Ohio's Heartland Ventures Launches $60M Fund III for Midwest reindustrialization

Heartland Ventures - a venture capital firm based in Columbus, Ohio and focused on funding industrial businesses - announced the first close of Heartland Ventures Fund III, with a target size of $60 million. This new fund raises the firm's total capital across all investment vehicles to over $140 million. The fund makes pre-seed, seed and Series A investments, typically in the range of $2 million to $3 million, in early-stage industrial technology startups.

A distinctive feature of Heartland's investment approach is its LP (Limited Partner) base, which consists of nearly 1,000 Midwestern industrial owner-operators spanning industries such as manufacturing, construction, logistics, and real estate. This differs from most funds which most often raise their capital from family offices and institutional investors. The owner-operator LPs not only contribute capital but also crucial validation during due diligence as well as serving as potential customers. This model helps facilitate immediate commercial opportunities for portfolio startups. This customer-led diligence helps stress-test assumptions and accelerates revenue growth through direct introductions.

Ryan Joyce, CEO of portfolio company GenLogs, highlighted this advantage in the announcement of this new fund, saying that the fund “didn't just write a check; they opened doors to the exact industrial buyers we had been trying to reach for months. They are the ultimate bridge between tech and industry owner-operators." 

Although based in Columbus, Heartland Ventures has expanded into additional core markets including Chicago, Cleveland, Louisville, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and South Bend. This regional helps position the firm within the Midwest industrial landscape, aligning with its purpose, as stated in the announcement of “accelerating the reindustrialization of America”, helping do this by connecting innovative startups with established industry leaders. 

Since its inception in 2017, Heartland Ventures has invested in 25 portfolio companies. The firm has experienced several successful exits, including the acquisition of Firmus AI in September 2025. Their approach emphasizes not just capital provision but also facilitating early customer engagement, which has proven to be a significant growth driver.

“The customers and insights startups require are right here in the heartland region,” said Max Brickman, Managing Director at Heartland Ventures. He added that the firm was “stepping up to help America’s legacy industries identify the technologies that will allow these companies to thrive for the next fifty years.”