Fusion Fund

Fusion Fund is one of the few venture firms based in downtown Palo Alto itself rather than up on Sand Hill Road. Its office is on Lytton Avenue, a short walk from University Avenue and the Caltrain station. Lu Zhang founded it in 2015 to back early-stage companies with a technical or data edge. A decade later it manages more than $500 million and invests in health care, enterprise AI and industrial technology.

This profile is a neutral explainer for founders. It relies on Fusion Fund's website, read in November 2026, including the firm's own Fund IV announcement. Where facts come from the firm, we say so. For the basics of how venture funds work, see our venture capital guide.

Founding in 2015

Lu Zhang founded Fusion Fund in 2015 and remains its founder and managing partner. According to the firm, she began her career as a researcher and earned a graduate degree in materials science and engineering at Stanford. She then founded a startup, sold it and invested as an angel. The firm says her angel portfolio included four companies that later went public. That track record led her to raise an institutional fund.

The firm describes itself as an early pioneer in AI. It says it published industry reports on edge computing, network security and AI in health care between 2018 and 2020, before those areas became crowded. Its Fund IV announcement frames the team as technologists, operators and former founders, a deliberate mix meant to help technical companies commercialize their work.

The Lytton Avenue office

Fusion Fund's website lists a single address: 550 Lytton Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301. That block of Lytton Avenue sits among the low office buildings and older homes a couple of blocks north of University Avenue. It is part of the cluster of venture offices in downtown Palo Alto, close to Translink Capital at 530 Lytton and Cowboy Ventures at 525 Lytton.

The office is a private workplace. The firm hosts events for its networks and fellows, but visits are by invitation or appointment.

Stage and sectors

The firm's homepage states its mandate directly. It invests in pre-seed, seed and Series A companies anywhere in the United States and Canada. It backs "early-stage startups that leverage technical or data advantages" and partners with founders who have experience in three areas:

• Health care: including AI in pathology, cell therapy, DNA sequencing and brain-computer interfaces.
• Enterprise AI: AI models, search, data platforms, security and developer infrastructure.
• Industrial technology: automation, logistics, low-power chips and wireless hardware.

The firm says Fund IV will invest in health care, enterprise AI and industrial automation. The partners split along those lines. Shane Wall, a former chief technology officer of HP and head of HP Labs, focuses on industrial automation and runs the firm's CXO Network. Investment partner David Gerster focuses on enterprise AI. Investment partner Ivneet Bhullar, who previously worked in biotechnology research, specializes in health care. The team page also lists Stanford chemical engineering professor Zhenan Bao as an advisory partner.

Funds

Fusion Fund announced Fund IV on March 6, 2025, timed to its tenth anniversary. The key figures, as the firm published them:

• Fund IV size: $190 million in committed capital.
• Total assets: more than $500 million across Funds I to IV.
• Fundraising: the firm says Fund IV was heavily oversubscribed and closed in less than six months.
• Investors: endowments, foundations, sovereign wealth funds, large corporations, funds of funds and family offices, including many returning investors.

By Sand Hill Road standards that is a small fund. A fund of that size usually writes first checks of a few million dollars and keeps money in reserve for follow-on rounds. Our page on seed and pre-seed funds explains how early-stage firms of this size work.

Companies Fusion Fund highlights

The portfolio page on the firm's site is an image gallery. Its homepage, though, highlights news from many portfolio companies:

The firm also notes exits such as the acquisition of Accern by Wand AI. These are the firm's own highlights from press coverage. Early-stage portfolios always include companies that do not succeed.

Networks and programs

Fusion Fund puts weight on networks around the fund:

• CXO Network: chief executives and other C-level leaders from large global companies. The homepage counts 44 of them. The firm says they help portfolio companies find customers and partners.
• Fusion VC Fellowship: an annual program that teaches graduate students in technical fields how to source and evaluate startups. The site has graduation pages for 2023 to 2026.
• Super Founder Network: serial entrepreneurs with exits, which the firm describes as a source of new ideas.
• Founders Hub: in-house training material called "Start-up 101," with topics such as fundraising, building a board and reading term sheets.

How founders reach Fusion Fund

Fusion Fund's website does not publish a pitch form or a deal email. Its contact page shows the office address and a newsletter signup. A practical approach:

1. Check the fit. The firm wants technical founders at pre-seed to Series A, in one of its three areas, based in the United States or Canada.
2. Find a connection. Founders in the portfolio, members of the CXO Network and alumni of the VC Fellowship all know the partners.
3. Reach the right partner. Health care, enterprise AI and industrial pitches go to different people.
4. Bring the technical depth. The firm says it values a technical or data advantage, so be ready to explain what is hard to copy.

Our guides to pitching investors and term sheet basics help with the next steps.

Local notes: Caltrain, coffee and parking

The office is about a 10 to 15 minute walk from the Palo Alto Caltrain station at 95 University Avenue. Express trains stop at Palo Alto, which makes this an easy trip from San Francisco or San Jose.

Drivers can use the city's Webster/Cowper Garage at 520 Webster Street, close to the office, or the Bryant/Lytton Garage at 445 Bryant Street. City garages allow up to three hours free outside permit areas. Our guide to downtown parking garages has the details.

Food and coffee are close. Mademoiselle Colette, the French bakery at 499 Lytton Avenue, is a block away. Caffe Stellato at 435 Emerson Street serves gelato and coffee. Evvia at 420 Emerson Street is a classic choice for a Greek business dinner. The Palo Alto Creamery at 566 Emerson Street has been serving diner food since 1923.

Frequently asked questions