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Scale Venture Partners is a Series A and Series B investor in AI and business software with an office in Foster City, up the Peninsula from Palo Alto. It began inside Bank of America in 2000, spun out in 2007 and has since put early checks into DocuSign, Box, HubSpot and BILL. Its style is to lead rounds once a startup has real customers, then help it build a sales machine.
This page is a neutral profile for founders and readers who follow the local venture scene. It is based mainly on Scale's own website, including a detailed FAQ, plus the press coverage the firm links. For background on how venture funds work, start with our venture capital guide.
History: from a bank to an independent firm
Scale's FAQ gives the short version. The firm began in 2000 as BA Venture Partners, Bank of America's venture arm. It became independent in 2007 and took the name Scale Venture Partners. Kate Mitchell, who co-founded the firm, is now listed as partner emeritus.
Bank-owned venture groups were common in the 1990s and early 2000s. Several later spun out on their own. Scale is one of the better known examples. Our page on corporate venture capital explains how investing arms owned by large companies differ from independent firms.
The current investing partners named in the FAQ are Alex Niehenke, Andy Vitus, Ariel Tseitlin, Javier Redondo, Jeremy Kaufmann, Max Abram, Rory O'Driscoll and Stacey Bishop, with Eric Anderson as a venture partner. The team page also lists Siddharth Ramakrishnan as a partner. The firm says it has backed hundreds of companies over 25 years.
The Foster City office
Scale's contact page gives its address as 950 Tower Lane #1150, Foster City, CA 94404. Foster City is a planned bayside city in San Mateo County, built on landfill in the 1960s and known for its lagoons and office towers. It sits next to the west end of the San Mateo Bridge, roughly 15 miles north of Palo Alto. Our Foster City guide covers the town.
That location puts Scale outside the Palo Alto and Menlo Park cluster but still on the Peninsula. For founders coming from Palo Alto, the drive is about 20 minutes on Highway 101 outside rush hour and much longer at peak times. Our page on traffic and rush hour explains why timing matters. The office is private, so visit only for a confirmed meeting.
Focus, stage and check size
Scale describes itself as "an early-stage venture capital firm focused on AI and B2B software." Its FAQ adds detail that many firms keep vague:
- Stage. It leads about 80 percent of the Series A and Series B rounds it joins and typically takes a board seat.
- Traction. It looks for signed customers and repeatable demand, typically $500,000 to $5 million in annual recurring revenue.
- Check size. Initial checks usually range from $5 million to $50 million, with reserves for later rounds.
- Sectors. AI, B2B and vertical software, including applications, developer tools, infrastructure and security.
- Geography. From the Bay Area into companies across North America, Europe and Israel.
The firm sums up its approach as "Founder-honest over Founder-friendly." It says it collaborates with urgency when invited and steps back when founders need room. Our page on AI investors near Palo Alto places Scale among other firms focused on AI software.
Notable investments
Scale's FAQ names DocuSign, Box, HubSpot, BILL, JFrog, Motive, CodeRabbit and Bland among its companies. It says the firm has had eleven IPOs. Its press page adds dated news about the current portfolio:
| Date | Company | What was reported |
|---|---|---|
| March 2023 | Plus One Robotics | $50 million round led by Scale (Business Wire) |
| June 2026 | Bland | Voice AI startup raised $50 million (Yahoo Finance) |
| August 2026 | CodeRabbit | $143 million round at a $1.5 billion valuation; Scale led its Series B (Bloomberg) |
| August 2026 | Rillet | $100 million Series C at a $1 billion valuation, including Scale (Fortune) |
| September 2026 | Thatch | $108 million raise at a $1 billion valuation (TechCrunch) |
| October 2026 | Namespace | Raised $42 million for developer infrastructure (Axios) |
Other current names on the site include GC AI, Generalist, Paraform and Tavus. TechCrunch also reported in 2019 that Scale led an $11.4 million Series A in Honeycomb, a company Storm Ventures had backed at seed. Valuations in funding news are set by private rounds. They are not the same as returns to investors. This page makes no claims about returns.
Funds and size
The FAQ says Scale manages $2.8 billion in assets and is investing out of its $900 million Fund VIII, raised in 2022. We did not find a newer fund announcement on the firm's site as of November 2026, so Fund VIII is the latest figure we can confirm.
Support after the check
Scale puts much of its pitch into go-to-market help. Its Go-To-Market Advisory team includes former chief revenue, marketing and financial officers. Its executives in residence include a former chief revenue officer of Zoom. The firm also says it maintains benchmarks built from 1,000 startups across 10,000 quarters of operating data, runs councils and workshops and hosts a GTM Summit. It publishes a free benchmark tool and research on topics such as AI startup revenue claims.
How founders reach Scale
Scale answers this question directly in its FAQ. It says founders can go to the partner who covers their space and points to the team page for focus areas. It adds that warm introductions help but are not required. It asks founders to say what they build, who buys it and where they are. The contact page also lists a general email address for the firm.
We suggest starting with the firm's own channels or a warm introduction rather than a partner's personal inbox:
- Check that you fit the traction range: signed customers and roughly $500,000 to $5 million in recurring revenue.
- Read the team page to understand which sectors the firm covers.
- Write a short note to the firm's general address or ask a founder in the portfolio for an introduction.
- Be ready to discuss retention and expansion. Scale says it cares more about customers who stay than a revenue threshold.
Our guides to pitching investors and term sheet basics cover the steps around a lead investor.
Scale in the Peninsula ecosystem
Scale is a reminder that the Peninsula's venture map is wider than Sand Hill Road and University Avenue. Firms have offices from Redwood City to San Mateo and Foster City, often in larger buildings with easier parking. Scale's stage also fills a particular gap. Seed firms in Palo Alto and Menlo Park often hand their best companies to Series A and B leads like Scale once revenue starts to grow. For a founder on that path, knowing which firms lead at which stage saves time. Our seed funds page covers the stage before.
Good to know
- Scale Venture Partners is not Scale AI.
- The office is in Foster City, not Palo Alto or Sand Hill Road. Allow time for Highway 101 traffic.
- Nothing on this page is investment advice. Portfolio and fund figures come from the firm and the reports it links.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Scale Venture Partners located?
Scale lists its office at 950 Tower Lane #1150, Foster City, CA 94404 on its contact page. Foster City is on the bayside of the Peninsula, roughly 15 miles north of Palo Alto. The firm describes itself as based in the Bay Area.
Is Scale Venture Partners the same as Scale AI?
No. Scale Venture Partners, often called Scale VP, is a venture firm founded in 2000. Scale AI is a data labeling company founded in 2016. The firm's own FAQ says the two are unrelated.
What stage does Scale invest in?
Scale says it leads about 80 percent of the Series A and Series B rounds it invests in. It typically backs companies that have signed their first customers, usually with $500,000 to $5 million in annual recurring revenue. Initial checks range from $5 million to $50 million.
How did Scale Venture Partners start?
According to the firm, it began in 2000 as BA Venture Partners, the venture arm of Bank of America. It became independent in 2007. Kate Mitchell, who co-founded the firm, is now listed as partner emeritus.
How do I pitch Scale Venture Partners?
The firm's FAQ says its team page lists each partner's focus area and that warm introductions help but are not required. It asks founders to explain what they build, who buys it and where they are on their journey. The contact page also lists a general firm email address.