Brightmind Partners
About Brightmind Partners
BrightMind Partners is a venture capital firm based in Austin, Texas, established in 2024. The firm specializes in early-stage investments, focusing on sectors such as cybersecurity software, enterprise technology, AI-driven solutions, and infrastructure. BrightMind Partners primarily targets Seed and Series A investments, collaborating with founders who possess both technical expertise and business acumen to foster enterprise transformation through innovative technologies.
The firm actively supports its portfolio companies by providing strategic guidance and leveraging its operational experi
Brightmind Partners was founded in 2024. Crunchbase lists Jamie Mneimneh, Stephen Ward and Sven Wollschlaeger as founders. Other sources name Ward and Gur Talpaz as co-founders, so the founding group is reported inconsistently. Ward is a General Partner and co-founder and a former CISO of Home Depot. Talpaz is a General Partner. Mneimneh is Chief Technology Officer and CISO and previously worked at Home Depot. Wollschlaeger is a founding principal and investor. Crunchbase says the partners come from operating roles at companies including Home Depot, TIAA, Armis, Tanium, Exabeam, Kaspersky and IBM ISS. The firm's legal entity is Brightmind Ventures Management LLC, and PitchBook lists Brightmind Ventures I and a Brightmind Co-investment Fund I. PitchBook and Crunchbase list New York for some team members and for the firm, while the firm's fund-manager address is in Westfield, NJ.
Brightmind describes itself as an early-stage firm for cybersecurity and AI founders. Most of its AI-related deals are in AI-native security and in securing AI agents. In April 2026 it co-led the $15M seed round of Artemis, an AI-native security operations platform. In September 2026 it co-led the $12M seed round of Rig Security with Ten Eleven Ventures. Rig builds identity protection for AI agents. Brightmind also led SGNL's $30M Series A in February 2025. SGNL is an identity security company that CrowdStrike later acquired, according to deal tracker The Signal. On its OpenVC profile, the firm says it invests in AI security, AI infrastructure and AI agent trust, with a focus on the US and Israel. Partners and portfolio companies have said Brightmind often stays involved after the first check, and Gur Talpaz commented publicly on the Artemis round.
Brightmind invests mainly at Seed and Series A. The firm's site lists Fund I at $251M. The firm's OpenVC profile says the fund closed at $250M in 2025 and gives a first-check range of $3M to $15M. The firm has not published check sizes on its own site. Disclosed round sizes in recent deals ranged from $11M to $29M. Those are total rounds, not Brightmind's share. Brightmind led or co-led most of them.
- Artemis: AI-native security operations platform founded in 2025. Brightmind co-led its $15M seed round in April 2026. The company raised $70M including a $55M Series A led by Felicis.
- Rig Security: identity protection for human, machine and AI agent identities. Brightmind and Ten Eleven Ventures co-led its $12M seed round, announced September 2026.
- Onit Security: Brightmind led an $11M seed round in March 2026, per The Signal. Public sources give little detail on the product.
- brightmindpartners.com
- crunchbase.com/organization/brightmind-partners
- pitchbook.com/profiles/investor/707943-34
- pitchbook.com/profiles/fund/27189-10F
- openvc.app/fund/Brightmind%20Partners
- techcrunch.com/2025/02/12/sgnl-snags-30m-for-a-new-take-on-id-security
- calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/h1eagbt311x
- securitybrief.ca/story/artemis-announces-70-million-in-seed-funding-fo
Investing activity
Brightmind Partners appears in 3 AI deals tracked by the Lounge deals desk, rounds totalling $38M, and led 3 of them. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $12M and the largest at $15M. The most recent are Rig Security (Seed, $12M, Sep 2026), Artemis (Seed, $15M, Apr 2026) and Onit Security (Seed, $11M, Mar 2026).
Brightmind Partners most often invests alongside Ten Eleven Ventures, CrowdStrike Ventures (Falcon Fund), Ami Luttwak and First Round Capital, and the companies it backs on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Brightmind Partners
Who founded Brightmind Partners?
The firm was founded in 2024. Crunchbase lists Jamie Mneimneh, Stephen Ward and Sven Wollschlaeger as founders. Other sources name Stephen Ward and Gur Talpaz as co-founders.
How large is Brightmind Partners' fund?
The firm's site lists Fund I at $251M. Its OpenVC profile says a $250M first fund closed in 2025. PitchBook also lists a separate co-investment fund, with no size published.
What stages and check sizes does Brightmind invest at?
It invests mainly at Seed and Series A. Its OpenVC profile gives a first-check range of $3M to $15M, which the firm has not confirmed on its own site.
Which AI startups has Brightmind Partners backed?
Recent AI-related investments include Artemis (seed, April 2026) and Rig Security (seed, September 2026). It also led the Onit Security seed in March 2026.
Does Brightmind Partners invest in AI companies outside security?
The firm lists AI infrastructure alongside cybersecurity as a focus. The AI deals found in public sources are all in security. Founders in other AI areas should check fit before pitching.
What AI companies has Brightmind Partners invested in?
Brightmind Partners's AI investments include Rig Security, Artemis and Onit Security. The 3 rounds on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
Where is Brightmind Partners based?
Brightmind Partners is based in Westfield, New Jersey, United States.
What stage does Brightmind Partners invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Brightmind Partners has invested at Seed, with a median round of $12M. Brightmind Partners led 3 of those rounds.
Who does Brightmind Partners co-invest with?
Brightmind Partners's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Ten Eleven Ventures (1 deal), CrowdStrike Ventures (Falcon Fund) (1 deal), Ami Luttwak (1 deal), First Round Capital (1 deal) and Lockstep (1 deal).
How can founders reach Brightmind Partners?
Founders on Lounge can see Brightmind Partners's contact details in AI Investor Contacts (paid plans), check for a warm introduction through members who worked with the firm under Warm Paths, and add Brightmind Partners to their Investor Pipeline to track the conversation.