Next Coast Ventures, LLC
SEC exempt reporting adviser (venture capital exemption).
- HQ
- TX
Next Coast Ventures, LLC invests in emerging next coast companies at a critical stage of development to help launch them into hyper-growth. Its portfolio includes BrainCheck, an AI-enabled cognitive care platform, UpEquity, a tech-enabled home buying platform, Tiny Health, a gut health test for moms and babies, Outlier, a sports betting platform, and Somite.ai, which uses big data and AI for cell replacement therapies. Thomas Ball is a Co-Founder and Managing Director.
01 · Says / Does
| Tag | Says | Does | Historically (to 2020) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stages | Not stated | Not enough dated deals | Seed, Series A, Series B, Growth |
| Sectors | Not stated | Not enough dated deals | Enterprise SaaS, Data analytics, Fintech, Ecommerce, AI applications, Cybersecurity, Healthtech, Consumer |
| Regions | Not stated | Not enough dated deals | TX |
Says: what the firm's funds state. Does: from 0 dated deals in the last 24 months.
Historical focus (through 2020), derived from historical deal data.
| Year | Deals | Top sectors |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 3 | Data analytics, Ecommerce, Enterprise SaaS |
| 2017 | 6 | Enterprise SaaS, Data analytics, Fintech |
| 2018 | 11 | Fintech, Consumer, Cybersecurity |
| 2019 | 12 | Enterprise SaaS, AI applications, Cybersecurity |
| 2020 | 7 | Enterprise SaaS, Healthtech, AI applications |
Stage mix over time
- Pre-seed
- Seed
- Series A
- Series B
- Growth
| Year | Pre-seed | Seed | Series A | Series B | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 2018 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 2019 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| 2020 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2026 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
02 · Fund history
| Fund | Year | Size | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. Next Coast Ventures invests in emerging, next coast companies at the critical stage of development, backing founders to launch them into hyper-growth. The firm walks alongside portfolio founders through follow-on financings and later rounds. Inferred from the firm's website | 2025 | $1M to $10M (Form D) | Open, writing first checks |
| Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. Next Coast Ventures invests in emerging, next coast companies at the critical stage of development, backing founders to launch them into hyper-growth. The firm walks alongside portfolio founders through follow-on financings and later rounds. Inferred from the firm's website | 2021 | $190.08M (Form D) | Late investment period |
| NCV Select I, L.P. Next Coast Ventures invests in emerging, next coast companies at the critical stage of development, backing founders to launch them into hyper-growth. The firm walks alongside portfolio founders through follow-on financings and later rounds. Inferred from the firm's website | approx. 2021 | $50M (Form D) | Late investment period |
| Next Coast ETA I, L.P. | 2021 | $61.4M (Form D) | Follow-ons only |
03 · People across funds
- Alex Simon, Managing Partner
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Named on Form D)
- Charles Ball, Partner
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Named on Form D); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Named on Form D); NCV Select I, L.P. (Named on Form D); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Named on Form D)
- Emi Kubota, Venture Partner
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Named on Form D)
- Ged Moody, Managing Partner
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Named on Form D)
- Jesse Fripp, Managing Partner
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Named on Form D)
- Mike Smerklo, Co-Founder and Managing Director
Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Named on Form D); NCV Select I, L.P. (Named on Form D); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Named on Form D)
- Brian Sharples
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Cotter Cunningham
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Jason Dorsey
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Julian Castelli
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Julie Dodd
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Kaitlyn DeBernardo, Partner, COO & Head of Platform
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Laura Schenke, Operations Consultant
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Paul Rogers
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Scott Miller, EIR @ NCV
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Thomas Ball, Co-Founder and Managing Director
Impact WNC Fund I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast Ventures III, L.P. (Team); NCV Select I, L.P. (Team); Next Coast ETA I, L.P. (Team)
- Anthony Walker, Partner
On the team page, not linked to a fund
04 · Recent deals
No dated deals found yet.
05 · Latest from the firm
06 · Sources
- HTTP://WWW.NEXTCOASTVENTURES.COM
- https://www.nextcoastventures.com/connect
- https://www.nextcoastventures.com/portfolio
- https://www.nextcoastventures.com/people
- https://www.nextcoastventures.com/blog/braincheck-raises-13-million-to-expand-ai-enabled-cognitive-care-platform
- https://www.nextcoastventures.com/
Fund dates and sizes are from SEC Form D filings.
Last verified: Oct 28, 2026