Iliya Valchanov
About Iliya Valchanov
Iliya Valchanov is a serial entrepreneur and AI educator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is a finance graduate of Bocconi University and a former mathematics competition champion. His Crunchbase bio says he teaches 1.4M+ students on AI, data science and machine learning.
He co-founded 365 Data Science and 3veta, and he is co-founder and CEO of Team-GPT. Team-GPT launched in 2023 with co-founders Ilko Kacharov, Yavor Belakov, Katya Vaptsarova and Maria Valchanova. It is a workspace that lets companies use models such as ChatGPT and Claude in a private, collaborative way. His LinkedIn headline now lists him as CEO of Juma, an AI marketing product. Public sources do not say how Juma relates to Team-GPT.
Crunchbase lists 2 investments, 2 portfolio companies, 0 lead investments and 0 exits. Both investments are in companies he co-founded: a pre-seed round in 365 Data Science (April 2017, alongside Nedko Krastev) and a debt financing in 3veta (July 2020).
His LinkedIn page shows a post saying he became a Junior Partner at Sofia Angels Ventures, which he describes as a step in deploying capital. The post is undated in the sources reviewed. No other angel checks, fund sizes or syndicate activity are public.
No outside AI startup investments by Iliya Valchanov are listed publicly. His AI experience is as an operator. Team-GPT announced a $4.5M seed round in November 2024, led by True Ventures with Pact and several angels, including former OpenAI employees. TechCrunch reported that the company served about 45,000 clients, including Salesforce and Johns Hopkins.
He has spoken about the difficulty of raising in Silicon Valley as a Bulgarian founder. He told TechCrunch that his team met 85 VCs.
He has not published a thesis, preferred stage or check size. The only stage signals are his own early rounds (pre-seed, debt) and his Junior Partner role at Sofia Angels Ventures. His own work is in enterprise AI software, AI education and online services tools. These areas suggest where he has context, but they are not a stated mandate. Founders should treat his focus as unconfirmed and ask him directly.
- 365 Data Science: online data science education company he co-founded. Crunchbase shows a pre-seed round in April 2017 with Nedko Krastev.
- 3veta: platform for service providers to run their business online, which he co-founded. Crunchbase shows a debt financing in July 2020.
Investing activity
Iliya Valchanov has made 2 investments according to Crunchbase across 2 portfolio companies, and has founded 3 companies.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Iliya Valchanov
Is Iliya Valchanov an angel investor?
He is listed as an individual investor on Crunchbase with 2 investments, both in companies he co-founded. His LinkedIn also shows he became a Junior Partner at Sofia Angels Ventures.
What does Iliya Valchanov invest in?
He has not stated a thesis publicly. His background is in AI software, AI education and online services tools.
What is Iliya Valchanov's check size?
No check size is public. Ask him directly rather than assuming a range.
What companies has Iliya Valchanov founded?
He co-founded 365 Data Science, 3veta and Team-GPT. Team-GPT raised a $4.5M seed round in November 2024 led by True Ventures.
Should I pitch Iliya Valchanov as a lead investor?
Crunchbase shows 0 lead investments, so he is not a known lead. He is better approached as a founder-operator angel in enterprise AI and developer-adjacent tools, though he has not stated this focus.
Where is Iliya Valchanov based?
He is based in the San Francisco Bay Area, California. Team-GPT is a Bulgarian startup, and he has described the company as Silicon Valley outsiders who raised there.
How can founders reach Iliya Valchanov?
Founders on Lounge can see Iliya Valchanov's contact details in AI Investor Contacts (paid plans), check for a warm introduction through members who worked with them under Warm Paths, and add Iliya Valchanov to their Investor Pipeline to track the conversation.