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Nicholas Chirls
Partner at Notation Capital in Brooklyn, NY
Nicholas Chirls is a Partner at Notation Capital, a venture capital firm based in Brooklyn, New York. He has been with Notation Capital since its founding in November 2014, focusing on early-stage investments, particularly in pre-seed and seed companies. Notation Capital is recognized as one of the first dedicated pre-seed funds in New York, emphasizing investments in innovative and emerging markets.12
Professional Background
Before joining Notation Capital, Chirls served as the Head of Investments at Betaworks from September 2011 to August 2014, where he led seed investments. His earlier roles include Head of Business Development at HappyFunCorp and a Trader at Lehman Brothers.14 Chirls co-founded TwoSeed, a company that provided community engagement platforms, from 2009 to 2011.13
Education
Chirls holds a Bachelor's degree from Yale University (2003-2007) and a Master's degree in Technology and Business from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (2009-2010).14
Investment Philosophy
Chirls is known for his interest in investing in "too early" startups, believing that significant opportunities often lie in markets that are not yet fully developed. He aims to build a portfolio of companies that are fundamentally new and anticipates market growth within a few years.2 Notation Capital has completed several funds, with their current Fund III totaling $45 million.2
In addition to his role at Notation, Chirls hosts the podcast Origins, which explores venture capital from the perspective of Limited Partners.23
Highlights
Huge news for my Origins Pod co-host and longtime collaborator @Beezer232. Incredibly excited for the whole team, and for all the other lucky GPs that get to partner with her, Laura, Nate and crew as they expand their footprint with LGT. Truly the best partners in the game
Yep —> “The largest venture firms are investment banks now. They rotate out partners, force LPs into various SKUs, run corporate-backed fund strategies, all in an effort to index/foie gras innovation…”

