Base10 Partners was founded in 2017 by Adeyemi 'Ade' Ajao, a multi-country serial founder with African, European, and Latin roots raised in Spain and Nigeria, and TJ Nahigian, built around backing automation technology for the 'Real Economy' - traditional sectors like retail, logistics, healthcare, and construction that most consumer-tech-obsessed investors overlooked. The firm originally called its thesis 'Applied AI for the Real Economy,' a term LPs dismissed as too niche in its early years, until AI became the dominant investing category and validated the original bet. Base10 is recognized as the world's largest Black-led venture capital firm, and commits up to 50% of its carried interest to fund scholarships for students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities through its Advancement Initiative. The firm has made more than 110 investments including Notion, Figma, and Nubank, closing $850 million in 2026 to push total AUM to $2.6 billion.
No confirmed public exit yet - Base10's clearest proof points are current portfolio companies growing rapidly, including Nubank (NYSE: NU) as one of the firm's larger co-investment wins alongside Notion and Figma, both still private