OUR PHILOSOPHY
At Monstro Ventures, we seek to invest in technology companies that we’re proud of. Despite its simplicity, this statement gets to the core of our investing philosophy. We want to foster inventive products, services or processes that positively impact the world. Whether it is having more fun playing with your friends - or saving lives through technological prowess, we want them all to have a positive impact, be forward thinking, make money, and ultimately… wait for it… ultimately make the world a better place.
Not only do we seek companies that we believe exhibit these qualities, we seek founders who are stubborn in the belief of their success – who are smart, calculated and driven enough to make it almost inevitable.
We invest when we’re just as inspired and passionate about these companies as their founders are and feel honored by their choosing us as well. This is where the Monstro Ventures value proposition comes full circle and where we bring more than money to the table. Before Monstro Ventures came to be, we were Monstro the ad agency specializing in video storytelling. Our goal for a significant percentage of our investments is to use the agency to craft an engaging story promoting and marketing your product to share that same passion and inspiration to its potential users, customers, partners, and future employees to as broad a swath of its target as possible.
Targeted Investments
We comb through the details, ensuring we truly understand the essence of our clients' pursuits. Their goals become ours. We direct all of our collective resources toward their success.
A Wealth of Expertise
Our backgrounds in in television, journalism, filmmaking, online video, visual effects, consumer behavior and advertising combined with our successful entrepreneurial experience are the perfect combination to provide significant marketing value.
Expert Advisors
We are very fortunate and appreciative to enjoy a vast network of friends, colleagues, investors, and advisors that help strengthen our investments and opportunities.
SOME EARLY INVESTMENTS
David Prager
Partner
David Prager is a founding partner of Monstro as well as an advisor and investor in consumer internet, enterprise, and media technology companies including Yardsale, FOBO, XDN (acquired by Fortinet), Zuckerberg Media, and Simplehoney (acquired by OpenCoin)...
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David Prager
Partner
David Prager is a founding partner of Monstro as well as an advisor and investor in consumer internet, enterprise, and media technology companies including Yardsale, FOBO, XDN (acquired by Fortinet), Zuckerberg Media, and Simplehoney (acquired by OpenCoin). He is also a co-host and frequent guest on various technology and culture based web shows and podcasts.
Previously, Prager co-founded Internet television network Revision3 with Jay Adelson and Kevin Rose, at some point managing everything from finance and operations to business development, distribution, sales, and programming. As a pioneer in the emerging medium of Internet video-on-demand programming, Prager built and executed one of the industry’s first functional models in monetizing live, streaming, and on-demand video. Revision3 was acquired by Discovery Communications in June 2012.
Prior to Revision3, Prager was a seasoned television producer and technology writer at such reputable outlets as ZDTV, TechTV and Comcast’s G4 Media with hundreds of hours of live daily production, documentary and field productions under his belt.
OUR TEAM
Mauricio Balvanera
Partner
Mauricio Balvanera is an award winning strategic storyteller, with a 16 year career spanning traditional television, film, web and video games. From music editing on CBS’s Criminal Minds, sound design on Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty 2, Editor and Producer at Discovery Digital Networks...
Mauricio Balvanera
Partner
Mauricio Balvanera is an award winning strategic storyteller, with a 16 year career spanning traditional television, film, web and video games. From music editing on CBS’s Criminal Minds, sound design on Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty 2, Editor and Producer at Discovery Digital Networks to Executive Producer and Director on a multitude of marketing spots for companies such as Gap, Ford, Coin, Athos, and countless other promising silicon valley startups, Mauricio holds down the monstro fort with a hands on “yes and… “ collaborative approach.
Dalton Crosthwait
Partner
Monstro is the evolution of Dalton’s original creative endeavor, a design and animation team that he started while in college in 2007, which has joined forces with the other incredible teammates shown on this page. With his team he has won numerous awards...
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Dalton Crosthwait
Partner
Monstro is the evolution of Dalton’s original creative endeavor, a design and animation team that he started while in college in 2007, which has joined forces with the other incredible teammates shown on this page. With his team he has won numerous awards, attracted millions of views on networks like YouTube and across the internet, and worked with organizations like the United Nations, Google Ventures, and the Post Carbon Institute.
In his commitment to a vast and growing list of clients he stresses creativity and attention to detail in everything that he produces, often with a focus on organizations, programs, and inventions that will change the world for the better. His strong desire to leave the world a better place than he found it motivates the majority of his efforts, and he loves developing strategies around getting the right kind of attention for his clients.
Aside from his obsession with improving his surroundings, Dalton also has an incredibly strong affinity for burritos, his bicycle, and filling his sketchbooks with whatever pops into his head. He’s an environmentally and socially driven storyteller that looks forward to each new opportunity to inform the world of the great things that great minds are doing to make life better.
CONTACT US
Thanks for your interest in partnering with Monstro Ventures, we are grateful for your attention. If you don’t know us personally, our best suggestion is to get introduced by a mutual connection.
Alternatively, correspondence can be sent to hello@monstro.vc - including press and media inquiries. Apologies in advance for any delays in response.
If you’re interested in the independent services of our sister creative agency, please don’t hesitate to visit monstro.tv and get in touch via hi@monstro.tv.
Thank you!