AI2 Incubator is entering its next phase.
The Seattle-based startup organization — known for spinning out companies at the intersection of AI and real-world applications — has closed an $80 million third fund to support about 70 new tech ventures over the next four years.
GeekWire first reported the fund in July. This week, we sat down with Jacob Colker, managing director of the 10-year-old incubator, to discuss lessons from a decade of AI startup building and how the firm is positioning itself for the next wave of entrepreneurship while helping boost Seattle’s tech ecosystem in the global AI boom.
Lessons learned and a new chapter
Inside Colker’s office at the incubator’s new waterfront headquarters, a wall of framed founder photos is a visual reminder of the organization’s track record — from alumni such as computer vision company Xnor.ai (acquired by Apple) and contract management software firm Lexion (acquired by Docusign) to newer startups including Ozette (biotech data), Yoodli (AI roleplay coaching), Vercept (automated desktop workflows), and Casium (immigration processing).
Of more than 50 companies that graduated from AI2 Incubator, nearly a quarter have been acquired and 90% went on to raise venture funding.
Founders who have gone through the program credit it for helping supercharge growth.
“Overall, they were a huge accelerant for Lexion, giving us the talent, AI advice, and credibility to land a solid team, great investors, and customers,” said Lexion co-founder Gaurav Oberoi, whose company sold for $165 million last year.
The new fund comes amid both record investor enthusiasm for AI startups and growing scrutiny over which ventures have real depth beyond the current hype. There is also stiff competition from various other venture firms, accelerators, startup studios, and incubators looking to find the next great AI companies.
Colker said Fund III reflects lessons learned from the incubator’s first two investment cycles.
“We backed some developer tools and infrastructure plays, and we also supported a few teams that were commercially strong but didn’t have deep technical foundations,” he said. “Both were useful experiments, but in hindsight, some of those companies plateaued.”
Developer-focused startups faced fierce competition and long sales cycles, he said, while execution-first teams without deep AI expertise struggled to build real differentiation or become attractive acquisition targets.
With its third fund, the incubator is doubling down on its well-worn strategy of pairing vertical, real-world applications with robust technical understanding.
“Every one of these companies has somebody on the team who really knows the industry that they’re going into, and really understands the problems,” Colker said.
AI2 Incubator prides itself on AI expertise, rooted in its origins within the Allen Institute for AI (Ai2), the Seattle nonprofit research institute founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.
“We started doing applied AI commercialization in 2015 — back then, it was largely theoretical,” Colker said. “And now it’s the centerpiece of the innovation sector, in a lot of ways.”
In Colker’s view, the landscape for AI founders has shifted dramatically since the incubator’s early days. He described what he calls the “next chapter of entrepreneurship in the age of AI”: startups with specialized, vertical solutions led by founders with years of domain knowledge — people who understand the problems inside hospitals, factories, and financial systems, and are now pairing that knowledge with AI technology.
Colker said it’s getting harder to find clear signal in the “AI fog” as the line between novelty and real technical depth blurs. “An API with a coat of paint on it — that’s not an AI company,” he said.
AI2 Incubator, which invests across various industries, pays close attention to a company’s data access advantages, specialized distribution channels, workflow integration, and customer trust.
“If we can’t see a clear link between the technical insight and business value, we don’t engage,” Colker said.
Flexibility and focus
AI2 Incubator typically works with founders at the earliest stage, sometimes even before they’ve incorporated a company.
It invests up to $600,000 in each startup via a SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) with a $10 million valuation cap and typically holds about 7% in common shares — the same class as founders, rather than preferred equity.
The equity stake is in the same ballpark as Y Combinator, and lower than some studios and incubators that may take a more hands-on approach to building companies.
AI2 Incubator also provides as much as $1 million in cloud computing credits and access to its technical and research network, including AI experts from companies such as Microsoft and Amazon.
“What makes the AI2 Incubator special is the depth of in-house expertise,” said Priyanka Kulkarni, CEO at Casium.
Colker said Fund III was significantly oversubscribed. AI2 Incubator works closely with about 15 companies per year.
“Staying small is not a limitation; it’s our advantage,” he said.
Unlike accelerators that move startups through fixed cohorts, AI2 Incubator accepts companies on a rolling basis. There are also no required board seats or relocation mandates. Founders can apply year-round and work either in Seattle or remotely.
The model, Colker said, is designed for flexibility — to attract experienced entrepreneurs who may not fit the lifestyle of a three-month accelerator sprint.
Seattle’s AI opportunity
Seattle remains the home base for AI2 Incubator, though 30% of its founders are not in the city. Colker expects that percentage to reach 50% with the new fund.
AI2 Incubator companies are required to spend at least a week per quarter in Seattle, and some relocate or move part of their workforce to the city.
Colker leads the incubator with fellow managing director Yifan Zhang, a longtime entrepreneur who spearheaded AI House, the sprawling new startup building at Pier 70 along Seattle’s waterfront that serves as AI2 Incubator’s headquarters along with event space and co-working offices.
Since its launch in March, more than 15,000 people have passed through its doors, according to the incubator, drawn by a mix of technical deep dives and startup programming.
AI House, supported in part by city and state government funding, is part of a broader effort to boost Seattle as a global AI hub.
Colker said the region’s strengths — deep technical talent, proximity to Microsoft and Amazon, and a collaborative research culture — give it an edge in building durable AI startups that solve real business problems.
But he acknowledged that the Bay Area does have stronger community around entrepreneurship. “You can’t walk down the streets of Palo Alto without hearing 15 startup pitches,” he quipped.
New efforts like AI House and Foundations will help fill that void in Seattle, Colker said.
“The cloud was invented here. The talent is here. The diversity of industries are here. The quality of life is here,” he said. “There’s now funding here, community here — it’s truly, unbelievably well positioned.”
He added: “There’s just no excuses anymore because we have everything we need. I think we’re going to get there, and we’re going to continue to grow.”
Grow and thrive
AI2 Incubator’s third fund represents a jump from the $30 million raised for Fund II in 2023 — though it’s spread over four years.
The new fund drew backing from Khosla Ventures, Point72 Ventures, and Madrona Venture Group, along with corporate investors including BHP Ventures and SBI Group.
Tim Porter, managing director at Madrona, cited the increasing national reach of the AI2 Incubator program and reputation as “a place where great AI founders can come to succeed.”
AI2 Incubator spun out from the Allen Institute for AI after Allen’s death in 2018, becoming an independent organization with its own governance and funding structure.
The Allen Institute for AI maintains a “small percentage of non-governing ownership” in the incubator, Colker said.
Colker said there are still about a dozen “resident experts” at AI House that both work at the research institute and spend time with founders at the incubator.
AI2 Incubator is also led by technical directors Oren Etzioni and Vu Ha, who continue to guide founders on product development and technical strategy.
Etzioni, who helped launch and previously ran the Allen Institute for AI, told GeekWire that the incubator was part of the original conception of Ai2 back in late 2013.
“We spun it out of the nonprofit institute to enable it to grow and thrive,” he said. “Now, with Fund III, we are poised to show the world what determined founders can accomplish amid the AI boom.”
