Pear VC Announces $333M Fund V
Pear VC, building a venture firm that truly puts founders first, led by Mar Hershenson and Pejman Nozad, has announced Fund V, a $333 million fund that brings Pear to more than $1.1 billion in assets under management, along with three new General Partners.
Building Around Founders.
Pear has backed founders behind companies such as DoorDash, Gusto, Guardant Health, Vanta, and Listen Labs, supporting businesses that have gone public, become category leaders, or been acquired.
Beyond investing, Pear has built an ecosystem around founders, including PearX, university programs, hackathons, founder communities, and studios. Its engineering and founder services teams provide AI-powered tools and support across talent, go-to-market, marketing, and fundraising.
Through early engagement with promising students and entrepreneurs, Pear focuses on helping ideas become companies, often long before significant funding or market recognition.
At its core, Pear believes venture capital is about backing founders at the earliest stages, when conviction, a compelling problem, and the courage to build matter most.
Backing Founders Before It’s Obvious.
While venture capital has shifted toward larger funds and faster, more competitive deals, Pear remains focused on backing founders before their potential becomes widely recognized.
Through its pre-seed and seed practices, Pear evaluates thousands of companies annually, gaining early insights into emerging technologies, evolving founding teams, and new market opportunities.
The firm's approach centers on identifying exceptional talent early, supporting founders through uncertainty, and building lasting partnerships as companies grow.
Fund V And Three New General Partners.
Pear has announced its fifth fund, Pear Fund V, with $333 million in capital, marking 13 years of backing early-stage founders.
Alongside the fund launch, Arash Afrakhteh, Ajay Kamat, and Shravan Reddy have been appointed General Partners. Their investment focus spans enterprise AI, cloud and data infrastructure, consumer, fintech, healthcare, robotics, and vertical AI.
The leadership transition reflects Pear’s continued evolution, strengthening its investment team and reinforcing its long-term commitment to supporting founders from the earliest stages.
Pear: Still at Day Zero.
After 13 years, Pear remains committed to its founding principles: staying close to founders, fostering curiosity, and backing promising ideas early.
Despite its growth and expanding portfolio, the firm continues to embrace an early-stage mindset, viewing every new founder and opportunity as the beginning of something bigger.
