M12

M12 is the corporate venture capital arm of Microsoft. Established in 2016 as Microsoft Ventures, it was given the M12 name in 2018. The fund invests in technology businesses and connects its investment activity with Microsoft’s experience, products, and relationships across the technology sector. M12’s investment focus is oriented toward enterprise technology. Its areas of interest have included artificial intelligence, cloud and infrastructure software, cybersecurity, business applications, and other technologies relevant to organizations. As a corporate venture investor, it can provide portfolio companies with more than capital: its association with Microsoft may also offer access to industry expertise and potential connections to Microsoft’s ecosystem. Such support is distinct from a guarantee of a commercial partnership or product integration. The fund operates internationally, while being associated with Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington. M12 is not a standalone publicly traded company; it is a Microsoft-backed investment organization. Its role is to identify and support promising technology companies, including businesses whose products or markets may be strategically relevant to Microsoft. Individual investment activity and portfolio composition can change over time.

Microsoft launched its corporate venture investing activity under the Microsoft Ventures name in 2016. The initiative established a dedicated way for Microsoft to invest in technology companies and engage with developments across the startup and enterprise-technology landscape. It became known as M12 in 2018, adopting a shorter identity for the fund while retaining its connection to Microsoft. M12’s remit is corporate venture capital rather than the sale of a conventional consumer product. It backs technology companies and has emphasized businesses and technologies relevant to organizational customers, including areas such as artificial intelligence, cloud software, cybersecurity, and business applications. Its relationship with Microsoft gives the fund a strategic context: investment decisions can sit alongside Microsoft’s broader interest in emerging technologies and the company’s participation in the enterprise market. The relationship does not, by itself, mean that every portfolio company has a Microsoft partnership or that its products are integrated into Microsoft offerings. The fund is associated with Microsoft, whose headquarters are in Redmond, Washington, and its investment activity reaches beyond a single local market. M12’s identity as a corporate venture investor distinguishes it from a publicly traded operating company and from an independent fund with no corporate parent. It invests in external businesses while operating within Microsoft’s corporate context. Over time, its investment themes and portfolio have evolved with technology markets; specific holdings and activities should therefore be understood as time-sensitive rather than as a fixed catalogue of products.

• 2018

  The fund adopts the M12 name

• 2016

  Microsoft Ventures launches

A strategic corporate venture capital investor focused on technology businesses, particularly those serving enterprise markets and potentially relevant to Microsoft’s ecosystem.

• M12 venture investments

  Equity investments in technology companies, with an emphasis on enterprise-relevant opportunities.

• Operate as a corporate venture capital armOther

1. 1M12m12.vc
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3. 3FarEye raises $25 million funding, to accelerate growth in US, Europe- Moneycontrol.commoneycontrol.com
4. 4FarEye raises $25 mn in Series D funding led by Microsoft venture fundthenewsminute.com
5. 5FarEye raises USD 25 mn funding, to accelerate growth in US, Europebusiness-standard.com
6. 6Netradyne Raises $150 Million in Series C Funding Led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2prnewswire.com
7. 7Prevedere Raises $25 Million in Strategic Financing Fundingprweb.com
8. 8PsiQuantum Closes $450 Million Funding Round to Build the World's First Commercially Viable Quantum Computerfinanznachrichten.de
9. 9PsiQuantum完成4.5亿美元D轮融资 用于构建其商用量子计算机finance.sina.com.cn
10. 10Remote Collaboration Platform Parabol Raises $8M In Series A Funding Round Led By Microsoft's M12prnewswire.com
11. 11Robot data startup Mecka AI nabs $60M from Sequoiatechcrunch.com
12. 12The CEO of RapidAPI, which just raised $25 million in funding, says its developer tool is seeing a faster rate of signups during the coronavirus crisisbusinessinsider.com
13. 13Zencity Raises $13.5 Million in Funding to Help Local Government Leaders Make Data-Driven Decisionsprnewswire.com