NMV’s Fall Investment Season Is Live!

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By Jessica Salinas

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We’re excited to announce the NMV Fall 2021 Investment Season

With our country and democracy in a deeply tenuous position, innovation in the progressive movement is more critical than ever. Brilliant entrepreneurs are rising to the challenge, and NMV’s job is to get them the capital they need to build progressive power.

Historically, we’ve done that through our Open Calls – investment cycles happening on ad-hoc timelines 1-2x per year, where all applicants were considered against each other in a head-to-head process often lasting 6-9 months.

Due to founder feedback and a massively increased innovation pipeline, NMV is overhauling our investment process in line with our core principles of equity, responsiveness, and sustainability. We are shifting to a continuous investment cycle with two investment seasons each year – a spring season and a fall season. Starting now, submissions will be open and accepted continuously and investments made on a continuous basis. Responding to founder feedback, we aim to shorten the timeline between submission and investment decision to just 2 months on average. We expect to announce a cohort of 5-10 new portfolio members at the end of each season.

If you submit your info by 9/15 we’ll be sure to consider your startup for our fall season and notify you of our decision before the year is out.


Entrepreneurs, you should complete a Startup Intake Form on our Criteria & FAQ page if your project is:

  • An early stage nonprofit (501c3, c4, 527) or for-profit organization

  • An innovative solution, tech tool, or program with potential to scale

  • Building the political power of communities marginalized by present-day and historic oppression

  • At a stage where $50K–$150K would be catalytic

  • Working in any of NMV’s sectors – media & narrative, advocacy & organizing, and/or elections & civic engagement

  • Based in and/or seeking to impact the United States

Projects we fund will receive $50K–$150K as well as portfolio support including:

  • Access to a network of founders where leaders ask questions, identify problems, and surface solutions.

  • Webinars and one-on-one coaching to help new leaders navigate organizational and operational challenges like setting goals and managing cash on hand.

  • Additional funding catalyzed through connections to donors and investors at our flagship event, the NMV Summit, and at other times of the year when possible.

Note: We’re currently refining our program in response to feedback from current portfolio members and look forward to rolling out the next iteration of our support program in the months ahead.

Need more information? Check out our Criteria & FAQ page.


We Need Everyone Involved, Including You

If you’re committed to building progressive power through innovation, we’d love your support. You can make an impact by:

  • Referring startups in your network who would be a great fit for NMV funding.

  • Spreading the word on TwitterFacebookLinkedIn, and other social media platforms.

  • Supporting NMV’s Innovation Fund and Operations. Please reach out to Director of Partnerships Arbour Decker for more information.

About New Media Ventures

NMV has more experience evaluating digital startups than anyone else in the progressive movement. Our open investment process surfaces a diverse pipeline of investment-ready projects and generates a bird’s-eye view of the innovation taking place across the progressive ecosystem. Through this process, we identify and provide seed funding to the most promising leaders working to solve the problems facing our democracy. 

Over the last decade, we have mobilized more than $50M in critical early capital to more than 100 projects leveraging technology and media to advance progressive change and build power within and among marginalized communities. Because we evaluate startups in terms of both impact and financial sustainability, NMV-funded projects have provided consistent leadership and built durable infrastructure – most recently during the COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 elections

Our investments in for-profit companies like Blavity, Mobilize.us (recently acquired by EveryAction), and OutreachCircle (recently acquired by Political Data, Inc.) and our grants to nonprofit organizations like Mijente (501c4), Swing Left (527), and PushBlack (501c3) have transformed the online ecosystem for politics and social justice. The investments NMV makes today will determine what’s possible in the years ahead.