Our Team

On the frozen tundra, only the strongest survive. Team Tundra is a balanced team that has survived and thrived together through tough times and multiple ventures.

We've honed our talent-spotting superpower via countless interactions with the earliest of early founders. Our preseed pattern-matching skill set allows us to see beyond the traditional markers of success and identify the raw potential that lies within. All three Tundra GPs have built companies from the ground up; founders instantly grok that we've been there and we get it. 

Team Tundra sources the most relentless, grittiest, and customer-focused talent. We sift and winnow until we find founders perfectly matched to solve for big, ugly pain points in unexplored markets. Then, we leverage our carefully-cultivated networks to connect these incredible founders into critical social, financial, and human capital systems required for explosive growth. 

Our values include: Operational excellence, practical substance over performative peacocking, Midwestern work ethic, resilience, and self-awareness.


Amanda Heyman
GP, SILICON VALLEY

Attorney, 13+ years advising early-stage startups

Brought fantasy soccer startup from zero to Series A as co-founder 

Created proprietary preseed fundraising & IP platform for six accelerator cohorts

United Nations legal expert for organic agriculture markets, Mauritius

University of Michigan Law School,
full scholarship; Super Lawyers
Rising Star

Digital media startup partnership manager (acquired by MTV); award-winning journalist

Adam Choe
GP, MINNEAPOLIS

Medtech expert turned investor; 5x patent holder

Managing Director gener8tor MN, led eight accelerator cohorts

Founding director gBETA Medtech powered by Boston Scientific & Mayo Clinic Ventures

Pediatric health technology startup founder & CEO

Neuromodulation Fellowship, University of Minnesota; Senior Innovation Fellowship, UMN Earl E. Bakken Medical Device Center

Nestlé HealthCare, Abbott (St. Jude Medical), Adjunct Prof University of St. Thomas

Danielle Steer
GP, MINNEAPOLIS

Founding Executive Director, Lunar Startups accelerator

Scaled MN's first inclusive accelerator to $MM in revenue, 77 companies

Data and evaluation specialist, MPA Middlebury Institute of International Studies 

International entrepreneurship & frontier market scout from Peru to Minneapolis

SXSW main stage speaker; Global Accelerator Network (Morrow) Board of Advisors

Ecosystem builder & superconnector; Twin Cities Business 100 People To Know

  • LOS ANGELES

    Recovering attorney turned entrepreneur

    Experience in retail, restaurants, wholesale, e-commerce and real estate

    Support and mentor former employees in starting and growing their businesses

Not Your Typical VC Team

Unconventional Perspective

Better Pattern Matching

Preseed Specialists

Not Your Typical VC Team • Unconventional Perspective • Better Pattern Matching • Preseed Specialists •

“They don’t invest and disappear. Tundra shows up for SoleSafe whether we are in the room or not. I was very intentional about my cap table...for me, it was about who was willing to stay ‘ten toes down and get in the mud’ with me if needed. That is Tundra!”

PHIL TERRILL, CEO, SOLESAFE


Get to know us better.