Eddie Lou
About Eddie Lou
Eddie Lou is based in Chicago. He holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA in Finance from Washington University in St. Louis. He was previously a general partner at OCA Ventures, where in Funds I and II he invested in ten companies across software, consumer internet and business services.
He co-founded Shiftgig, a mobile app that connects hourly workers with business shifts. His bio says the company grew from an idea to 200 full-time employees in 13 cities and raised over $50M of institutional capital. He also co-founded the education nonprofit One Goal, and he co-founded the pet company CodaPet.
He is a venture partner at Mercury Fund. He has been a board director at companies including Albert.io, HiLink, Infi, Lemonlight and MSPBots. His own site describes him as a two-time founder, former VC and active angel investor.
His personal site says he has invested in over 50 startups at the early stage. Other bios give different counts, from 60 to over 80, so Lounge does not give a single total. Companies he names as investments include The Mom Project, Paro, Albert, Human Predictions, Chowbus, RedShelf, Factor75, Cameo, Livly and Noodle Partners.
His site lists these exits: HomeChef (acquired by Kroger), ShowingTime (acquired by Zillow), Cleversafe (acquired by IBM) and Factor (acquired by HelloFresh). In a Mercury Fund interview he said he co-led Alert Logic's first institutional round in 2005.
His most recent AI round on the Lounge deals desk is Rowan. Rowan is a Chicago platform that uses AI to help small business owners prepare for succession. It announced a $3.3M seed round on March 31, 2026, led by DRW, with Motivate Ventures, Mercury Fund and Eddie Lou participating.
Crunchbase also lists him as an investor in the seed round of iAsk Ai (February 2024). His Wellfound profile lists him as an advisor to InfoHome AI.
His Wellfound profile says he invests at the angel phase (first checks) and also advises growth-stage companies with $10M+ in revenue. Startup Fundraising lists his stages as pre-seed and seed. On that profile he says he looks for three things: the founder and team, an attractive market, and a defensible, capital-efficient product that can scale.
Tracxn lists his investments as concentrated in the United States and Canada. His portfolio spans B2B and consumer companies. No check size is public.
- Rowan: AI platform for small business succession; $3.3M seed announced March 2026.
- iAsk Ai: AI company; seed round listed on Crunchbase in February 2024.
- SafeHill: Chicago startup; pre-seed round in September 2025.
- Airstack: seed and pre-seed rounds listed on Crunchbase between 2022 and 2024.
- ReloShare: pre-seed and seed rounds listed on Crunchbase between 2020 and 2023.
- Chowbus: Portfolio company where he is also a board director.
- The Mom Project: Portfolio company where he has served as a board director.
- Alert Logic: Cloud security company; he co-led its first institutional round in 2005.
Investing activity
Eddie Lou appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $3M. The most recent is Rowan (Seed, $3.3M, Mar 2026).
Eddie Lou most often invests alongside DRW, Mercury Fund, Friends & Family Capital and Motivate Venture Capital, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Eddie Lou
Does Eddie Lou invest in AI startups?
Yes. He was an angel in Rowan's $3.3M seed round in March 2026. Crunchbase also lists him in the seed round of iAsk Ai. His portfolio is not limited to AI.
What stage does Eddie Lou invest in?
Public profiles list pre-seed and seed. He describes his angel role as first checks. He also serves on boards of growth-stage companies.
What is Eddie Lou's check size?
He has not published a check size. Amounts in the Rowan round and others are not broken out by investor.
What does Eddie Lou look for in a founder?
He says he focuses on the founder and team, an attractive market, and a defensible, capital-efficient product that can scale. His site says he wants to partner with founders from the start and be a first call for them.
What companies has Eddie Lou built?
He co-founded Shiftgig, the nonprofit One Goal and the pet company CodaPet. He was also a general partner at OCA Ventures.
Where is Eddie Lou based?
He is based in Chicago, Illinois. His investments are mostly in the United States and Canada.
Is Eddie Lou an angel investor?
Yes. Eddie Lou invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Eddie Lou invested in?
Eddie Lou's AI investments include Rowan. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Eddie Lou invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Eddie Lou has invested at Seed, with a median round of $3M.
Who does Eddie Lou co-invest with?
Eddie Lou's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are DRW (1 deal), Mercury Fund (1 deal), Friends & Family Capital (1 deal) and Motivate Venture Capital (1 deal).