# University of Southern California

> University of Southern California is a VC fund backing EdTech and FinTech. See 7 investments, check sizes, portfolio and contact details. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Los Angeles, United States
- Total investments: 7
- Last investment: Jun 2024
- Lead investor: 14%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/school/university-of-southern-california/
- X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/USC
- Website: http://www.usc.edu
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/USC/

University of Southern California is a VC fund in Los Angeles focused on EdTech and FinTech. The University of Southern California is one of the world’s leading private research universities. An anchor institution in Los Angeles, a global center for arts, technology and international business, USC’s diverse curricular offerings provide extensive opportunities for interdisciplinary study and collaboration with leading researchers in highlyadvanced learning environments.

## Contacts

5 contacts available for University of Southern California. Shizune tracks 21 team members at University of Southern California. Sign up free to unlock them: https://app.shizune.co/sign-up/investor-profiles/find-team-emails/university-of-southern-california?utm_source=investor_profile

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| EdTech | 2 | 29% |
| FinTech | 2 | 29% |
| Finance | 2 | 29% |
| Education | 2 | 29% |
| Financial Services | 2 | 29% |

17 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Seed | 2 | 29% |
| Funding Round | 2 | 29% |
| Pre-Seed | 1 | 14% |
| Venture - Series Unknown | 1 | 14% |

## Team

| Name | Title | Investments | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jason Lee | Assistant Professor | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/jason-lee-3238 |
| Mike Fischer | Professor, Interactive Media | 7 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/mike-fischer |
| Anthony Borquez | Professor | 2 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/anthony-borquez |
| Ashutosh Nandeshwar | Assistant Vice President, Relationship Management and Data Sciences | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/ashutosh-nandeshwar |
| Bob Kocher | Senior Fellow, Schaeffer Center for Healthcare Policy | 17 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/bob-kocher |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NeOnc Technologies | NEONC Technologies, Inc. (NTI) is an early-stage cancer biotechnology company focused initially on intranasal (delivery through the nose) inhalation and other nontraditional delivery of a novel, highly purified form of monoterpenes (oils from fruits & plants), alone or with other chemotherapeutics (cancer treatment chemicals) agents. It willinitially be used in clinical research for first-line treatment of malignant brain cancer (gliomas) and other aggressive brain cancers, and later for the treatment of lung cancer.NTI was incorporated in the State of Delaware in 2008. The Company has assembled a highly qualified management team and board of directors. NTI is developing several proprietary molecules for clinical research some of which have demonstrated significant activity (positive results) in laboratory tests; NTI is accordingly building a portfolio of intellectual property around this research. In addition, the Company has reached an agreement with a manufacturer of active pharmaceutical ingredients for the development and production of proprietary monoterpenes. | $18.5M | Venture - Series Unknown | Jun 26, 2024 |  |
| Dora Maar | Dora Maar is an online retailer of designer apparels and accessories for women.  They provide muse closets, dresses, tops, jackets, skirts, jumpsuits, curations, designers, clothing, bags, shoes, and accessories. | $625K | Pre-Seed | Jan 01, 2022 |  |
| Backer | Backer is a social savings platform that enables users to set up a tax-free 529 account where family and friends can contribute. It is backed by leading edtech and fintech venture firms, Princeton University, Dartmouth University, USC’s Marshall School of Business, and founders of SoFi, Facebook, Quizlet, CircleUp, AltSchool, Patreon, andLendingHome.Backer was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. | $8.4M |  | Apr 28, 2021 |  |
| Backer | Backer is a social savings platform that makes it easy for parents to invest tax-free for education with a 529 Savings Plan, and do so with robust financial support from family and friends. Backer has helped its families avoid over $75M in student debt so far, with 40% of the savings coming from grandparents, uncles/aunts, and more distantfriends/relatives.Backer recently announced a $8.4 million round of funding led by Crosslink Capital's Jim Feuille (board director at Chime) and Rally Ventures with participation from Corellation Ventures, Princeton, Dartmouth, USC, and prominent angels including founders of SoFi, Patreon, Quizlet, and CircleUp. | $9M |  | Apr 28, 2021 |  |
| Backer | Backer is a social savings platform that makes it easy for parents to invest tax-free for education with a 529 Savings Plan, and do so with robust financial support from family and friends. Backer has helped its families avoid over $75M in student debt so far, with 40% of the savings coming from grandparents, uncles/aunts, and more distantfriends/relatives.Backer recently announced a $8.4 million round of funding led by Crosslink Capital's Jim Feuille (board director at Chime) and Rally Ventures with participation from Corellation Ventures, Princeton, Dartmouth, USC, and prominent angels including founders of SoFi, Patreon, Quizlet, and CircleUp. | $5.3M | Seed | Apr 28, 2021 |  |
| Dora Maar | Dora Maar is an online retailer of designer apparels and accessories for women.  They provide muse closets, dresses, tops, jackets, skirts, jumpsuits, curations, designers, clothing, bags, shoes, and accessories. | $300K | Pre-Seed | Mar 04, 2021 |  |
| nFlux AI | nFlux AI is a unified integrated interface where users can acquire information efficiently and effectively | $3M | Seed | Jul 31, 2020 |  |

7 of 7 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Great Oaks Venture Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/great-oaks-venture-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Princeton University](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/princeton-university) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Rally Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/rally-ventures) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Reach Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/reach-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Ulu Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/ulu-ventures) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Crosslink Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/crosslink-capital) — VC Fund, 2 deals together

## Similar investors

### Similar stage
- [Antler](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/antler-be9c) — VC Fund
- [Alumni Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/alumni-ventures-group) — VC Fund
- [Right Side Capital Management](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/right-side-capital-management) — VC Fund

## FAQ

### What does University of Southern California invest in?

University of Southern California invests primarily in EdTech, FinTech and Finance startups, most often at Seed and Funding Round stage. Most of the 7 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United States. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### How do I contact University of Southern California?

Public channels for University of Southern California 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 University of Southern California?

The team at University of Southern California includes Jason Lee (Assistant Professor), Mike Fischer (Professor, Interactive Media) and Anthony Borquez (Professor), among 21 team members tracked by Shizune. 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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