Key facts
- Sakkers said RedBlue held a first close on a second fund he expects to total at least $50 million.
- PitchBook data show first-time funds took 4.5% of US venture fundraising dollars in the first three quarters of 2026.
- Just 81 first-time funds closed in the first nine months of 2026, per PitchBook.
- Sakkers said 15 of RedBlue's 28 investments have been marked up, with one exit, an acqui-hire.
- RedBlue writes checks of $50,000 to $100,000, mostly joining deals led by other investors.
- Sakkers cites a net internal rate of return significantly above 50%, with most gains unrealized.
Olaf Sakkers, founder of venture firm RedBlue Capital, has held a first close on a second fund that he says will total at least $50 million, according to a report published November 11, 2026. The firm's first fund closed in 2023 with roughly $5 million in capital commitments.
The fundraising comes as first-time managers take a shrinking share of US venture dollars. PitchBook data show firms raising their fourth fund or later captured 88.2% of US VC fundraising dollars through the first three quarters of 2026, while first-time funds captured 4.5%. Just 81 first-time funds closed in the first nine months of 2026, which PitchBook estimates puts the year on track to be the worst for first-time managers in at least a decade.
Sakkers said institutional limited partners, including endowments and pension funds, have been the hardest to win over because his checks are small and their risk models are built to avoid a zero. The first fund drew on limited partners he had known for a while, including family offices; the second draws on family offices and institutions.
RedBlue writes checks of $50,000 to $100,000, mostly joining deals led by other investors rather than leading them. Sakkers said the approach lets the firm do more deals and offer practical help, including introductions to lead investors such as Andreessen Horowitz and Thrive Capital, and to customers.
By his account, 15 of 28 investments have been marked up and the fund has a net internal rate of return significantly above 50%. There has been one exit, an acqui-hire, so most gains remain on paper and unrealized. Public records cited in the report show HappyRobot raised a $150 million Series C at a $1.2 billion valuation in August, Westmag emerged in June with an $11 million seed led by Andreessen Horowitz, Flai followed its 2025 seed with a $27 million Series A, and Humble Robotics announced a $51 million Series A led by Obvious Ventures in November 2026.
Sakkers said RedBlue runs on a custom database he built with Claude Code to log relationships, meeting notes and introductions, letting him and his lone full-time principal work asynchronously. He said long exit timelines for physical-world companies do not worry him because even a $50 million to $100 million fund can sell stakes on the secondary market.
The report also cites Carta data showing venture funds of $1 million to $10 million consistently outperform funds of $100 million or more on net TVPI, or total value to paid-in capital, across recent vintages.