.

Oren told Hypepotamus that the fund looks for seed and early-stage startups focused on the media tech market. He was previously the VP of Music for Peloton after his startup Neurotic Media was acquired by the health and wellness giant. He also has worked with and mentored founders at accelerators such as California-based Techstars Music, along with many Atlanta-based accelerators that have turned out media-focused startups over the years, including ATDC, Create-X, Georgia State University’s Main Street, and The Cranium Incubator. 

The fund has already deployed capital into five companies, including Atlanta-based Press Sports. Other investments have gone to startups in the e-sports and streaming space. 

For Oren, keeping ahead of trends in the dynamic Media Tech market means “keeping a close eye on basic human needs and the tools people use to fulfill them; to connect with each other, to discover new things, to enjoy life and strengthen bonds with their friends and families. These are the drivers of the dynamic trends we see today in media tech and the new opportunities we will see emerging in the future.” 

We asked what the Sound Media team looks for in an early-stage founder in the Media Tech space. “There are certainly bread and butter qualities that I appreciate in founders. I’m thinking about grit, relationship building, flexibility, operational excellence, and integrity,” Oren said. “Beyond these though, I love it when I meet founders with great curiosity and passion for solving problems.”

“When you think about some of the greatest innovations in human history, and the ones that have really taken hold over centuries, you have to ask yourself about the qualities of the people who discovered, built, and refined them. Think about the discovery of fire, the wheel, penicillin, and electricity. Big innovations were discovered and developed because there were huge problems that needed solutions for human survival. And some were born through great creativity and ideation after repeated failures. In all cases, it was curiosity and passion that drove people to innovate, and the ability of each invention to make life better drove refinement for wide-scale use.”

 

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