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- A Personal Invite To Our Upcoming Event + From Chart-Toppers to Cap Tables
A Personal Invite To Our Upcoming Event + From Chart-Toppers to Cap Tables
Join Us at The Chainsmokers This Week – $150 Special Inside
Mariane Bekker
May 21, 2025
Hi Friends,
I wanted to personally invite you to two events happening this week:
Founders Bay LP/VC Summit (11am - 2pm) + The Chainsmokers BlockParty (3pm - 10pm) [USE COUPON CODE CHAINSMOKERS150 for $150 ticket that includes entrance to the summit + chainsmokers block party TODAY ONLY!]
If we’re not already connected, I’d love to hear from you—please follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram. Let’s connect!
But before I share more about our events, I want to take a moment to express how I’m feeling this week…
Also, can you do me a favor and like this post to increase engagement please? Thank you community!
From Chart-Toppers to Cap Tables: How The Chainsmokers Became VCs
Me + Drew Taggart from The Chainsmokers at a Mantis VC event
“Baby, pull me closer in the backseat of your Rover…” You know the line. So does everyone else.
When The Chainsmokers dropped Closer in 2016, it didn’t just go viral — it became a generational anthem:
#1 on Billboard Hot 100 for 12 straight weeks
Over 2.7 billion streams on Spotify
One of the most Shazamed songs of all time
But while the rest of us were dancing, Drew and Alex were already thinking bigger.
They were quietly laying the groundwork to become serious players in venture capital.
It Started in the Green Room
Between sold-out tours and music videos, Drew and Alex weren’t just backstage partying — they were networking with founders, getting pitched by fans, and absorbing ideas from the bleeding edge of culture and tech.
By 2020, they’d launched Mantis VC, with backing from heavyweight LPs like Mark Cuban and Keith Rabois. It wasn’t a vanity play — it was a calculated move. And they were hands-on.
Their thesis? Back startups building the future of how people live, earn, move, and create.
Mantis VC Now
Today, Mantis manages over $100M in capital, with investments in over 80 companies including:
Anchor (acquired by Spotify)
Fiton (fitness app with 10M+ users)
Stem (music royalty fintech)
Liquid Death
Public.com, Kin Euphorics, LoanSnap, and more.
They sit at a unique intersection: influencers with operating instincts, who understand both the charts and the P&L sheet. They’ve proven that artist capital doesn’t just mean social capital — it can mean strategic, smart money.
Why Founders & VCs Should Pay Attention
They’re not just a case study in celebrity investment. They’re the prototype for a new breed of venture partner:
Cultural signal amplifiers
Community builders
Content-native capital allocators
They don’t just bring checkbooks — they bring distribution, visibility, and narrative power.
This Sunday — They’re Not Just Performing. They’re Part of the Movement.
On May 25, The Chainsmokers will perform at Midway right after our VC/LP Summit. But before the lights drop, we’re convening:
What investors & family offices actually look for before writing checks
What AI Trends to bet on
What it really takes to go from idea to funded
Keynote by Fiona Ma on how to unlock state funding
And yes — the concert is completely sold out.
But you can still get in… if you grab a summit ticket. FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW ONLY! Grab your ticket for $150 with coupon code CHAINSMOKERS150. This gets you in our VC/LP Summit and The Chainsmokers Block party afterwards.
Grab your ticket: https://lu.ma/lp-vc-summit?coupon=CHAINSMOKERS150
Use code CHAINSMOKERS150 before it disappears.
See you in the room — and on the dancefloor.
Founders Bay Upcoming Events
Want us to sponsor an event or partner together? Contact us here
USE COUPON CODE CHAINSMOKERS150 for $150 ticket that includes entrance to the block party TODAY ONLY
Sunday, May 25 - 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
This exclusive summit brings together top-tier limited partners, family offices venture capitalists, and leaders for a day of conversation, connection, and collaboration at the intersection of capital, culture, and innovation. Ticket includes both LP/VC Summit (11AM - 2PM) + The Chainsmokers Block Party (3PM - 10PM)
Tuesday, May 27 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Join us for a dynamic virtual workshop focused on helping startups accelerate their revenue to reach $1M in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR). This session will provide actionable strategies to optimize your sales, marketing, and customer retention efforts, ensuring sustainable growth. Whether you're in the early stages or scaling, you'll learn key methods to boost your revenue quickly and effectively.
Tuesday, May 27 - 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Join us for an Exclusive AI Founders & VC Dinner, an intimate evening designed to connect top AI startup founders with leading venture capitalists. This private gathering brings together a curated group of innovators, builders, and investors at the forefront of artificial intelligence for meaningful conversations, shared insights, and lasting relationships.
Wednesday, May 28 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Join us for a dynamic virtual workshop focused on helping startups accelerate their revenue to reach $1M in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR). This session will provide actionable strategies to optimize your sales, marketing, and customer retention efforts, ensuring sustainable growth. Whether you're in the early stages or scaling, you'll learn key methods to boost your revenue quickly and effectively.
Thursday, May 29 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
AI is changing the way businesses grow, compete, and operate. In this beginner-friendly workshop, you’ll learn how to use AI tools and strategies to make your business more efficient, more innovative, and better prepared for the future. Whether you're a startup founder, small business owner, or team leader, this session will give you the confidence to take the first steps toward using AI in smart, practical ways.
Friday, May 30 - 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Join us for an insightful session with Natasha Walstra, founder of NearPoint Strategies, as she shares her proven methods for optimizing your LinkedIn profile and building authentic connections that drive real results. Drawing from her global experience at companies like Carbon and Forbes Books, Natasha has developed a unique approach to personal branding and social selling that empowers even the most hesitant professionals to thrive on LinkedIn.
Thursday, June 5 - 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Join us for a founder-investor breakfast gathering designed to kickstart your day with real conversations, croissants, and warm intros.
Hosted by Startup Intros at Digital Garage, this event brings together early-stage founders, investors, and ecosystem builders for high-signal networking in a relaxed, coffee-fueled setting.
Thursday, June 5 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Artificial Intelligence is changing how we create, build, and do business—but what does that mean for protecting ideas? This workshop will help founders, creatives, and tech professionals understand how intellectual property (IP) works in the world of AI. Whether you’re training AI models, building products, or using AI-generated content, it’s important to know your rights.
Thursday, June 12 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Join us for a hands-on workshop designed to help you master the art of engaging inbound leads. This session will cover key strategies for converting inbound inquiries into valuable sales opportunities, optimizing your sales process, and building lasting relationships with prospects. Learn how to nurture leads effectively and turn them into loyal customers with personalized outreach and tailored messaging.
Wednesday, June 25 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Join us for an insightful workshop on how to transform your Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy with the latest tech innovations. This session will explore emerging tools and technologies that can help optimize your GTM efforts, improve efficiency, and drive growth. Learn how the evolving landscape of GTM tech is reshaping marketing, sales, and customer success strategies for modern businesses.
Managing Partner, Founders bay
Hi! I'm Mariane Bekker, an investor and a tech executive with over a decade of experience building high-performing engineering teams at leading startups such as New Relic and Mindbody. I've led engineering through 5 acquisitions and 1 IPO.
I’m the founder of Founders bay and Women Founders bay, connecting founders with expert guidance, events and funding opportunities in the Bay Area.
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