stationery.

We’ve had an incredible quarter at the firm – a time of growth and renewal that mirrors the season. We hosted events on both coasts, expanded our value-add partners across the Executive Advisory and Operator Network, brought on new Fellows, and welcomed a company into the portfolio. We hope the summer promises everyone a moment to pause and reflect, and we’ll catch you in H2.

Enterprise networking is fragmented, unpredictable, and expensive — forcing businesses to choose between reliable networks and cost savings. Meter is turning internet infrastructure into a true utility with a fully integrated Network as a Service model. They combine proprietary hardware, firmware, and software with end-to-end operations to deliver seamless network deployment and management — all through a single, predictable subscription. More here

Building Beyond at New York Tech Week

Moderated by Lynda Tran, former senior advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Transportation and current board member at STV, the panel featured:

• Garo Hovnanian, Executive Vice President of Advisory Services at STV

• Jason Pritzker, Managing Director at 53 Stations and Vice Chairman of The Pritzker Organization

• Vinn White, former Chief AI Officer and Senior Advisor for Innovation at the U.S. Department of Transportation

• Nicholas Selz, Co-founder & President of Kaya AI

Panelists offered sharp perspectives on the physical systems underpinning our most ambitious technologies — not as a simply a policy problem or funding gap, but as a delivery challenge. Read on for key takeaways from the conversation.

53 Stations Goes West

Congrats to Kaya AI

We recently hosted a happy hour at our Chicago office to celebrate Kaya AI and the release of their new supply chain intelligence product. (They also stole the show earlier that day at the 2025 Innovating Building Materials & Supply Conference - BuiltWorlds.) The company has surrounded itself with an incredible network of supporters, and we’re proud to be part of Team Kaya.

Attending BuiltWorlds in Chicago?

On the horizon for us:

• Jason and Melissa @ Future Proof Festival in Orange Country, September 7-10

• Ben @ Blueprint 2025 in Las Vegas, September 16-18

Let us know if you’ll be there. We’d love to see you.

Our Operator Network connects our portfolio with peers who’ve been in the trenches: founders and functional leaders who've scaled startups across GTM, product, engineering, ops, and people. We recently welcomed Eric M. Stone, a board member, advisor, investor, and exited founder in the healthcare sector. A patient advocate and serial entrepreneur, Stone currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the University of Chicago Medicine and prior served as a National Trustee of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation and as a Director for the Harvard Alumni Association.

Eric served in commercial leadership in the personalized medicine space and earlier in his career launched a series of pioneering interventional cardiology devices for Abbott in the U.S. and overseas. He was a founding member of Model N’s (NYSE: MODN) Life Sciences division, and most recently co-founded and served as CEO of Velano Vascular, which was acquired by Becton Dickinson in 2021. He is an advisor and director to several upstarts. Stone received an MBA from The Wharton School, a Master’s from Harvard University, and a BA from the University of Pennsylvania. He lives with his wife and two children in Chicago.

We welcomed four MBA fellows to the team this month: Andy Wang (Columbia Business School), John Syme (Northwestern Kellogg School of Management), Lindsey Aronson (University of Michigan Ross School of Business), and Sarah Quettawala (The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania). 

Now in its second year, our full-time fellowship program is a two-way investment—a chance for fellows to dive deep into early-stage venture investing, and for us to learn from their perspectives. Join us in welcoming them!

Thanks for reading.