Funding programs for Colorado startups
Colorado founders raise money through angel groups, pitch events, venture capital firms and banks. Startup Resources lists 100 of them as of : 14 angel groups and pitch events, 48 for early rounds, 27 for growth rounds and 11 banks. A listing is not a recommendation, so ask other founders about an investor before you pitch.
Angel groups and pitch events
Groups and events where founders pitch to investors.
An online platform where Colorado entrepreneurs pitch business ideas. Angel investors hear the pitches. Founders seek capital, advice and contacts.
Pitch event or demo day in Boulder.
A yearly Colorado State University showcase. Graduate students and postdocs present posters, and entrepreneurs meet local emerging companies.
Denver Tech Meetup Group Startup Pitch Events
Casual happy hours in Denver for people who work in tech, including founders and startups.
In Startup Resources: Denver Tech Meetup Group Startup Pitch Events
Event or group that connects founders with investors in Boulder.
An online event. Startups with a woman in leadership pitch the MergeLane team and get feedback.
CU Boulder startup competition where teams pitch for funding at the final event.
An angel group. It trains diverse new investors through a learning-by-doing fund. It also backs high-growth impact companies.
Pitch event or demo day in Colorado Springs.
Pitch event or demo day in Boulder.
Regis Innovation Challenge (Regis University, College of Business)
A competition at Regis University for business ideas. Students, alumni and community innovators pitch to judges. Entrants compete for a grand prize.
In Startup Resources: Regis Innovation Challenge (Regis University, College of Business)
A Colorado angel investor network. Its monthly Investor Forums let startups pitch for seed to Series A funding.
A quarterly private pitch event in Denver or Boulder. Seed-stage founders pitch active angel investors.
Techstars Boulder Accelerator Demo Day
Demo Day of the Techstars Boulder accelerator. The program is for early-stage founders in any sector.
In Startup Resources: Techstars Boulder Accelerator Demo Day
Seed and early-stage funding
Firms and resources for a company raising its first rounds.
An early-stage venture capital firm in Denver and Dallas. It invests in startups with AI and disruptive software at their core. It covers the future of work, enterprise and industry.
Seed-stage venture capital firm in Boulder.
An early-stage venture capital firm in Boulder. It works with pre-revenue and pre-seed startups. It has no set sector or region.
A Denver lender. It offers non-dilutive growth loans to established B2B software and tech-enabled services businesses in North America. The businesses range from bootstrapped through Series B.
A Boulder growth equity investor. It backs early-stage natural and organic products firms that look promising. It gives them capital and strategic help.
A venture capital firm with offices in Denver and New York. It backs startups using data, AI and robotics. The startups change how industries build, power and move.
A venture capital fund. It is early-stage. It invests in technology companies.
A Boulder investment firm, now BFG Partners. It backs founders of better-for-you consumer brands. Their products are what people eat, drink and use every day. It invests from the first check to Series B.
An early-stage venture firm based in Boulder. It partners with entrepreneurs who put the customer first. The entrepreneurs solve meaningful problems in their industries.
A venture investor that backs University of Colorado Boulder founders. Faculty, students and alumni are among them. Some of them run startups that license university technology. It invests from pre-seed through Series A.
A Chicago venture capital firm with a team member in Denver. It invests at seed and Series A in AI, software and simple hardware. The aims are efficiency, resiliency and decarbonization.
A Denver venture capital firm backing Colorado companies. The companies have scalable business models and a commitment to their communities. It works in clean energy, education, healthcare, natural foods and technology.
A Denver private investment arm of Crawley Petroleum. It partners with founders across industries and stages. It looks for early revenue and customer adoption.
A student venture fund at the University of Colorado Boulder. Graduate students learn venture capital by doing the work. Students do diligence on emerging companies and invest in them.
A Columbus venture capital firm. It invests from idea to IPO. It backs founders building in cities between the coasts, Denver among them.
A Colorado venture capital firm. It invests in seed and early-stage software as a service and mobile application businesses. It aims to help close the funding gap for early founders.
A seed-stage venture firm that invests in founders. The founders are in underserved and emerging startup ecosystems. The ecosystems span the Midwest, Texas and the Rockies.
A venture firm. It invests in security technology companies. It backs them from early innovation to scaled growth.
A seed-stage venture firm of founders, operators and investors. It wants to be the first partner for founders who build companies in Colorado and Texas.
A seed-stage venture capital firm.
A deep tech venture firm. It backs teams that spin out of university labs. Its areas are robotics, AI, energy and space.
A venture firm. It invests early. It backs technology companies outside Silicon Valley.
Seed-stage venture capital firm in Denver.
A multi-strategy investment firm that has offices in Denver, Tel Aviv and Silicon Valley. Its venture work focuses on early-stage Israeli companies. It also focuses on mobility technology.
Seed-stage venture capital firm in Boulder.
An investment consortium. It offers deal-by-deal access across stages, sectors and asset classes.
A founder-run early-stage venture firm. It invests in pre-seed to Series A companies in the Rocky Mountain and Austin regions.
A thesis-driven venture capital firm in Denver. It invests in the technologies and platforms of interactive entertainment, deep tech and critical industries.
Next Frontier Capital (Boulder/ Montana)
A venture capital firm with offices in Boulder, Bozeman and Park City. It backs startups in enterprise intelligence and in critical infrastructure. It also backs startups in financial systems and in national security.
In Startup Resources: Next Frontier Capital (Boulder/ Montana)
A venture firm. It invests at pre-seed, seed and Series A in companies across the critical mineral value chain.
A Colorado Springs private equity investor. It buys into established small and mid-sized businesses in the Pikes Peak Region. It focuses on job creation and economic impact.
A Denver seed fund run by founders. It backs pre-seed and seed companies in the real economy.
An investment firm. It offers equity and debt. It also offers purchase order financing and guidance. It serves active lifestyle companies.
An early-stage venture investor rooted in the Rocky Mountain startup community. It backs fast-growing companies in emerging technology, healthcare and life sciences. It also invests in consumer goods and cleantech.
The investment arm of SCAPE, the Southwest Colorado Accelerator Program for Entrepreneurs in Durango. It funds the companies that go through its accelerator.
A seed-stage venture firm based in Boulder, Austin and Atlanta. It invests in high-growth healthcare, fintech and logistics startups across the United States.
Startup Colorado Funding Database
Startup Colorado's database of funding options. It is for founders and small business owners in rural Colorado. It lists Colorado-based investors and small business lenders. It lists grants and crowdfunding too.
A Denver seed-stage venture firm. It writes the first institutional check for deep tech founders in Colorado and the Rocky Mountain region. It invests across energy, biotech, aerospace and quantum.
Seed-stage venture capital firm in Boulder.
A Southwest Colorado network for entrepreneurs. It helps new and growing businesses. It has accelerator bootcamps, mentors, capital funds, a demo day and coworking.
A venture capital firm in Denver. It invests in emerging healthcare technology companies. The companies put access to and control over medical care in the hands of patients.
An early-stage venture fund. It invests in startups nationwide in AI, SaaS, hardware, fintech, aerospace and robotics.
An early-stage venture firm that invests at inception. It backs AI software and deep tech. The tech is for energy, aerospace, robotics and manufacturing.
A sustainable real assets investor with a Boulder office. It develops and transforms complex assets. The assets are in energy, transportation and agriculture. The work is for the transition to sustainability.
An angel network. It organizes angel investment in rural Colorado companies. It focuses on the West Slope. It offers founders mentors, connections and investor events.
A venture fund. It invests at pre-seed and seed in companies founded by women or mixed-gender teams.
A Loveland venture capital firm. It invests in seed and early-stage companies already showing traction. It also supports their formation and growth.
The investment arm of ZOMALAB puts flexible, patient capital into market-based solutions. Its home regions are Colorado and Chile. The work is in energy, workforce and rural economic development.
Growth-stage funding
Firms for later rounds, from seed-plus to Series C and private equity.
An early-stage venture capital firm. It has offices in Westminster and Denver. It invests at seed and Series A in SaaS, cybersecurity and marketplace startups.
A venture capital firm in Denver. It invests in enterprise software companies at an early growth stage. Its companies are built on applied artificial intelligence.
A healthcare and life sciences venture capital firm. It helps entrepreneurs build companies. It has locations in the San Francisco Bay Area, Denver and Jackson, Wyoming.
A Denver venture capital firm. It invests in energy and industrial technology firms. That includes energy tech products and services.
A venture capital firm. It has an office in Boulder. It invests in information technology and biotech firms in Colorado and the Mid-Atlantic.
Venture capital firm for seed-plus rounds.
A venture capital firm. It invests in pre-seed, seed and Series A companies. That includes fintech, enterprise and aerospace.
An investment group in Greenwood Village. It invests in healthcare and healthcare technology companies. It now focuses on digital health, wellness and platform businesses.
A real estate investment firm and developer. It focuses on Opportunity Zones in Colorado's emerging communities. It invests mainly in multifamily housing and outdoor hospitality.
Venture capital firm for seed-plus rounds in Boulder.
A private equity firm in Boulder. It buys majority stakes in North American businesses. It works with their teams to improve operations.
A private equity or specialty financing firm in Denver.
The investment arm of Liberty Global, now called Liberty Growth. Its Denver and Silicon Valley team invests in early-stage technology companies. Each one fits its operating businesses.
An investment firm with a Denver office. It backs consumer health and wellness companies. Its companies modernize the everyday products people use to live longer, healthier lives.
Venture capital firm for Series C rounds in Denver.
A venture firm. It backs deep tech founders in space, data, energy and security. Stages run from seed-plus to Series B.
Venture fund investing in startups that have a woman in leadership.
A private investment firm with offices in Boulder and Aspen. It gives capital to privately held growth companies. Deals range from smaller venture deals to larger private equity deals.
A Boulder investment firm. It gives growth-stage capital and hands-on operating help. It serves natural foods and consumer products businesses.
A Boulder family office. It invests its own patient, founder-friendly capital. It backs firms in natural foods, outdoor and apparel. It also backs firms in active lifestyle, and health and wellness.
An early-stage investor. It makes equity and debt investments. It backs high-growth aerospace and space startups in Colorado.
A Boulder venture capital firm. It funds early-stage technology businesses in healthcare, internet and enterprise IT. It also funds clean technology and internet-based services.
A venture capital firm. It co-invests in seed and Series A rounds. It invests alongside institutional venture firms. It uses regional funds, including one for the Rocky Mountain region.
The pre-seed and early-stage investing platform of Techstars. Techstars began in Boulder. It funds companies in Techstars accelerator programs. It also funds their follow-on rounds.
A multi-stage venture capital firm. It is focused on cybersecurity. It invests around the world. Its offices include Boulder, Silicon Valley and Boston.
A Denver investment firm. It backs entrepreneurs who build regenerative food and agriculture firms. It weighs soil health and ecological impact. It weighs financial returns too.
The Boulder venture capital arm of the UPC Energy Group. It invests in energy technology and energy efficiency. It also backs sustainability, water resource management, SaaS and financial technology companies.
Banks and lenders
Banks, credit unions and business banking services.
Bank offering small businesses checking, credit cards, lines of credit, SBA loans and payment tools.
A bank. It offers business checking, treasury management, credit cards and loans. It also offers personal banking. It serves people and businesses in Colorado.
A finance platform. It offers corporate cards, expense management, bill pay and business accounts. It serves startups through enterprises.
A bank. It offers business checking, merchant services, small business loans and business credit cards.
A national bank or business banking service in Denver.
Online business checking with invoicing, payments and cards. It is for freelancers and consultants. Independent businesses can use it too.
A national bank or business banking service in Denver.
A credit union serving metro Denver. It offers personal and business banking. That includes business checking, loans and lines of credit.
A national bank. It offers small businesses checking and savings accounts, lines of credit, loans, credit cards and payment services.
A local bank, credit union or lender. It is in Boulder, Colorado Springs and Denver.
A national bank. It offers small businesses checking, savings, lines of credit, SBA loans, credit cards and merchant services.
More guides for founders
Start and fund a company
Meet other founders
Every list here comes from Startup Resources, which the community keeps current. If a Colorado resource for founders is missing, tell us. A person reviews every suggestion before it goes in.