Seven-year-old Melbourne VC Skalata has rebranded as Tall Order Ventures, a month after its OG management team acquired the Melbourne seed-stage investment fund from its billionaire cofounder, Paul Little.
Tall Order, which has 85 portfolio companies across three funds, will now be a first-cheque fund for the AI era, CEO and partner Rohan Workman said.
“A tall order is something difficult to accomplish, perhaps even a herculean request. But it is possible. Building a great company is a tall order, and we are seeking the founders who are attracted to that challenge,” he said.
The rebrand follows an investment hiatus that began in March, during which Workman and partner Maxine Lee rebuilt their investment process around AI.
“You can’t rebuild the engine while it’s running, so we took the time to overhaul our processes and infrastructure from the ground up, ” she said.
“It took over five months of painstaking work, but we have significantly more coverage as a firm now.”
They also had some breathing space after Canva acquired portco Doohly for $30 million in March.
Tall Order’s new systems now run sourcing, screening and first-pass diligence using AI, freeing up around 70% of partner time to focus on key issues as investors.
“Over the last 10 years we’ve witnessed enormous change in our industry, and as much as it is a cliche, the impact of AI is the biggest yet,” Workman said.
“It is impacting the investments that we make and the way we operate our firm, and much like we’ve done before, we’ll continue to adapt to the times.”
Lee said their latest fund backs people with deep domain expertise in a specific industry, who are now rebuilding it with AI, while investing in a more human touch too.
“At Series A you’re assessing a company with years of data behind it. At seed you’re assessing the person, and betting on a market category before it’s obvious,” she said.
“You can’t ask a model to form that view for you. But AI can help you validate specific claims within your thesis – reviewing market data, checking the numbers, doing the legwork. This gives us more time back to sharpen our thinking, and more time with the founder.”
Their focus is now on conversations with the people building a new generation of startups.
“AI can verify your track record, but we’d rather spend time with you as a founder understanding your world view, what makes you tick, and how you’re thinking about winning in your category,” Lee said.