The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) recently shone a spotlight on Mike Moradi, co-founder and general partner of Cortado Ventures, as part of its "Meet a VC" series. This feature underscores the growing prominence of venture capital firms operating outside traditional coastal hubs, with Cortado Ventures emerging as a key player in Oklahoma City, investing in seed-stage frontier technology companies across the U.S. Midcontinent. Moradi’s firm operates on a foundational belief: the most impactful founders, poised to revolutionize critical industries, are often those with years of intimate experience working within them. By strategically connecting these experienced innovators with essential capital, customer networks, and broader support systems, Cortado Ventures is actively fostering the expansion of American innovation, enabling it to take root in regions historically overlooked by mainstream venture capital.
The Entrepreneurial Crucible: Mike Moradi’s Path to Venture Capital
Mike Moradi’s journey into venture capital is deeply informed by a formidable and often challenging career as a serial entrepreneur. A six-time founder, Moradi navigated the tumultuous waters of company building across technically complex sectors such as biopharmaceuticals and nanotechnology. His initial foray into entrepreneurship began unconventionally, as he departed from dental school to launch his first venture. That endeavor, he candidly admits, failed. However, this early setback proved to be a pivotal learning experience rather than a deterrent, instilling in him a profound resilience and an unwavering commitment to persevere despite obstacles and external skepticism. "The lesson was to keep pushing past every obstacle, to not be discouraged by hearing the word ‘no,’ and to stay the course," Moradi reflects, a principle that now underpins Cortado’s approach to nurturing its portfolio companies.
His entrepreneurial trajectory saw subsequent successes, including a rapid-growth company that was ultimately acquired by a Fortune 100 enterprise. Later, a San Francisco Bay Area venture also achieved an acquisition, but not before confronting near-failure following an $18 million Series B financing round. This particular experience offered a distinct, invaluable lesson: while capital can undeniably accelerate a company’s progress, speed alone is only advantageous when the business is correctly oriented and genuinely prepared for scale. Moradi keenly observed, "A high valuation and a full bank account will happily let you scale the wrong thing." This realization cemented his understanding that capital must be deployed with precision, aligning with demonstrable progress and strategic readiness rather than merely fueling unchecked expansion.
Today, Moradi’s overarching mission transcends individual investments; it is about extending the innovative dynamism often associated with Silicon Valley to the burgeoning Midcontinent. His approach to venture funding is meticulously thoughtful, focusing as much on the sequencing and timing of capital infusion as on the underlying technology. He advocates for financing that empowers founders to rigorously test assumptions, mitigate risks, and achieve substantive milestones, rather than allowing a business to outgrow its proven capabilities. This philosophy marries entrepreneurial optimism with a disciplined, evidence-based approach and a clear understanding of the immediate, critical objectives a company must achieve. This profound, firsthand experience in both success and failure ultimately led Moradi, alongside a team of seasoned founders, CEOs, and operators, to establish Cortado Ventures in 2020. Their collective goal was to construct the kind of supportive, insightful firm they themselves wished they had access to during their entrepreneurial careers—one capable of contributing far beyond the initial capital injection, deeply understanding the intricate decisions founders face.
Midcontinent’s Untapped Potential: Cortado’s Investment Thesis
Cortado Ventures’ distinctive investment thesis is deeply rooted in the strategic advantage presented by the U.S. Midcontinent. This expansive region is home to a significant concentration of critical industries currently undergoing immense pressure to innovate and evolve. Sectors such as energy, aerospace and defense, healthcare, advanced manufacturing, mobility, and logistics are characterized by complex physical infrastructures, entrenched supply chains, and demanding customer relationships. True transformation within these domains, Cortado asserts, requires more than superficial software applications; it demands an intricate, nuanced understanding of how these industries fundamentally operate.
Consequently, Cortado actively seeks out experienced technical founders who possess this profound, internal understanding. These are often individuals who have spent years immersed within hospitals, factories, laboratories, energy companies, aerospace programs, or logistics networks, ultimately identifying persistent problems and conceiving novel solutions. Their deep-seated experience grants them unparalleled credibility with customers, crucial insight into potential implementation hurdles, and a breadth of knowledge that would be exceedingly difficult to cultivate from an external vantage point.
The geographical location itself contributes significantly to Cortado’s investment advantage. The Midcontinent offers unique proximity to these vital industries and a robust pool of potential customers. The region also boasts a technically skilled workforce, strong research institutions that foster innovation, and complementary public funding initiatives. Critically, the cost of building and operating a company in the Midcontinent is often substantially lower compared to coastal tech hubs, providing startups with extended runway and efficient capital deployment. According to data from PitchBook and the NVCA, while major tech hubs like California, New York, and Massachusetts continue to dominate VC funding, regions like the Midcontinent have seen consistent, albeit smaller, increases in investment activity, highlighting a gradual but steady decentralization of venture capital. For instance, Oklahoma, where Cortado is based, has seen a marked increase in venture capital deployed over the past few years, mirroring broader trends in states like Texas and Missouri.
Cortado’s diverse portfolio vividly reflects the breadth of innovation emanating from this environment. Their companies are applying cutting-edge technologies across a spectrum of applications, including space communications, industrial safety protocols, critical infrastructure cybersecurity, advanced manufacturing processes, digital healthcare solutions, sustainable energy technologies, and next-generation mobility platforms. The firm’s strategy is not predicated on the notion that Midcontinent founders should receive investment merely due to historical undercapitalization. Rather, it is firmly anchored in the conviction that direct proximity to complex, "hard problems" inherently cultivates differentiated companies and, by extension, yields strong financial returns. Moradi succinctly captures this ethos: "Talent is not concentrated anywhere in particular. Capital and networks have just been slower to distribute than talent has." For Moradi, expanding the geographic reach of venture capital is therefore a dual imperative: it is about identifying a broader base of exceptional founders and, crucially, uncovering previously overlooked sources of profound insight and innovation that traditional networks might bypass.
Beyond Capital: Building a Robust Ecosystem
When Cortado Ventures first launched, Mike Moradi’s initial assessment pointed to a shortage of capital as the primary constraint hindering the nascent venture ecosystem in the Midcontinent. The firm quickly demonstrated that promising companies could indeed be identified and successfully funded within the region. However, as Cortado matured and its understanding deepened, Moradi’s perspective on the comprehensive needs of founders evolved significantly. "Five years ago, I would have said the limiting reagent in a young ecosystem was capital. Capital turned out to be necessary, and also nowhere close to sufficient," Moradi states, encapsulating this crucial shift in perspective.
Founders require a multifaceted support system that extends far beyond mere financial injection. This includes access to experienced operators who can guide them in circumventing preventable missteps, visionary customers willing to pilot unproven technologies, patient investors prepared to support a company through various developmental milestones, and a vibrant community where vital relationships can naturally form and flourish. Moradi emphasizes, "Money can accelerate a company. It cannot stand in for experience."
This profound realization has profoundly shaped Cortado’s expanded role within the broader Midcontinent ecosystem. The firm actively works to forge connections among founders, funders, academic institutions, established corporations, policymakers, and technical experts. This connective tissue is not reserved exclusively for Cortado’s portfolio companies; it is designed to uplift the entire regional entrepreneurial landscape. A prime example of this commitment is Cortado’s annual Midcontinent Venture Capital Summit, an event that convenes investors, limited partners, founders, and ecosystem leaders from across the nation, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange. Additionally, Cortado actively collaborates with various regional entrepreneurship organizations and The Verge, an Oklahoma City-based incubator and accelerator that provides critical company-building resources, educational programming, and crucial capital connections.
Each of these interactions, whether at a summit, a workshop, or an informal meeting, holds the potential for a founder to discover a new customer, secure a vital advisor, recruit a key employee, find a strategic collaborator, or attract a future investor. Collectively, these myriad relationships construct the essential infrastructure that enables a greater number of companies to successfully launch and, crucially, to scale. For Moradi, this is where the true impact of venture capital transcends a single investment. A robust, interconnected ecosystem offers more entrepreneurs a viable pathway to company formation, simultaneously creating an abundance of opportunities for capital, talent, and innovation to converge and thrive. Local economic development officials often laud such initiatives, recognizing their tangible impact on job creation, economic diversification, and regional prosperity. A spokesperson from the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, for instance, might comment on how firms like Cortado are instrumental in cultivating a dynamic tech sector that attracts and retains talent, positioning the state as a competitive hub for innovation.
Discipline in Diligence: A Founder-Centric Approach to Investment
In the inherently uncertain world of early-stage investing, perfect information is a rare commodity. Mike Moradi candidly acknowledges this reality: "Incomplete data is my job description." Rather than attempting to eliminate uncertainty—an impossible task—his methodology centers on distinguishing between assumptions that can be immediately tested and those that will only resolve over time. He meticulously identifies the core conditions that must hold true for a venture to succeed, then rigorously considers how those conditions might be disproven, and finally, evaluates the capital cost required to achieve the next significant milestone.
Moradi’s strongest convictions typically revolve around the founding team’s capabilities, the authenticity and scale of the customer problem being addressed, and the company’s demonstrable rate of progress. He maintains a more cautious stance regarding predictions about the precise timing of an emerging market or the exact path a company might eventually take to an exit. This disciplined approach becomes particularly critical when a financing round is moving at a rapid pace. The allure of a compelling founder and the competitive pressure of a swift process can generate immense pressure to make a decision before the central investment assumptions have been thoroughly vetted. Moradi warns, "A hard deadline is exactly when people stop asking uncomfortable questions."
When circumstances necessitate, Cortado will deliberately slow down the investment process, engaging independent scientific or technical experts to provide an unbiased evaluation. This additional layer of diligence serves a dual purpose: it can either significantly strengthen the firm’s conviction in the investment or, conversely, reveal fundamental reasons to step away. Interestingly, many of Cortado’s most robust founder relationships have originated from this very scrutiny, as it sharpens strategic thinking and proactively identifies risks while there is still ample opportunity to address them. However, slowing the decision-making process does not equate to a sluggish response; once a decision is made, Cortado acts with alacrity.
Moradi applies a similar discipline to company valuation. He posits, "A sensible entry price is a form of protection for the founder, employees, and investors alike." An overly aggressive valuation, while initially feeling like a triumph, can impose significant burdens. If the company’s subsequent progress fails to meet the inflated expectations attached to that high valuation, the repercussions can be severe, impacting founder ownership, diluting employee equity, constraining future fundraising options, and hindering the company’s essential ability to adapt. This dynamic, Moradi points out, cuts both ways; while VCs can sometimes stifle growth, balance is paramount. "The right number buys you options for years. In boom times, people forget that financial crises happen," Moradi reminds, underscoring the importance of long-term strategic thinking over short-term perceived victories. For Cortado, this discipline is not a reflection of a lack of belief in a founder’s ambition; rather, it is a calculated strategy to provide an ambitious company with the essential flexibility and time it needs to ultimately succeed.
Showing Up With Work Already Done: The Cortado Differentiator
The Cortado Ventures team distinguishes itself through its deep operational experience, having collectively built, scaled, and successfully exited companies across many of the very industries in which the firm now invests. This invaluable firsthand experience fundamentally shapes how Cortado supports founders, particularly when unforeseen challenges emerge, or difficult decisions must be made. Mike Moradi encapsulates this meaningful support with two powerful words: "Speed and specificity."
He elaborates on this ethos: "Answer in hours rather than days and show up with work already done instead of advice. Better yet, pick up the phone." This actionable support can manifest in various ways: meticulously rebuilding a complex financial model, facilitating a critical customer introduction, actively recruiting a senior executive, or taking ownership of a sensitive aspect of a board conversation. It also encompasses the courage to deliver uncomfortable truths when a company’s runway is shortening, or its strategic direction requires a fundamental shift. Moradi vividly recalls being the founder in those challenging meetings. "What helped was someone who lowered the temperature, told the truth to me and the board, and followed up after the meeting," he recounts, highlighting the profound impact of empathetic, direct, and consistent support.
As Cortado and the surrounding Midcontinent ecosystem have matured, the firm’s founder support mechanisms have become increasingly sophisticated. Portfolio companies now have access to a comprehensive network comprising operating executives, specialized industry experts, seasoned advisors, prospective customers, experienced coaches, follow-on investors, and a community of peer founders within Cortado’s expansive network. Concurrently, the needs of founders themselves have evolved. While capital was once a scarce resource in the region, making Cortado’s initial investment and its ability to attract additional investors particularly valuable, today’s founders increasingly require customer access, senior talent acquisition, deep technical expertise, and crucially, individuals willing to offer honest, unvarnished guidance.
Ultimately, Cortado’s role is not to usurp control from the entrepreneur. Indeed, sometimes the most valuable contribution an investor can make is precisely knowing when not to intervene. "Other times," Moradi thoughtfully notes, "being helpful means staying out of the way." This nuanced understanding of support—knowing when to lean in with hands-on assistance and when to provide space for entrepreneurial autonomy—is a hallmark of Cortado’s founder-centric approach.
Building What Outlasts a Fund: A Legacy Beyond Returns
Mike Moradi firmly believes that a venture firm’s responsibility extends beyond merely managing its own portfolio and generating returns for its limited partners. "We must build things that outlast a single fund," he asserts, emphasizing a long-term vision for ecosystem development. For Cortado, this translates into a dedicated effort to strengthen the foundational connections among founders, funders, universities, corporations, and policymakers throughout the Midcontinent. Crucially, it also involves actively fostering the formation and growth of more investment firms within the region.
Moradi rejects a zero-sum mentality: "This is not a zero-sum game. We want to enable a dozen other firms in our geography, and bring in outside funds for later rounds. We need to create scalable structures where everyone can win." A larger, more interconnected investment community inherently provides founders with a broader array of potential capital sources and expertise. It also cultivates more opportunities for investors to collaborate and participate in promising companies. Over time, this collective effort can establish a more durable and efficient pathway connecting regional innovation with national capital markets.
It is important to note that this commitment to ecosystem building does not, in Moradi’s view, diminish a firm’s primary fiduciary responsibility to its limited partners. Having served as a trustee and audit committee member for a state retirement system, Moradi gained firsthand insight into the paramount importance of transparency regarding investment risk, duration, and potential losses. "Ecosystem building matters, and it does not excuse any of us from being disciplined fiduciaries first," he clarifies, ensuring that impact and returns are not mutually exclusive.
Moradi also views the NVCA as an indispensable component of the connective infrastructure that supports venture firms and founders nationwide. Policy issues such as capital formation, research commercialization, immigration policies affecting talent, government procurement, tax treatment, and securities regulations are not abstract concepts; they directly influence an emerging manager’s ability to raise a fund, a startup’s capacity to attract top talent, and a new technology’s potential to reach the customers and institutions that desperately need it. "NVCA helps each of us make policy concrete and stay on top of the issues that matter in D.C. and beyond," Moradi states. Furthermore, Cortado’s active participation in the NVCA provides a crucial platform to infuse a vital Midcontinent perspective into national dialogues concerning innovation, capital formation, and the overarching future trajectory of the venture industry.
Expanding the Map of American Innovation: The Broader Impact
Mike Moradi hopes that the story of Cortado Ventures can illuminate the true breadth and diversity of American venture capital. While the industry’s largest, most visible firms often garner the greatest media attention, a substantial portion of the venture ecosystem comprises smaller, specialized investors. These firms are typically writing early-stage checks into niche markets, whether defined by industrial sector, geographic region, demographic focus, or other specific criteria. Moradi emphasizes this often-overlooked reality: "Most of VC looks nothing like the caricature. The bulk of the industry is small firms writing early checks into some niche, be it industrial, geographic, demographic, or otherwise. And a VC firm is also a startup until fund 3 or 4."
These specialized firms play an absolutely essential role in the innovation lifecycle. They are adept at identifying visionary founders before their markets become obvious, skillfully connecting specialized knowledge with critical capital, and diligently helping companies navigate the precarious period between a promising idea and a sustainable, thriving business. Moradi underscores the intensity of this phase: "The hardest work happens after the money moves."
New technological advancements are rendering this work even more consequential. The proliferation of artificial intelligence, advanced automation, innovative manufacturing techniques, groundbreaking energy solutions, biotechnological breakthroughs, and space technology are collectively reducing the cost and complexity of pursuing ambitious ideas. This paradigm shift means that small, agile teams can now realistically pursue opportunities that once demanded the vast resources of large corporations or extensive national programs. Many of these pioneering teams, Moradi contends, will naturally emerge in locations that are intimately connected to the very problems they are striving to solve.
This decentralization of innovation is the broader, profound impact of expanding venture capital across America. When investors consciously look beyond familiar networks and actively engage with founders in regions where critical industries operate, they facilitate a powerful chain reaction. More innovative ideas transform into viable companies, more groundbreaking technologies reach the market, and more diverse communities gain the opportunity to actively participate in, and benefit from, the nation’s dynamic innovation economy. For Moradi, the founders who dare to attempt what others deem impossible remain the single greatest source of optimism. "Never forget that we’re here for them. When we do this right, everyone, including humanity, wins," he concludes, articulating a vision where venture capital serves as a catalyst for collective progress.
The NVCA proudly acknowledges Cortado Ventures as a vital part of its membership, representing the evolving landscape of venture capital. Further information about the firm and its mission can be found at cortado.ventures.
