Weekend Fund Raises $10 Million for Nascent Upstarts
Ryan Hoover, the founder of Product Hunt, has raised another $10 million for his fund, Weekend Fund. This marks the firm’s second fundraise after a $3 million debut angel fund closed in 2017.
A Brief History of Ryan Hoover and Product Hunt
Ryan Hoover founded Product Hunt in 2013 before selling the product discovery platform to AngelList for $20 million in 2016. After the sale, Hoover remained as chief executive officer of Product Hunt. Prior to founding Product Hunt, Hoover was an investor in several companies, including Girlboss, TTYL (an audio social media platform), and Headspin (a mobile application performance software company).
Limited Partners in Weekend Fund
The latest fundraise includes limited partners such as venture capitalists Marc Andreessen, Chris Dixon, Jana Messerschmidt, Ben Rubin, Chris and Crystal Sacca, Hunter Walk, Kevin Rose, Garry Tan, Suzy Ryoo (co-founder of Q&A), Steven Sinofsky (former Microsoft president), Corley Hughes (co-founder of &Then), Scott Belsky (chief product officer at Adobe), Varsha Rao (CEO of Nurx), Eric Ries (CEO of Long Term Stock Exchange), and Troy Carter (CEO of Atom Factory).
Investment Focus
Weekend Fund invests across geographies and industries, with a particular interest in audio and voice products, tools for distributed teams and remote workers, and low-code/no-code projects. The fund operates an experiment called Weekend Build, which encourages employees to build side projects within their companies.
The Rise of Micro-Funds
Weekend Fund joins a growing list of early-stage micro-funds (or nano-funds) that are competing with larger funds such as GGV Capital and Sequoia Capital. Unlike these larger funds, Weekend Fund doesn’t lead investments but rather writes small checks as a participant in early financings.
The Fight for Seed
According to Crunchbase, U.S. investors raised more sub-$100 million VC funds last year (148 in total) – more than any other year in history. This trend suggests that smaller, micro-funds are becoming increasingly popular among investors.
Key Players
Some key players mentioned in the article include:
- Ryan Hoover: Founder of Product Hunt and Weekend Fund
- Marc Andreessen: Venture capitalist and limited partner in Weekend Fund
- Chris Dixon: Venture capitalist and limited partner in Weekend Fund
- Varsha Rao: CEO of Nurx and limited partner in Weekend Fund
Related Topics
Some related topics to this article include:
- The rise of micro-funds and nano-funds in the venture capital industry
- The increasing popularity of smaller, early-stage investments
- The trend of investors raising sub-$100 million VC funds
- The focus on audio and voice products, distributed teams, and low-code/no-code projects
Conclusion
Ryan Hoover’s Weekend Fund has raised another $10 million for its latest fundraise. With a focus on nascent upstarts across geographies and industries, the firm joins a growing list of micro-funds competing with larger funds in the venture capital industry.
Key Statistics:
- $10 million raised by Weekend Fund
- 148 sub-$100 million VC funds raised last year (according to Crunchbase)
- 2 fundraises for Weekend Fund, including a debut angel fund that closed in 2017
Important Dates:
- 2013: Ryan Hoover founded Product Hunt
- 2016: Product Hunt was sold to AngelList for $20 million
- 2017: Weekend Fund’s debut angel fund closed with $3 million raised
- 2023: Weekend Fund raises another $10 million