Our approach to investing is based on developing trust and meaningful relationships.

HG Ventures is a venture capital firm investing in entrepreneurs that are modernizing the industrial economy. Our focus spans infrastructure, construction, workforce technology, clean energy, critical materials, and resource recovery.

We are committed to helping entrepreneurs accelerate growth by connecting them with the relationships, expertise, and market access needed to commercialize and scale industrial innovation. Through our relationship with The Heritage Group, our portfolio companies gain introductions to customers, technical partners, and pilot opportunities that would otherwise take founders years to develop independently.

We invest from early seed stage through growth, take board seats, and work hands-on with founders navigating the specific challenges of selling into and scaling within industrial markets. To date, we have backed 40+ portfolio companies.

The Heritage Group is a 100-year-old, fourth-generation, family-held industrial enterprise headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises 30+ operating companies and more than 5,000 employees across heavy construction and materials, environmental services, and specialty chemicals.

For HG Ventures portfolio companies, those businesses often become active operating partners — as customers, technical advisors, pilot hosts, and real-world testing environments. These connections are central to how we help entrepreneurs validate technologies, accelerate commercialization, and build enduring industrial businesses.

Access to The Heritage Group. Our portfolio companies gain access to a century of industrial experience through The Heritage Group's operating companies, technical experts, research capabilities, and commercial relationships. Those connections create opportunities for customer introductions, pilot projects, technical collaboration, and real-world validation that can accelerate growth.

Permanent capital. We operate from The Heritage Group's balance sheet, not a traditional fund with a fixed life. That means there is no artificial pressure to push for an exit on a five- or seven-year cycle. We stay focused on building long-term value alongside the entrepreneurs we back.

An experienced investment team. Our investment thesis is grounded in industrial sectors where our team brings deep technical, operational, and investment expertise. We understand the customers, procurement cycles, and operational realities our portfolio companies face, allowing us to be thoughtful, experienced partners from diligence through commercialization.

We lead rounds and also follow in rounds led by others. We take board seats when it's appropriate. And we protect founders' confidential information rigorously; proprietary information stays within the HG Ventures team and is never shared with other parts of The Heritage Group.

Our investment thesis runs across six thematic areas that reflect where we see durable, large-scale industrial change underway:

• Resilient and intelligent physical infrastructure
• Next-generation construction, delivery, and execution
• Industrial workforce augmentation and automation
• Energy systems for reliability and autonomy
• Facilities and industrial resource constraints
• Critical materials, circularity, and resource recovery

Not every portfolio company is a hardware or materials play. We also back software, AI, and new business model companies where the technology plays a meaningful role in one or more of these sectors.

We look at seed through growth-stage opportunities where the fit is strong. What matters most is whether the company is tackling a problem where The Heritage Group's operational depth can help, and whether the team has the technical depth and commercial execution to build something durable.

Our initial investment is typically $1–10M, with up to $20M in total investment across a company's lifecycle with us. We lead rounds and co-invest alongside other institutional investors, so the specific structure varies by opportunity. If you're trying to gauge fit before reaching out, sector alignment is a better signal than check size.

Yes. We invest globally where there is a compelling opportunity and where the company can benefit from access to The Heritage Group's network.

Yes, we invest in software, AI, and data-driven technologies that solve meaningful industrial challenges within any of our six core thematic areas. We look for technologies that improve how industrial businesses build, operate, maintain, and manage critical infrastructure and resources.

Beyond capital, our greatest value is helping entrepreneurs accelerate commercialization through access to customers, technical expertise, and real-world operating environments. Through The Heritage Group, portfolio companies gain access to industry relationships, technical expertise, customer introductions and pilot opportunities that would otherwise take years to develop independently.

Examples of how portfolio companies have benefited include:

• A Ph.D. chemist from our network served as interim Chief Scientific Officer for a portfolio company for four months.
• A connection to a chemical manufacturing partner enabled a portfolio company to develop plans for a 100x scale-up in production volume.
• A collaboration with a Heritage Group operating company resulted in $25M in commercial contracts for an infrastructure startup.
• Trusted Heritage Group relationships helped portfolio companies source critical parts, de-bottlenecking supply chains at a moment when it counted.
• Introductions to Heritage Group fleet operations led to multi-year commercial relationships for a software company.

The Heritage Group provides a powerful foundation, complemented by our broader network of co-investors, executive talent, strategic partners, and industry relationships. Every company's journey is different, but our goal is the same: helping entrepreneurs commercialize faster and build enduring industrial businesses.

We are engaged, accessible partners throughout the life of an investment. When appropriate, we take board seats and participate actively in governance on behalf of all investors.

We work hands-on with founders navigating the specific challenges of selling into and scaling within industrial markets, where procurement cycles are long and getting to a first commercial customer takes real persistence.

We bring stable leadership to the cap table. Our team doesn't rotate on a fund cycle, so the people who lead an investment are the people who work with those portfolio companies long-term.

Proprietary information stays within the HG Ventures team and is never shared with The Heritage Group's operating companies without the portfolio company's knowledge and consent. We maintain clear confidentiality protocols and a strict separation between the investment function and operating businesses.

Technical depth and commercial clarity in equal measure. The industrial and materials sectors reward founders who understand the science or engineering deeply — but the companies that scale are the ones that can translate that depth into a compelling market position and a path to commercial adoption.

We also look for resilience. These markets move slowly, procurement cycles are long, and the founders who succeed are the ones who can maintain conviction and momentum through that friction.

We value leaders who are collaborative, intellectually curious, and eager to learn alongside experienced operators.

We encourage you to connect with the team on LinkedIn. Warm introductions from portfolio leaders, co-investors, or members of The Heritage Group network tend to move fastest, but we evaluate cold outreach when the sector fit is clear.

Keep it concise. A brief description of what you're building, the problem you're solving, why the timing is right, and what you're looking to raise is enough to start a conversation. Send a short deck. We'll ask for more detail if there's appetite to dig in. A clear connection to one of our six thematic focus areas will help your message land.

We don't run a rigid, stage-gated process; every investment is collaborative and tailored to the opportunity rather than forcing companies through a strict checklist. The cadence depends on the opportunity and the round. Generally: an initial conversation with a member of the team, followed by a more structured diligence phase that often brings in The Heritage Group's technical operators where the sector warrants it. We move quickly when a deal calls for it, and we'll be transparent about where we are in our thinking throughout.

Entrepreneurs choose HG Ventures when they want more than capital. We combine venture investing with deep industrial expertise, market access, technical expertise, and a long-term partnership backed by permanent capital. Our goal is to help entrepreneurs commercialize faster and build enduring companies.

Our strongest deals tend to involve good co-investor partnerships. We actively seek co-investment relationships with financial VCs, family offices, and other strategics. We bring sector depth and market access; our co-investors often bring complementary networks, domain expertise, and investing perspectives that strengthen companies alongside our industrial operating experience.

We lead rounds, and follow rounds led by others. Regardless, we aim to be a constructive partner on the cap table. We bring stable, consistent governance: the same team, with permanent capital behind it, for the full life of the investment.

Absolutely. If you're working on a deal in our thematic focus areas and think HG Ventures could add value beyond capital — through The Heritage Group's customer relationships, technical expertise, or commercial validation capabilities — we'd welcome the conversation. Reach out via email or connect with the team directly on LinkedIn.