Early-stage investors take some of the biggest — and boldest— swings in venture capital.
Our Seed 40 list, in its fifth year, spotlights the women who have done exactly that: find breakout talent early, and work alongside these founders to shape the future of tech. This year's honorees have placed bets across some of 2025's hottest verticals, from AI to health tech.
Perhaps it's no surprise that these investors are drawn to founders with similar characteristics. Mathilde Collin, one of the new members on this year's Seed 40 and Seed 100, toldBusiness Insider she seeks out "a delicate balance between humility, self-awareness, and self-confidence." "Enough self-confidence to inspire people to be on the journey with them, enough humility to get people to help them, enough self-awareness to work on themselves," she added.
This list is compiled using data analysis supplied by Termina, a software platform spun out of Tribe Capital. Read the full methodology behind the list.
7. Trish Costello | Founder and CEO, Portfolia
Notable investments: YourChoice, Bone HealthTechnologies, Canela Media, Eden GeoPower, Prime Roots,Lighthouse Pharma
City: San Mateo, California
Costello founded the venture fund Portfolia in 2014. The fund taps women investors to lead venture capital deals in areas such as women's health, sustainability, active aging and longevity, and startups led by founders of color. Beforethat, Costello was part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem for more than two decades with her work as the cofounder of theKauffman Fellows program, an education and leadership program for venture capitalists.
Costello told BI that while many venture firms slowed their investing pace last year because of market conditions,Portfolia closed 27 investments, adding to its more than 100investments in the past five years. "Over the past year, we determined that the smartest trend was to stay consistent and disciplined and keep putting our money to work," she said
17. Juliana Garaizar | Venture partner, Porfolia and ClimaTech GlobalVentures
Notable Investments: Cemvita Factory, SyzygyPlasmonics, Canela Media, Kauel, Suma Capital, Portfolia
City: Houston
Garaizar invests with ClimaTech Global Ventures, a firm that invests in early-stage, cross-border startups using AI in the climate tech space. She's also a partner at Portfolia, a firm based in San Mateo, California. Previously, Garaizar was the chief development and investment officer at Greentown Labs, a climate tech startup incubator. One of her investments, Cemvita Factory, is a biotechnology startup that converts carbon dioxide into compounds to make products like oil.
When asked about the future of her portfolio, Garaizar was enthusiastic about its opportunities for overseas expansion: "I am very excited about the international expansion of my portfolio companies such as Cemvita Factory in Brazil, Canela Media in Latin America and Spain, and Kauel in Europe," Garaizar told BI.
27. Noramay Cadena
Managing partner, Supply Change Capital
Notable Investments: FoodReady, Cargologik, Hyfé,Michroma, Canela Media, Terrantic
City: Los Angeles
Cadena is an engineer turned investor. She studied engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and began her career at Boeing, eventually leading a team that coordinated support for 400 mechanics on one of the first 787 airplanes. At Supply Change Capital, Cadena invests in environment, health, and diversity-focused startups, according to its website.
"This is a critical time to invest in technology across the food supply chain as a driver for health, consumer preference and efficiency," Cadena told BI. "Food safety, nutrition, and cost of goods are top of mind for all stakeholders and SupplyChange Capital invests in infrastructure technologies to improve the flow of data and goods."