---
title: 'Oregon Y Combinator companies CarWoo and Cloudkick to help launch Portland Seed Fund'
date: '2011-04-13T14:06:58-07:00'
type: post
word_count: 512
char_count: 3342
tokens: 666
categories:
  - '#featured'
  - Events
  - Oregon
  - Portland
tags:
  - carwoo
  - cloudkick
  - Oregon
  - Portland
  - 'portland seed fund'
  - 'y combinator'
---

# Oregon Y Combinator companies CarWoo and Cloudkick to help launch Portland Seed Fund

Since its inception, the [Portland Seed Fund](http://www.portlandseedfund.com/ "Portland Seed Fund") has held with it the promise to fill a much need role in the Portland startup scene—the ability to provide small amounts of capital to burgeoning young startups that might not yet be ready for larger rounds. And while I’ve been critical of the some of the original positioning around the Fund, I’ve eagerly awaited and [supported the Portland Seed Fund team](http://siliconflorist.com/2010/10/12/portland-seed-fund-talking-fund-manager-angela-jackson-bridge-city-ventures/ "Portland Seed Fund: Talking with fund manager Angela Jackson of Bridge City Ventures") as they’ve worked to put the program together.

Now, the Portland Seed Fund has reached the point that they’re ready to accept applications. And to open with a bang, they’ve brought a couple of former Oregon companies—who also happen to be [Y Combinator](http://ycombinator.com "Y Combinator") alums—to help celebrate the milestone.

Hold the phone. What’s the Portland Seed Fund, you say?

> Portland Seed Fund (PSF) will stimulate exceptional entrepreneurial growth in the Portland metro area and throughout Oregon. Bridge City Ventures, led by Fund Managers Jim Huston and Angela Jackson, has been selected to manage PSF. Over the course of the two-year active PSF fund life, managers will implement a proprietary, milestone-based system of capital and coaching, making 10-15 investments per year ($25,000 – $50,000 initial investment) in capital-efficient, highly-scalable businesses across a variety of industry sectors.

Sounds pretty cool right? Want to hear more? Good. Show up on Tuesday, April 19, 2011 from 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM [at Urban Airship](http://goo.gl/maps/33il "Urban Airship").

> Portland Seed Fund managers Angela Jackson and Jim Huston declare the Fund open for business to entrepreneurs. Learn how to apply, what to expect, and likely types of investments.

> Hear from these rockstar Oregon expat companies who once flew south in search of capital and mentoring. They return to toast the Portland Seed Fund launch, share their Y Combinator experiences, and reflect on how the Portland entrepreneurial scene has changed since their departure.

That’s right. Oregon Y Combinator graduates [CarWoo](http://carwoo.com/ "CarWoo") and [Cloudkick](https://www.cloudkick.com/ "Cloudkick"), too. So Portland Seed Fund questions and Y Combinator questions will both be on the table. It’s like twice the seed funding and accelerator fun.

The event will be co-hosted by [PIE](http://twitter.com/piepdx "PIE") and PIE-alum [Urban Airship](http://urbanairship.com "Urban Airship"), who is graciously donating space for the gathering. The event is free but space is limited. [You can RSVP and reserve your spot on Eventbrite](http://portlandseedfund.eventbrite.com/ "RSVP for Portland Seed Fund launch event").

Can’t get in? From out of town? We’re working on figuring out some ways of capturing the event for those who can’t make it in person. Please stay tuned.

For more information, visit [Portland Seed Fund](http://www.portlandseedfund.com/ "Portland Seed Fund").

*([Image courtesy congaman](http://www.flickr.com/photos/congaman/4075363864/). Used under Creative Commons.)*