Forget AUM. What's Their Star Sign?

A completely unscientific, deeply considered guide to Chicago’s venture ecosystem.

Summer felt like the right time for something a little different.  Something a little more ~vibey~. So, I took 12 Chicago-based VC/PE firms and matched each one to a Zodiac sign based on what I know about them, how they talk about themselves, and what they invest in. Stage, thesis, structure, and a little intuition. If you're a founder, an LP, or just someone who follows the ecosystem, consider this your Chicago VC summer forecast.

Now let's look to the stars.

‍

♈ ARIES — Valor Equity Partners

The Ram. First in. Moves fast. Operates while others deliberate.

Why it's a match: Valor identifies high-growth, "pro-entropic" companies before the category is obvious (Tesla, SpaceX, Base Power, Zipline). Their entire model is built on being the operator in the room, not just the check. That's peak Aries: low risk aversion because they believe they can build the value themselves, not because they're reckless. They lead rounds, they go big, and they back bold theses that others may call premature. The $2.35B Fund VI closing above target is Aries energy.

‍

♉ TAURUS — Energize Capital

The Bull. Patient. Sector-committed. Holds through the cycle.

Why it's a match: Energize has been planting a flag in climate/industrial tech since before it was an LP priority — and they've been methodical, never reactive. Their $1.8B+ AUM wasn't built on hype cycles. They write $5M–$40M checks and go multi-stage, staying with portfolio companies through long infrastructure timelines. That's Taurus: they don't chase the shiny new thing, they commit to a thesis (electrification, decarbonization, industrial resilience) and they hold. The $430M Ventures Fund III is the reward for not wavering.

‍

♊ GEMINI — TechNexus Venture Collaborative

The Twins. Community and capital under one roof. The room where it happens.

Why it's a match: TechNexus is built on duality.  Most funds write checks and go home, but TechNexus built the house. Since 2007, TechNexus has operated two distinct identities simultaneously — TechNexus Venture Collaborative, the investment and corporate innovation platform, and TeamWorking by TechNexus, one of Chicago's most established startup communities and event spaces. Capital and community, living in the same building, feeding the broader ecosystem. That's the Gemini superpower: not just sitting at the intersection of two worlds, but creating the intersection and moving into it. The connective tissue of the Chicago startup ecosystem. Not the loudest fund on the list. The most embedded one.

‍

♋ CANCER — HPA

The Crab. People first. In before the round. There through the journey.

Why it's a match: HPA's literal stated model is "People First" — they combine capital with an executive network to nurture founders, not just fund them. They were founding investors in ShipBob and stayed alongside it to unicorn status. Angels are there because they believe in the founder. That's Cancer: relationship-first, intuitive about people, will take a swing when they believe in someone, it's about this founder, this moment, this bet. The community of executives who show up as operators is the ultimate Cancer energy — protective, high-touch, built on trust. The original Chicago startup community anchor. A relationship long before it's an investment.

‍

♌ LEO — Lightbank

The Lion. Charismatic. Built to be known.

Why it's a match: Lightbank has the most recognizable brand origin story in Chicago VC — founded by Brad Keywell and Eric Lefkofsky, built on the back of Groupon. $700M raised, 150+ companies, 8 unicorns. Their edge is reputational: deep LP relationships, real deal access, earned credibility. Leo needs the best story, the best room, and the confidence to win it. That's Lightbank; Chicago's closest analog to a legacy coastal brand fund.

‍

♍ VIRGO (with Scorpio rising) — Jump Capital 

The Analyst with an edge. Runs the process. Never shows the full hand.

Why it's a match: Jump Capital was built by the Jump Trading crew — quants who constructed one of the world's most sophisticated trading operations on process, precision, and repeatable edge. That DNA runs through everything. Their thesis is tight and non-negotiable: FinTech, IT/Data Infrastructure, vertical B2B SaaS. They run the model, identify the pattern, and execute. Investing in real businesses, measurable outcomes, and consistent compounding.

What makes them more than Virgo is the quant trading inheritance. There's a layer of intensity and opacity that pure Virgo funds don't carry. The analysis is Virgo. The way they carry themselves in a room is Scorpio. That combination — a rigorous process wrapped in subtle intensity — makes them one of the most formidable funds in Chicago.

‍

♎ LIBRA — Moderne Ventures

The Scales. The diplomat. Coalition builder. Connects worlds.

Why it's a match: Moderne invests and brokers relationships. Their Moderne Passport program connects 100+ portfolio companies with 1,500 corporations and executives across real estate, finance, insurance, and sustainability. They explicitly describe their model as "a generalist approach to vertical investing," meaning they hold multiple perspectives simultaneously and seek a balance between tech capability and industry access. That's Libra: they're the diplomat, bringing both sides (startup + incumbent) to the table. They co-invest, they bridge, they convene. DocuSign, Caribou, Hippo — deals that needed industry buy-in, not just capital. The corporate network pre-validates market demand before full conviction.

‍

♏ SCORPIO — 53 Stations

The Scorpion. Single LP. Plays the long game. Shows up in the outcome.

Why it's a match: In 2022, a $190M fund launched in Chicago and got to work.  The thesis: builtworld, healthcare, wealth management, all sectors where transformation is overdue, and patience is a structural advantage. Three years later: two unicorns, Altana Technologies and Meter. That's the Scorpio tell — you find out what they've been building after it's already built. Competitive edge through patient capital and deep Chicago roots.

‍

♐ SAGITTARIUS — S2G Investments

The Archer. Macro-thinker. Betting on where the world is going.

Why it's a match: S2G is literally "invested at the seams of sector transition" — they are the definition of Sagittarian long-arc thinking. Food systems, oceans, energy. They don't pick a company; they pick a thesis about how civilization is going to change and then back the companies at the intersection of those shifts. $2.8B AUM and 120+ portfolio companies built on a 10-year bet on systems transformation. Conviction-first, research-driven investing.  S2G is the most mission-coherent large fund on the list.

‍

♑ CAPRICORN — Adams Street Partners

The Sea-Goat. Institutional. Globally diversified. Built for permanence.

Why it's a match: $70B AUM. Founded in 1972. 100% employee-owned. PEI 300 ranked. Multi-strategy across primary PE, secondaries, growth equity, private credit, and co-investment. Adams Street is the definition of Capricorn: disciplined, modest, and built to last. They focus on consistent DPI across market conditions. Co-Investment Fund VI closed at $2.5B, above target. Private Credit III at $7.5B. These are Capricorn numbers achieved by Capricorn behavior: stress-test everything, protect the LP relationship above all, compound over decades.

‍

♒ AQUARIUS — Listen Ventures

The Water Bearer. Contrarian. Culturally ahead. Always 5 years early.

Why it's a match: Listen Ventures built its entire thesis on cultural narratives that weren't yet mainstream: mental health, cannabis stigma, financial wellness, and disconnecting from devices. They backed Calm early, before it was a household name. Factor before meal prep was even a category. Dame before sexual wellness was a VC thesis. That's Aquarius — the fund that's culturally contrarian, "brands that listen to consumers win.” They see behavior shifts that others can't yet, and will bet on it before the consensus forms.

‍

♓ PISCES — LongJump

The Fish. Empathetic. Bets on people, not patterns.

Why it's a match: LongJump backs founders that most institutional capital hasn't historically reached, it’s a values statement and a market call: overlooked is not the same as unqualified, and the gap between those two things is where the opportunity lives. Pisces doesn't just tolerate ambiguity at this stage, they're better in it — reading founders with an accuracy that data can't replicate yet. Pre-seed is where that skill is the whole job. First capital in. The earliest entry point in the Chicago ecosystem.

‍

The matchings, musings, and mild astrological liberties taken in this post are entirely my own, not vetted by, consulted with, or representative of any firm mentioned, including TechNexus Venture Collaborative.

More about the author:Madelyn Rutter is currently the Senior Director of Collaboration at TechNexus Venture Collaborative and Founding Operator of V2:VC, and a Midwest-born leader, community builder, and Virgo who thrives at the intersection of innovation, brand, and collaboration. She brings a rare blend of entrepreneurial grit and corporate fluency.  Connecting ideas, people, and industries in ways that unlock new growth. Known for sparking collaboration that sticks and making big ideas feel doable.