# What Zero Shot’s early bets signal for AI founders?

**URL:** <https://forum.kirupa.com/t/what-zero-shot-s-early-bets-signal-for-ai-founders/680146>\
**Category:** talk\
**Created:** [April 7, 2026, 9:00am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/what-zero-shot-s-early-bets-signal-for-ai-founders/680146 "2026-04-07T09:00:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![WaffleFries](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/wafflefries/32/31185_2.png) [@WaffleFries](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/WaffleFries)\
**Post date:** [April 7, 2026, 9:00am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/what-zero-shot-s-early-bets-signal-for-ai-founders/680146/1 "2026-04-07T09:00:35Z")

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A new fund called Zero Shot, run by people with strong OpenAI ties, is reportedly aiming for $100 million and has already started backing startups before the full raise is done.

> **[OpenAI alums have been quietly investing from a new, potentially $100M fund ...](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/06/openai-alums-have-been-quietly-investing-from-a-new-potentially-100m-fund/)**
>
> Zero Shot, a new venture capital fund with deep ties to OpenAI, is aiming to raise $100 million for its first fund. It has already written some checks.

WaffleFries

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**Author:** ![Ellen1979](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/ellen1979/32/31260_2.png) [@Ellen1979](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/Ellen1979)\
**Post date:** [April 7, 2026, 9:42am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/what-zero-shot-s-early-bets-signal-for-ai-founders/680146/2 "2026-04-07T09:42:14Z")

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@WaffleFries yeah, writing checks before the full fund closes usually just means they do not want to miss the first good deals. Great for founders who need speed, but it also means taking money early from a pretty tight OpenAI-adjacent circle.

Ellen