Pablo Garfinkel
About Pablo Garfinkel
Pablo Garfinkel is a serial entrepreneur and investor. Crunchbase lists him as CSO of woOw!, an online marketplace in Uruguay for entertainment, gastronomy, beauty, experiences and travel, a role it dates from August 2010. His Crunchbase location is Concepcion Del Uruguay, Entre Rios, Argentina. His bio says he is based in Uruguay.
His early career was in operating businesses. A CB Insights profile says he started at Bell South in Halifax, Canada, then joined the family textile business, Textil La Paz, which was sold in 2000. In 1993 he cofounded Cartoon's, a childrenswear wholesaler and retailer, which was sold in 2002. He has also worked in import-export trading with the Far and Near East. A Minders Group interview says he trained as an industrial engineer in Israel, and the same profile says he was General Manager of Twentieth Century Fox for Uruguay and Paraguay until 2019. He is a Harvard Business School alumnus (OPM).
Outside investing, he is a board member and mentor at Endeavor, sits on the board of AmCham, and cofounded Fundación Dar a Luz, which helps couples with fertility problems. He has judged Harvard Business School and Google Cloud Challenge competitions and spoken at events including the ACA Summit in Washington, DC.
Crunchbase says he has been involved in venture capital as a GP since 1994. He started working with venture capital in 2007 at Aconcagua Ventures, an Argentine fund, according to an interview with LAVCA. He cofounded Tokai Ventures with Gabriel Rozman. In that interview he described Tokai as an angel fund with two principal partners, not a structured fund. It invests alone or with partners such as NXTP Labs, depending on the size and type of deal.
His bio lists these involvements: Aconcagua Ventures since 2007, Tokai Ventures since 2009, NXTPLabs since 2012, Harvard Angels Alumni of Brazil since 2014, Alianza del Pacífico since 2015, and other local angel clubs. Bloomberg and TheOrg list him as a Venture Partner at NXTP Labs.
Crunchbase records 4 personal investments in 3 portfolio companies, 1 as lead, and no exits. The figure is likely lower than his real activity, because much of his investing went through Tokai and other groups. Tokai's first exit was Micropagos, which LAVCA reported. At that point its portfolio held 12 companies from five countries.
No public record shows AI-specific angel investments by Pablo Garfinkel. Crunchbase does not list any AI company in his personal investments, and he has not published a thesis on AI.
Two pieces of context are public. His LinkedIn profile lists Marvik, based in Montevideo, under his experience. TheOrg lists him as an advisor to VU Inc. Neither source says whether these are investments or what his role involves. Founders building AI products should treat him as a generalist Latin American tech investor and not as an AI specialist.
Geography is the clearest part of his focus. His bio says he invests mainly across Latin America and has experience in Brazil, Mexico and Argentina. He also has investments in the entertainment industry in the region.
His stated stage is seed and early-stage. CB Insights describes Tokai as a seed private fund. Crunchbase's one lead investment is a pre-seed round in Cubbo. His portfolio and board seats lean toward consumer internet, e-commerce, fintech, marketplaces and logistics, plus film exhibition and distribution.
He has not published a personal check size. NFX Signal lists Tokai Ventures, where he is a partner, with a range of $100K to $5.0M and a sweet spot of $2.5M. That is a third-party listing for the firm, and it may not describe his own angel checks. Verify it with him directly.
- Cubbo: Crunchbase lists a pre-seed round as his latest personal investment. Cubbo is a Latin American fulfillment and logistics startup. The round date is not shown in the public view.
- Micropagos: Tokai Ventures backed this Uruguayan payments company, which Guillermo Varela founded in 2010. Its sale was Tokai's first exit, and Garfinkel and Rozman head the fund.
- Kidbox, Workana and Urbita: LAVCA lists them as other Tokai Ventures investments. Investment dates are not given.
- woOw!: He has been CSO since 2010. CB Insights says woOw was sold to Grupo TaTa in 2018. He had been a board member.
- Board seats: CB Insights lists Life Cinemas, Infocasas, Rural and TiendaMIA as boards he sits or has sat on. It does not give investment dates.
- crunchbase.com/person/pablo-garfinkel
- crunchbase.com/organization/woow
- uy.linkedin.com/in/pablo-garfinkel
- cbinsights.com/company/woow/people
- lavca.org/uruguays-tokai-ventures-celebrates-first-exit-micropagos
- mindersgroup.medium.com/pablo-garfinkel-los-cambios-son-muy-grandes-y-
- elobservador.com.uy/nota/pablo-garfinkel-todo-a-su-debido-momento-2017
- theorg.com/org/nxtp-ventures/org-chart/pablo-garfinkel
Investing activity
Pablo Garfinkel has made 4 investments according to Crunchbase across 3 portfolio companies, and has led 1 round.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Pablo Garfinkel
Does Pablo Garfinkel invest in AI startups?
No public record shows AI-specific investments by him. His known investments are in Latin American tech and consumer companies, so pitch him on regional market fit more than on AI depth.
What stage does Pablo Garfinkel invest in?
He mainly backs early-stage companies. Crunchbase shows a pre-seed investment in Cubbo, and Tokai Ventures, the angel fund he cofounded, is described as a seed investor.
What is Pablo Garfinkel's check size?
He has not published a personal check size. NFX Signal lists Tokai Ventures at $100K to $5.0M, but that is a firm-level third-party figure.
Which regions does Pablo Garfinkel invest in?
He invests mainly across Latin America. He has experience in Brazil, Mexico and Argentina, and he is based in Uruguay.
Which groups is Pablo Garfinkel associated with?
His bio lists Aconcagua Ventures, Tokai Ventures, NXTPLabs, Harvard Angels Alumni of Brazil and Alianza del Pacífico. He also serves on the board of Endeavor and AmCham.
How can founders contact Pablo Garfinkel?
He has public LinkedIn and X profiles, linked on this page. A warm introduction through Endeavor, NXTP Labs or the Uruguayan startup community is the more likely route.
Is Pablo Garfinkel an angel investor?
Yes. Pablo Garfinkel invests personally as an angel and is CSO at woOw!. Crunchbase counts 4 investments.
Where is Pablo Garfinkel based?
Pablo Garfinkel is based in Concepcion Del Uruguay, Entre Rios, Argentina.
How can founders reach Pablo Garfinkel?
Founders on Lounge can see Pablo Garfinkel'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 Pablo Garfinkel to their Investor Pipeline to track the conversation.