# First Ascent Ventures

> First Ascent Ventures is a VC fund in Toronto backing Software and SaaS. See 30 investments, check sizes, portfolio and contact details. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Toronto, Canada
- Total investments: 30
- Last investment: Jan 2025
- Lead investor: 33%
- Fund size: $91M
- Last fund: Aug 2021
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/firstascentvc/
- X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/FirstAscent_VC
- Website: https://www.firstascentventures.com/

First Ascent Ventures is a VC fund in Toronto focused on Software and SaaS. First Ascent Ventures was founded in 2015 and invests in emerging Canadian technology companies that are building the next generation of disruptive, enterprise B2B software that leverages the cloud, big data, analytics, mobility, AI and machine learning.First Ascent Ventures is looking for outstanding, committed entrepreneurs and management teamswho seek not just financial backing, but the experience and expertise of successful financial and operating executives who can create a catalyst for growth and ultimately a successful exit for all stake holders.

## Contacts

5 contacts available for First Ascent Ventures. Shizune tracks 3 team members at First Ascent Ventures. Sign up free to unlock them: https://app.shizune.co/sign-up/investor-profiles/find-team-emails/the-opentext-enterprise-apps-fund?utm_source=investor_profile

## Round sizes

| Stage | Round size |
| --- | --- |
| Seed | $3.5M–$38M |
| Series A | $1.5M–$17M |
| Series B | $25M–$40M |

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Software | 12 | 40% |
| SaaS | 6 | 20% |
| Enterprise Software | 6 | 20% |
| Big Data | 4 | 13% |
| Artificial Intelligence | 4 | 13% |

46 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Series B | 10 | 33% |
| Series A | 9 | 30% |
| Seed | 2 | 7% |
| Series C | 2 | 7% |
| Funding Round | 2 | 7% |

6 stages tracked in total.

### Country

| Country | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Canada | 14 | 47% |
| United States | 6 | 20% |

## Team

| Name | Title | Investments | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Richard Black | General Partner | 7 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/richard-black |
| Tony van Marken | Managing Partner | 7 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/tony-van-marken |
| Katharine Tomko | Venture Partner | 4 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/katharine-tomko |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Darwin CX | Darwin CX is a software-as-a-service platform that is designed to supercharge acquisition and retention through both customer intelligence management and the strategic use of artificial intelligence. | $12M |  | Jan 28, 2025 |  |
| Darwin CX | Darwin CX is a software-as-a-service platform that is designed to supercharge acquisition and retention through both customer intelligence management and the strategic use of artificial intelligence. | $12M |  | Jan 28, 2025 |  |
| Thentia Cloud | Thentia Corporation is an industry leader in using proprietary technology to help regulatory bodies efficiently fulfill their regulatory obligations. Thentia services a wide variety of clients throughout Canada and the United States using cutting-edge software and industry-leading expertise in regulatory standards. | $38M | Series B | Jan 25, 2024 |  |
| Osano | Osano is an easy-to-use data privacy platform that helps businesses to become compliant with laws such as GDPR and CCPA. | $25M | Series B | Aug 10, 2023 |  |
| Shinydocs | Shinydocs automates the process of finding, identifying, and actioning the exponentially growing amount of unstructured data, content, and files stored across your business. Our solutions and experienced team work together to give organizations an enhanced understanding of their content to drive key business decisions, reduce the risk of unmanagedsensitive information, and improve the efficiency of business processes. Our solution works in the background, ensuring no change management or end user disruption. | $11.8M | Venture - Series Unknown | Mar 15, 2023 |  |
| Darwin CX | Darwin CX is a software-as-a-service platform that is designed to supercharge acquisition and retention through both customer intelligence management and the strategic use of artificial intelligence. | $38.4M | Seed | Dec 08, 2022 |  |
| Darwin CX | Darwin CX is a software-as-a-service platform that is designed to supercharge acquisition and retention through both customer intelligence management and the strategic use of artificial intelligence. | $38.4M | Seed | Dec 08, 2022 |  |
| Andgo Systems | Andgo Systems is a shift fill automation tool designed to simplify cumbersome scheduling practices through automated, configurable workflows. They provide end-to-end solutions for high-volume scheduling environments. Their team works directly with your organization to configure workflows based on your current processes and connects with existingscheduling systems. | $4.3M | Series A | Sep 13, 2022 |  |
| POTLOC | Trusted by hundreds of leading brands, organizations, consulting firms and investment funds, Potloc provides market insights that help companies connect with their target audiences from around the world.Founded in 2014, Potloc has quickly become the new standard in market research. Using our revolutionary sampling technology, we providehigh-quality data insights with pinpoint accuracy, allowing businesses to easily connect with consumers and professionals alike.With over 4.6 billion users on social media alone, Potloc gathers honest opinions and valuable feedback from the largest panel in the world. We also use other surveying methodologies to always ensure you’re getting the most accurate and appropriate insights based on your specific needs. If you’re a business looking for authentic and impactful insights, or a talented individual looking for a Great Place to Work, we’re ready to start the conversation! | $27.1M | Series B | Jun 21, 2022 |  |
| LinkSquares | Linksquares is a computer software company that features AI-powered contract management and analytics tool for in-house legal and finance teams. It specializes in contract management, machine learning, SaaS, contract review, and legal operation. LinkSquares was founded in 2015, and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. | $100M | Series C | Apr 04, 2022 |  |

10 of 30 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Information Venture Partners](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/information-venture-partners-2) — VC Fund, 4 deals together
- [BDC Venture Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/bdc-venture-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [La Caisse](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/caisse-de-depot-et-placement-du-quebec) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Espresso Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/espresso-capital-partners) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Hyperplane](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/hyperplane-venture-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Jump Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/jump-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together

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## FAQ

### What does First Ascent Ventures invest in?

First Ascent Ventures invests primarily in Software, SaaS and Enterprise Software startups, most often at Series B and Series A stage. Most of the 30 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in Canada. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### What is First Ascent Ventures's check size?

First Ascent Ventures typically joins rounds of $3.5M–$38M at Seed, $1.5M–$17M at Series A and $25M–$40M at Series B. These ranges are 10th–90th percentile round sizes calculated from confirmed public funding rounds, so they are a realistic guide to the rounds First Ascent Ventures participates in.

### How do I contact First Ascent Ventures?

Public channels for First Ascent Ventures include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.

### Who are the partners at First Ascent Ventures?

The team at First Ascent Ventures includes Richard Black (General Partner), Tony van Marken (Managing Partner) and Katharine Tomko (Venture Partner). The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

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