For Investors (VCs, PEs & Family Offices etc)

A thinking partner
on hardware bets.

I work with funds and family offices where there's genuine mandate alignment - as an extension of the investment team, not an external vendor. I bring operator context to technical diligence, sourcing Insights built on domain depth, and thesis development grounded in first-principles thinking.

Startup Evaluation

TRL assessment, manufacturability analysis, market timing, and founder quality - written as investment signal, not background reading. I apply dimensions most diligence processes skip: prototyping debt, supply chain risk, TRL inflation, and hardware-specific founder-market fit.

Deal Flow & Sourcing

Structured sourcing pipelines for hardware-focused mandates. Pre-screened, technically contextualized, and aligned to your thesis. I surface what a hardware-literate operator would notice - not just what shows up in founder databases.

Thesis & Market Insights

Sector landscape maps, investment thesis development, and first-principles conviction-building for emerging deeptech verticals. Built for GPs who need to orient fast without losing depth - and that hold up under scrutiny, not just brief a team.

Family Office Framework

A structured deeptech access framework for family offices exploring direct venture exposure: thesis definition, deal qualification, portfolio monitoring, and ongoing advisory. A capital allocation lens - not a generic fund pitch dressed up as advice.

Cohort & Panel Evaluation

Structured assessment for accelerator cohorts, grant panels, and demo days. Actionable feedback from an operator lens.

Sector Deep Dives

Commissioned research across deeptech verticals - green hydrogen, semiconductors, defence autonomy, thin films, industrial robotics. Grounded in technical depth and commercial realism.

I work selectively - where there is genuine mandate alignment. Email directly with context on your thesis, what you are trying to solve, and timeline.

Email Kalai
Who I Work With

Narrow mandate.
Sharper signal.

I keep a narrow mandate by design. The more specific my focus, the more useful I am. If you are outside these parameters, I would rather say so upfront.

✓ Good Fit

  • Pre-seed or seed stage - no exceptions
  • Deeptech hardware with defensible IP or technology core
  • Founders moving from lab or prototype toward first revenue
  • Teams preparing for first institutional raise
  • IP-led ventures where the moat is in the engineering
  • VCs & accelerators seeking peer-level evaluation support
  • Family offices building a direct deeptech exposure framework
  • Founders who share data, move fast, and engage seriously

✗ Not a Fit

  • Series A and beyond
  • SaaS, AI application layers, or software-only models
  • Healthtech, medtech, or digital biotech
  • Bio-adjacent or life sciences plays
  • Marketplace or consumer internet
  • Fintech, edtech, consumer
  • Ventures without a hardware or physical technology core
  • Founders not ready to share data or move at pace

Sectors I cover

Industrial AutomationRobotics Industrial AIAdvanced Manufacturing Energy HardwareClimate Tech Hardware Defence TechSpace Tech Advanced MaterialsSemiconductors & Sensing Agri HardwareHard Mobility

Sectors I don't cover

Life SciencesDigital Health BiotechPharma Pure SaaSConsumer Internet FintechEdtech