Lux Capital
American venture capital firm
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lux Capital is a venture capital firm based in New York City. It was founded in 2000, and focuses on investments in emerging technologies.[2][3][4][5]
Logo | |
Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Venture capital |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Founders | Peter Hébert Robert Paull Josh Wolfe |
| Headquarters | , United States |
| Total assets | $7.0 billion[1] |
| Website | luxcapital.com |
History
Lux Capital was founded in 2000 by Peter Hébert, Robert Paull and Josh Wolfe.[6] The company’s first outside investor was The Carlyle Group co-founder, Bill Conway.[7]
Lux Capital was an early investor in nuclear waste cleanup company Kurion, which aided in the cleanup of the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011. In 2016, Kurion was acquired by Veolia, French nuclear cleanup specialist, for $350 million.[8]
In 2017, Lux Capital helped fund the seed round for defense technology company Anduril Industries, a manufacturer of unmanned aerial systems, robotic submarines, and counter-drone technologies, which have been deployed in military operations and border surveillance.[9][verification needed] Anduril has drawn scrutiny for selling its products to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency.[10][11]
The organization had raised approximately $1 billion in investment funds by August 2019. That same year, Deena Shakir, formerly a partner at GV (Google Ventures), joined Lux as an investment partner, expanding the firm's focus on digital health and consumer technology.[12] In 2004, Lux Capital founded Lux Research, with Lux Capital's co-founder Peter Hebert leading the spin-off, making Lux Research a portfolio company initially backed by the firm. Lux Research was later sold to Bregal Sagemount in 2017, creating a historical link rather than an active parent-child relationship.[13]
In 2020, Lux Capital joined a group of technology companies for an additional round of funding for Anduril Industries.[14] Also in 2020, retired 4-star General and former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) Tony Thomas joined the firm as a Venture Partner.[15]
By June 2021, it had raised approximately $1.5 billion in investment funds.[12][16]
In 2023, Lux Capital raised its eighth core fund, with $1.15 billion.[17] The fund invests in early-stage technology companies in the areas of life sciences, defense, manufacturing, aerospace, and artificial intelligence.[18][15] This brought the company’s total assets under management to over $5 billion.[18] To date, Lux has invested in over 200 companies.[7] By 2026, approximately one-third of those investments were in defense technology.[19]
The firm has created more than 20 new companies since its founding, formalizing this process in 2024 as Lux Labs, a platform and strategy to bring scientific ideas from labs into the real-world.[20] In 2025, the firm saw significant portfolio exits: cloud observability startup Chronosphere was acquired by Palo Alto Networks for $3.35 billion in November, and spatial data company Matterport was acquired by CoStar Group for $2 billion in February.[21] In May of 2025, Lux Capital developed the Lux Helpline to support the academic research of scientists who are facing funding cuts.[22] Also in 2025, American diplomat Brett McGurk joined Lux as a venture partner.[23]
In January 2026, Lux closed their 9th fund — Fund IX — at $1.5 billion, the firm's largest to date.[24] The fund was oversubscribed. Among the limited partners in previous Lux funds are CalPERS and the New Mexico State Investment Council.[25] Also in 2026, Zach Iscol joined the firm as a Venture Partner. Iscol previously served as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Emergency Management and as deputy director of the Joint New York Medical Station during the COVID-19 pandemic.[26]
Portfolio companies
AI and tech
Defense, space and manufacturing
Biotech and healthcare
No longer operating: