John Richards is the Managing Partner and co-founder of Startup Ignition Ventures, a $20 million pre-seed fund based in Provo, Utah. See contact routes.
John Richards is the Managing Partner and co-founder of Startup Ignition Ventures, a $20 million pre-seed fund based in Provo, Utah, and previously co-founded the accelerator BoomStartup while serving as an entrepreneurship professor at Brigham Young University. His investment thesis targets pre-seed and pre-revenue software founders, with a geographic focus on the Wasatch Front in Utah. The firm typically writes first checks ranging from $100,000 to $1 million, often following on with a similar-sized investment if the startup demonstrates traction. Notable portfolio companies include Identity Matrix, which raised a $400,000 pre-seed round in August 2024, and Dimension X, which secured $600,000 in pre-seed funding in August 2022. Richards distinguishes his approach by applying Lean Startup and business model validation concepts to help teams “get into the trenches” without being overbearing, under the slogan “From Idea to Exit”. He has completed over 200 angel investments and advises firms like Luminous while continuing to teach venture finance at BYU.
This profile is part of the StartupFundraising investor database: focus, portfolio history, disclosed location and contact routes, refreshed as new filings and rounds are ingested. Founders use it to check fit before reaching out and to find investors in Provo.
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