Top Down Ventures, a Vancouver-based venture capital firm focused on early-stage software and AI companies serving the managed service provider market, has announced the final close of its Founders Fund I at $28 million, exceeding its original $25 million target. The fund held its first close in October 2024 and completed its final close in April 2026, attracting more than 100 limited partners, the majority of whom are founders, operators, and executives from across the MSP ecosystem. The fund also includes participation from Pax8 founder and chairman John Street, Upward Trajectory Fund, and private family offices across Canada and the United States.
Founders Fund I is described as the first institutional venture fund dedicated exclusively to early-stage MSP software and AI companies. The MSP ecosystem powers the technology operations of more than 100 million small and mid-sized businesses worldwide and is on track to reach $1 trillion in annual spend by 2030. Top Down said 2026 marks a historic shift in which the total addressable market for SMB IT spend is projected for the first time to surpass that of enterprise IT, a moment the firm said it was built in anticipation of.
The fund has already demonstrated strong early performance, with its first exit delivering a 5.3x return just six months after the initial investment, when portfolio company zofiQ, an agentic AI platform for MSPs, was acquired by ConnectWise. A second portfolio company has completed its Series B at a 3.5x markup to Top Down’s entry price. Since beginning to deploy capital in 2024, the fund has invested in 12 portfolio companies and is tracking in the top decile of 2024 vintage venture funds based on early DPI and deployment metrics, according to Carta’s Q4 2025 VC Fund Performance data. The firm’s general partners bring prior investment experience generating a 12.8x MOIC and 97% IRR, having founded and scaled companies including IT Glue, Fully Managed, N-able, and ScalePad.
Top Down’s investment strategy focuses on AI-native SaaS companies built from inception with modern AI development tooling, resulting in faster product cycles, leaner teams, and differentiated capabilities tailored to the evolving MSP landscape. The firm combines capital with a hands-on platform approach including operational guidance, go-to-market support, CEO peer groups, its annual Horizons investor summit, and the MSP Outliers blog and podcast. Top Down plans to remain active across the MSP and venture community through 2026, including its Horizons summit in November in Scottsdale.
KEY QUOTES:
“We’re proud to have built a fund that reflects the strength and alignment of the MSP ecosystem. Our LP base is not just capital, it’s a flywheel of operators, founders, and industry leaders helping the next generation of MSP software companies scale faster and smarter.”
Joel Abramson, Managing Partner, Top Down Ventures
“We’re seeing a fundamentally different caliber of company. These are AI-native businesses built from day one with new tooling, new cost structures, and new expectations around speed and scale.”
Chris Day, Founder and Chairman, Top Down Ventures
“In one of the most challenging fundraising environments, we are grateful for the support from institutions, family offices, and everyone from the MSP ecosystem who engaged with our vision in defining the new era of AI-first MSP software. We believe there has never been a more important time to invest at the early stage, especially in a category like MSP that remains underappreciated but critical to the global SMB market for managed IT, security and AI.”
Mark Scott, General Partner, Top Down Ventures
