MFV Partners has announced the launch of Harper Court Ventures Fund I, a $25 million early-stage fund aimed at scaling deep tech startups born out of the University of Chicago’s ecosystem. With a formal collaboration agreement in place, the fund will back pre-seed and seed-stage ventures stemming from UChicago’s labs, the Polsky Center, student and alumni innovations, and faculty research.
Source: news.uchicago.edu.
The fund will focus on transformative technologies in quantum computing, AI, life sciences, and energy—areas where UChicago has both research depth and infrastructure advantages. Independently managed by Silicon Valley–based MFV Partners, the fund will invest in around 40 companies over the next three years.
Initial investments include Flow Medical, a catheter-based treatment for pulmonary embolism; SimCare AI, a platform for AI-powered clinical training; and Beacon, which is developing real-time, people-safe illness prevention technologies. Investors backing the fund include the UChicago Endowment and prominent trustees such as Michael Polsky and Emmanuel Roman.
By connecting capital, research, and commercialization expertise, Harper Court Ventures aims to help turn world-class science into scalable businesses. MFV managing partner Karthee Madasamy, a UChicago Booth alum, says the goal is to make Chicago a premier hub for deep tech innovation.
University leadership echoed this ambition, citing the fund as critical to accelerating breakthroughs that serve society and further cement UChicago’s role in shaping the future of technology.
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