Seligman Enters Venture Capital with $500M Fund Targeting AI and Cloud

MENLO PARK, CA – February 12, 2026 – Seligman Investments, a technology investing heavyweight with a nearly four-decade history in public markets, today announced a significant strategic expansion with the launch of Seligman Ventures. The new $500 million venture capital arm will target high-growth technology sectors, including AI and cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and modern data-center hardware, marking a decisive move to bridge the gap between private innovation and public market scale.

The new fund signals a growing trend among established public market asset managers to enter the venture capital arena, seeking to capture value earlier in the lifecycle of disruptive companies. Seligman, part of the $721 billion global asset manager Columbia Threadneedle Investments, is leveraging its deep public market research capabilities and extensive network to create what it describes as an "integrated" investment platform.

A New Playbook: Blurring Public and Private Markets

The launch of Seligman Ventures is more than just a new fund; it represents a strategic evolution for a firm deeply rooted in public technology stock analysis. Led by Chief Investment Officer Paul Wick, one of the longest-tenured technology portfolio managers in the U.S., Seligman Investments manages approximately $30 billion in assets. By creating a dedicated venture arm, the firm is positioning itself to invest across the entire corporate lifecycle, from a founder's initial concept to a public listing and beyond.

This move reflects a broader industry shift where the lines between private and public investing are increasingly blurred. As companies stay private for longer, traditional public market investors are seeking new avenues for growth and access to innovation. Seligman’s approach aims to create a symbiotic relationship between its public and private teams, where insights from emerging private technologies can inform public market strategies, and public market discipline can guide venture investments.

"Launching Seligman Ventures is an important step in how we continue to build Seligman’s technology investing platform," said Paul Wick, Chief Investment Officer of Seligman Investments. Wick, who has known the venture arm's new leader for over 25 years, emphasized the team's credentials. "He brings nearly two decades of experience backing exceptional founders from early formation through growth, IPOs and significant exits. Together with Ashish and Eddie, this team brings the discipline, technical depth, and operating rigor we believe are essential to building a differentiated venture platform."

The Powerhouse Team and a Thesis-Driven Approach

At the helm of Seligman Ventures is a team of seasoned investors with a history of working together and a track record of significant successes. The group is led by Managing Partner Umesh Padval, an industry veteran with over 35 years of operating and investing experience. Before his 18-year career in venture capital at firms like Thomvest Ventures and Bessemer Venture Partners, Padval was the President and CEO of C-Cube Microsystems, which he sold to LSI Logic in 2001.

Padval's investment portfolio includes a roster of notable exits, such as Isovalent (acquired by Cisco), ThousandEyes (acquired by Cisco), Skyhigh Networks (acquired by McAfee), and Mellanox (acquired by NVIDIA). He is joined by Managing Partner Ashish Kakran, formerly of Sierra Ventures and Thomvest Ventures, who has backed category-defining companies like Cohere and Harness. Rounding out the leadership is Eddie Ackerman as CFO and Operating Partner, who brings a unique blend of fund-level financial oversight and hands-on portfolio company support, having previously served as an operating partner at Thomvest and an investment banker at Deutsche Bank.

"I am thrilled to partner with Paul to build a Seligman venture platform that invests in innovative and disruptive technology companies from seed through public markets," said Umesh Padval. "Most importantly, I am inspired and humbled by the trust from incredible founders as we have partnered to build category-defining companies, and I look forward to even greater opportunities at Seligman Ventures."

Targeting Tech's Foundational Layers

Seligman Ventures is entering a fiercely competitive landscape with a clear, thesis-driven focus on the foundational infrastructure powering the modern economy. The firm will concentrate on early-stage to pre-IPO companies in AI and cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and next-generation data-center hardware.

This strategy positions the fund at the epicenter of the technology industry's most significant trends. Venture investment in AI exploded in 2025, capturing over half of all global venture capital deployed. Simultaneously, global spending on cybersecurity is projected to surpass $520 billion annually by 2026, driven by an expanding threat landscape and the integration of AI into security solutions. By targeting these "picks and shovels" sectors, Seligman Ventures is betting on the essential building blocks that enable broader technological advancement.

The firm is not waiting to deploy its capital. Since its formation in November 2025, Seligman Ventures has already made four investments in early-stage companies within its target verticals of modern datacenter hardware and AI infrastructure, signaling its intent to move quickly and decisively in these fast-paced markets.

A Strategic Pillar for a Global Asset Manager

The creation of Seligman Ventures is also a key component of the broader strategy of its parent company, Columbia Threadneedle Investments. As a global asset manager with $721 billion in assets, Columbia Threadneedle is actively working to expand its alternatives business to provide clients with a more comprehensive suite of investment solutions.

Venture capital, with its potential for high growth and diversification, represents a critical pillar in this expansion. The move allows Columbia Threadneedle to leverage the specialized expertise within its Seligman technology group to offer clients access to the innovation happening in private markets, guided by a disciplined and rigorous investment process.

Stewart Bennett, Global Head of Alternatives at Columbia Threadneedle, highlighted this strategic alignment. “The launch of Seligman Ventures reflects a commitment by Columbia Threadneedle to offering clients a comprehensive range of investment solutions that can capture the innovation and growth potential of the technology sector through a disciplined and rigorous approach to private and public markets investing,” he stated. “We are investing in our Alternatives business and capabilities, leveraging existing centers of excellence within the firm to build what we believe is a differentiated value proposition for clients.”

By combining the legacy and public market acumen of Seligman with a proven venture team, the new entity aims to establish itself as a go-to partner for founders building the next generation of foundational technology companies.