Jeff Amerine
About Jeff Amerine
Jeff Amerine is the founder and managing director of Startup Junkie Consulting in Fayetteville, Arkansas. His bios say he has held senior leadership roles in nine startups and three Fortune 500 companies, including American Freightways and FedEx Freight.
He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1984 and served six years as a US Air Force officer, first as a missile launch officer in Strategic Air Command and later in research and development acquisition. He holds an MS in Operations Management from the University of Arkansas.
He was Associate Vice Provost for Research and Economic Development and Director of Technology Ventures at the University of Arkansas until he left in 2015 to run Startup Junkie full-time. He teaches entrepreneurship as adjunct faculty at the Sam M. Walton College of Business. He co-authored the book Creating Startup Junkies and is managing director at Innovation Junkie.
Innovation Junkie and a podcast bio say he has made more than 90 angel investments, directly or through funds he manages. An earlier Ark Angel Alliance bio gave the figure as more than 80.
He is a co-founder and general partner of Cadron Capital Partners and also leads the Tonic Regional Funds. He chairs the Ark Angel Alliance, a Little Rock angel group that connects accredited investors with early-stage Arkansas ventures. He also works with Gravity Ventures. PitchBook lists board seats at NeuroMedPro and Ozark Integrated Circuits, and past seats at OsteoVantage and Cardiowise.
The AI round we can confirm is Advisar, a Bentonville, Arkansas company building an AI-enabled decisioning layer for retail suppliers. It raised a $750K pre-seed in August 2026, led by Clutch VC. Amerine is named as a participant, and his own check size is not public.
Advisar is led by founder and CEO Christina Johnson. It gives suppliers a view of how retail media spend connects to business results, and the product is in beta.
His public work centers on early-stage companies, with a strong Arkansas and wider Southern US focus. His university work covered life science, biotech, medical devices, healthcare IT and other technical innovation. His stated areas of expertise are telecom, software, university tech transfer, DoD and supply chain.
He has publicly said he is an expert in lean startup methodology and customer development. No check size range or formal investment thesis is public.
- Advisar: AI-enabled retail media analytics for suppliers; joined its $750K pre-seed in August 2026.
- Sivi: business and productivity software company; PitchBook records an investment on 16 September 2023.
- Natural Way Food Group: food products company listed in his PitchBook portfolio; investment year not confirmed.
- MORE technologies: electronic equipment company listed in his PitchBook portfolio; investment year not confirmed.
- crunchbase.com/person/jeff-amerine
- pitchbook.com/profiles/investor/109693-36
- arkangelalliance.org/about
- innovationjunkie.com/about
- finsmes.com/2026/08/advisar-raises-750k-in-pre-seed-funding.html
- podcast.deepwealth.com/from-startup-to-success-lessons-from-entreprene
- arkansasbusiness.com/article/jeff-amerine-board-chair-ark-angel-allian
- armoneyandpolitics.com/tech-based-startups-arkansas
Investing activity
Jeff Amerine appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Pre-seed, with a median round size of $750K. The most recent is Advisar (Pre-seed, $750K, Aug 2026).
Jeff Amerine most often invests alongside Clutch Capital, Michael Paladino, Venture Center Arkansas Fund and Rekall Capital, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Jeff Amerine
Who is Jeff Amerine?
Jeff Amerine is an Arkansas angel investor, founder of Startup Junkie Consulting and co-founder and general partner of Cadron Capital Partners. He is a former University of Arkansas technology commercialization director.
Has Jeff Amerine invested in AI startups?
Yes. He participated in Advisar's $750K pre-seed round in August 2026. Advisar builds AI-enabled analytics for retail suppliers.
What check size does Jeff Amerine write?
His check size is not public. The Advisar round announcement does not say how much he put in.
What stage does Jeff Amerine invest in?
His public activity points to early-stage companies, including pre-seed. He chairs the Ark Angel Alliance, which backs early-stage ventures, and co-founded Cadron Capital Partners.
Does Jeff Amerine invest outside Arkansas?
His public roles are mostly in Arkansas funds and angel groups. We found no stated geographic limit, so founders elsewhere should check directly.
How can founders contact Jeff Amerine?
On a podcast he invited founders to reach him through LinkedIn or by email at jeff@startupjunkieconsulting.com. He said he enjoys those conversations.
Is Jeff Amerine an angel investor?
Yes. Jeff Amerine invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Jeff Amerine invested in?
Jeff Amerine's AI investments include Advisar. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Jeff Amerine invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Jeff Amerine has invested at Pre-seed, with a median round of $750K.
Who does Jeff Amerine co-invest with?
Jeff Amerine's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Clutch Capital (1 deal), Michael Paladino (1 deal), Venture Center Arkansas Fund (1 deal), Rekall Capital (1 deal) and White River Capital Advisors (1 deal).