Pear VC is an early-stage venture capital firm headquartered in Palo Alto, California. It was founded in 2013 by Pejman Nozad and Mar Hershenson, two figures with well-documented track records in Silicon Valley seed investing. The firm targets pre-seed and seed rounds, typically writing first checks into companies before product-market fit is established. Its stated focus spans enterprise software, consumer technology, AI, and – more selectively – blockchain and digital assets.
Nozad built an early reputation as an angel investor while working as a rug merchant in Palo Alto, backing founders including the team behind DoorDash when few institutional funds showed interest. Hershenson holds a PhD in electrical engineering from Stanford and previously co-founded three companies before transitioning to full-time investing. The combination of operator experience and network access shaped Pear's approach: high-conviction, founder-first bets at the earliest possible stage.
The firm has raised multiple funds over its lifetime. Public reporting indicates Pear has managed over $160 million across its vehicles as of the early 2020s, though exact current AUM figures are not publicly disclosed. The fund size positions it firmly in the micro-VC and small seed-fund category rather than multi-stage growth equity.
Notable investments
- DoorDash – one of Pear's most cited early bets; Nozad backed the team at pre-seed before the company became a public-market giant.
- Guardant Health – liquid biopsy diagnostics company, now publicly traded (NASDAQ: GH).
- Gusto – payroll and HR platform for SMBs, valued at several billion dollars in later rounds.
- Blend – digital lending infrastructure, publicly traded (NYSE: BLND).
- Branch – mobile linking and measurement platform.
- Coupa Software – business spend management, later taken private by Thoma Bravo.
Public information on Pear VC's specific crypto and blockchain portfolio is limited. The firm has made selective investments in digital asset infrastructure and Web3 tooling, but individual deal disclosures in this vertical are sparse compared to its broader software portfolio. With 8 crypto-adjacent investments attributed to the firm in aggregator databases, Pear appears to treat the sector as a measured allocation rather than a core thesis.
Team
- Pejman Nozad – Co-Founder and Managing Partner. Former angel investor with early checks into Dropbox, DoorDash, and others. Known for spotting founding teams in unconventional settings.
- Mar Hershenson – Co-Founder and Managing Partner. Stanford PhD, serial entrepreneur before joining the investing side. Leads much of the firm's technical due diligence.
Beyond the two co-founders, Pear employs a small team of investment partners and platform staff. The firm runs PearX, a pre-seed accelerator program designed to source companies even before a formal seed round, giving it deal flow access comparable to accelerators like Y Combinator at the earliest stage.
Recent activity
In 2024 and into 2025, Pear continued backing AI-native startups across its core verticals. The firm's public communications have emphasized the intersection of AI and enterprise tooling. Activity specifically in crypto has been quieter in this period, consistent with broader seed-stage caution in the digital assets space following the 2022–2023 market contraction. No major new crypto fund vehicles or dedicated blockchain mandates have been publicly announced by Pear as of early 2026.
Pear VC occupies a well-defined niche: pre-seed generalist with selective exposure to emerging technology categories including blockchain. Its strongest suit remains enterprise and consumer software, where its track record is well-documented. For crypto founders seeking seed capital, Pear is a credible option – particularly for infrastructure or tooling plays that sit closer to traditional software than to pure token economics. Investors and founders can find background on the firm via pear.vc and its Crunchbase profile.