Research Note: Spatial Capital
Executive Summary
Spatial Capital, founded in 2021 and headquartered in Mill Valley, California, has positioned itself as a specialized venture capital firm targeting the rapidly expanding spatial computing market with investments focused on computer graphics, computer vision, and artificial intelligence technologies. Led by a management team with extensive industry experience averaging 25+ years in relevant technologies, including Managing Partner Doug Griffin (former entrepreneur with exits to Apple and Roblox), the firm has established a strategic approach focusing on seed-stage investments in North America and Europe, with portfolio companies including EyePop.ai, Vizonare, Maket, Electric Sheep, MoveAI, and Blockade Labs. As Gary Palmer, CEO of Electric Sheep, explains, "With Spatial Capital, we found more than an investor - we found a partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry," highlighting the firm's value proposition beyond mere funding. Their investment thesis aligns with significant growth projections in the spatial computing market, expected to expand from approximately $100-145 billion currently to $600-945 billion by 2030-2033 at a CAGR of 18-23%. Spatial Capital Fund I, opened in April 2023 and domiciled in Delaware, represents the firm's primary investment vehicle, though specifics regarding its capitalization remain undisclosed in public sources. The firm's targeted approach and industry-specific expertise position it to potentially capitalize on fundamental technological shifts as spatial computing evolves from emerging technology to mainstream business application, with a particular focus on companies developing transformative technologies at the intersection of physical and digital worlds.
Source: Fourester Research
Corporate Overview
Spatial Capital LLC is a venture capital investment firm founded in 2021, with headquarters at 751 E Blithedale #2264 in Mill Valley, California, and a business presence in San Francisco, supported by a telephone contact number of 415-300-2868. The firm was established to leverage its founding team's deep expertise in computer graphics, computer vision, and artificial intelligence to identify and support promising early-stage companies in the spatial computing landscape, with Doug Griffin serving as Managing Partner, having previously led startups leveraging technologies such as computer vision, AI, 3D computer graphics, and VR, with notable exits to Apple and Roblox. Operating with a specialized focus, Spatial Capital invests in seed-stage companies within AI, 3D Technology, and Enterprise Software sectors, primarily targeting North America and Europe, as evidenced by public information from their LinkedIn profile which notes 805 followers and descriptions positioning the firm as "investing in visionary founders early in their journey." While specific funding amounts raised by Spatial Capital itself are not explicitly disclosed in available sources, the firm launched Spatial Capital Fund I in April 2023, domiciled in Delaware, though public information about the fund's size and limited partners remains undisclosed. Portfolio companies frequently reference the value-add beyond capital, with Marguerite deCourcelle, CEO of Blockade Labs, noting, "Doug, Steve, and Michel are great," and Electric Sheep CEO Gary Palmer emphasizing, "With Spatial Capital, we found more than an investor - we found a partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry," highlighting the firm's strategic positioning as more than just a financial backer.
Source: Fourester Research
Source: Fourester Research
Source: Fourester Research
Management Analysis
The Spatial Capital management team brings an average of 25 years of hands-on experience in computer graphics, computer vision, and AI technologies, establishing profound domain expertise that forms the foundation of their investment strategy. Doug Griffin, identified as Managing Partner, brings extensive entrepreneurial experience having "led startups leveraging technologies such as computer vision, AI, 3D computer graphics, and VR," with notable exits to major technology companies including Apple and Roblox, demonstrating both technical credibility and business acumen in the spatial computing field. Steven Sullivan, identified as Partner and former Senior Technology Officer at LucasFilm, brings deep industry expertise in visual effects and computer graphics, as evidenced by his commentary on Electric Sheep's technology: "Electric Sheep's cutting-edge cloud and AI platform is poised to revolutionise several core VFX workflows." While complete information about all team members is not publicly available, references to "Doug, Steve, and Michel" from portfolio company testimonials suggest a small, focused team with complementary skills spanning technical development, business operations, and industry connections relevant to their investment thesis. Their professional experiences span both entrepreneurial and corporate environments, having "built startups from the ground up and managed the intricacies of public companies," suggesting a balanced perspective on growth strategies across different organizational stages and scales. Tino Millar, CEO of MoveAI, emphasizes the team's unique value proposition: "Their contribution extends far beyond funding, it's about real domain expertise," highlighting how their technical backgrounds translate into practical support for portfolio companies. References to the team having "pioneered techniques in computer graphics and perceptual computing" and achieved successful exits to "iconic companies" indicate both technical innovation capabilities and a track record of building value recognized by industry leaders – attributes that appear to resonate with portfolio company founders seeking partners who understand their technology challenges rather than merely providing capital.
Market Analysis
The global spatial computing market represents a significant growth opportunity, with current valuations ranging from approximately $100-145 billion in 2023-2024, projected to reach between $600-945 billion by 2030-2033 depending on methodology and scope definitions. Market research firms show remarkable consensus on aggressive growth rates, with IMARC Group estimating a CAGR of 21.7% (2025-2033), Grand View Research projecting 20.4% from 2023-2030, and The Brainy Insights forecasting 22.3% through 2033, while more conservative estimates from Market Data Forecast suggest 12% CAGR to 2032. North America currently dominates with over 33.5% market share as of 2024, reflecting the region's technological leadership and early adoption patterns across industries including gaming, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and enterprise collaboration. The market encompasses converging technologies including augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR), computer vision, and AI-powered spatial intelligence systems that enable new ways for humans and machines to interact with physical and digital spaces simultaneously. Key market growth drivers include increasing demand for immersive experiences, technological advancements in hardware capabilities, expanding enterprise adoption across industries, and substantial investments from major technology companies seeking to establish leadership positions in what many consider computing's next major paradigm shift. Market expansion faces challenges including high development costs limiting adoption (especially for new firms), technological limitations in areas like visual fidelity and battery life compromising user experiences, and significant privacy and security concerns given these technologies' ability to capture and process detailed information about physical environments. Investment flows into the sector have been substantial and growing, particularly focused on AI-powered spatial intelligence applications that leverage computer vision and machine learning to interpret and interact with physical spaces, positioning this segment for potentially outsized growth as enterprises seek technologies that can bridge digital and physical operations while generating actionable insights from spatial data.
Source: Fourester Research
Investment Thesis
Spatial Capital's investment thesis focuses on identifying and supporting seed-stage companies developing technologies at the intersection of physical and digital worlds, specifically targeting innovations in computer graphics, computer vision, perceptual computing, and AI that enhance how humans and machines understand and interact with spatial environments. The firm particularly emphasizes backing visionary founders with breakthrough approaches to spatial computing challenges, leveraging the team's deep domain expertise (averaging 25+ years in relevant technologies) to provide strategic value beyond mere capital, as evidenced by their selective investments in companies like EyePop.ai, Electric Sheep, MoveAI, and Blockade Labs.
The firm's employees highlights their role as "more than an investor" – functioning as a "pivotal ally" providing strategic advice that carries substantial industry credibility, as evidenced by testimonials from portfolio executives. Spatial Capital's investments span a range of applications within the spatial computing domain, including EyePop.ai, which according to their website "enables teams to harness the power of AI and computer vision without needing in-house ML expertise" through a low-code platform allowing users to "quickly build and deploy custom AI models, streamlining processes like object recognition, video analysis, and data processing." Another portfolio company, Electric Sheep, described on their blog as "a cloud and AI platform for accelerating challenging graphics problems in visual effects," secured pre-seed funding in August 2023 to develop technology that automates rotoscoping (background removal) for film and TV, with their cloud-native solution "Spotlight" processing "1 second of footage in less than a minute." Portfolio companies receive different forms of support depending on their specific needs, with Tino Millar, CEO of MoveAI, noting that "With Spatial Capital, we found more than an investor - we found a partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry," emphasizing that "Their contribution extends far beyond funding, it's about real domain expertise." Spatial Capital's approach appears designed to identify promising technologies at early stages and help founders navigate both technical and commercial challenges as they bring spatial computing innovations to market, leveraging the team's specialized knowledge to add value beyond the capital provided.
Source: Fourester Research
Portfolio Companies
Spatial Capital's portfolio companies are developing various technical architectures within the spatial computing domain, broadly spanning computer vision systems, 3D environment generation, mixed reality interfaces, and AI-powered spatial understanding capabilities. Electric Sheep, for example, has developed a cloud-native solution called Spotlight that focuses on automating rotoscoping for film and TV, processing visual content at speeds "360x faster, processing 1 second of footage in less than a minute" according to CB Insights reporting, demonstrating how specialized AI applications can dramatically accelerate traditionally labor-intensive graphics workflows. Steven Sullivan, Partner at Spatial Capital and former Senior Technology Officer of LucasFilm, provided technical context for Electric Sheep's approach, stating that "Electric Sheep's cutting-edge cloud and AI platform is poised to revolutionise several core VFX workflows," highlighting the firm's technical due diligence capabilities. EyePop.ai's platform represents another architectural approach, focusing on democratizing computer vision through a low-code platform that "allows users to quickly build and deploy custom AI models, streamlining processes like object recognition, video analysis, and data processing," according to Spatial Capital's portfolio description, addressing the challenge of making sophisticated computer vision capabilities accessible without requiring specialized machine learning expertise. These architectural approaches typically involve complex challenges including real-time performance requirements, cross-platform compatibility, power efficiency concerns (particularly for wearable devices), privacy and security considerations, and integration with existing enterprise systems while establishing new spatial computing paradigms. The management team's extensive experience in computer graphics, computer vision, and perceptual computing suggests particular attention to architectural approaches that effectively address core technical challenges in spatial understanding, rendering, and interaction modalities, with investments targeting architectures demonstrating novel approaches to fundamental spatial computing problems, including environmental mapping, scene understanding, physics modeling, and the creation of persistent spatial experiences that maintain consistency across sessions, users, and devices.
EyePop.ai
EyePop.ai received a $2.85 million seed investment in February 2025, led by Innosphere Fund with participation from Spatial Capital, Interlock, and Keshif Ventures. The company pioneered a self-service platform that democratizes AI-powered computer vision, allowing users without machine learning expertise to build and deploy custom vision models. EyePop.ai's technology streamlines processes like object recognition, video analysis, and data processing through an intuitive low-code interface that dramatically reduces the technical barriers to implementing computer vision solutions. What makes EyePop.ai unique is its focus on accessibility, enabling teams across various industries to harness sophisticated visual AI capabilities without requiring specialized data science talent or extensive development resources. According to Brad Chisum and Andy Ballester, EyePop.ai's founders, the platform allows users to create custom AI models "in less than 60 minutes," drastically reducing the typical months-long development cycle for computer vision implementations.
Electric Sheep
Electric Sheep secured $500,000 in pre-seed funding in August 2023, in a round led by Dasein Capital with backing from Spatial Capital and Look AI Ventures. Founded by Gary Palmer, Jake Laver, and Richie Murray, the company has developed an AI-powered cloud platform called Spotlight that revolutionizes the rotoscoping process (background removal) for film and television production. Electric Sheep's technology processes footage at speeds "360x faster" than traditional methods, completing in under a minute what would normally take hours of manual work by VFX artists. The company's solution eliminates the need for green screens during filming, giving directors and cinematographers greater creative freedom while simultaneously reducing post-production costs and timelines. As Steven Sullivan, Partner at Spatial Capital and former Senior Technology Officer at LucasFilm, noted, "Electric Sheep's cutting-edge cloud and AI platform is poised to revolutionise several core VFX workflows."
Vizonare
Vizonare received a seed investment from Spatial Capital in April 2025, though the specific funding amount remains undisclosed in available sources. While detailed information about Vizonare's technology is limited in public records, the company appears to be operating in the spatial computing ecosystem aligned with Spatial Capital's investment thesis around computer graphics, computer vision, and AI technologies. Vizonare likely offers innovative solutions that bridge physical and digital environments through advanced spatial understanding capabilities, potentially in areas such as 3D visualization, scene reconstruction, or immersive experiences. The company's inclusion in Spatial Capital's portfolio suggests it demonstrates promising technological innovation and commercial potential in the rapidly growing spatial computing market. As a recent investment, Vizonare represents Spatial Capital's continued commitment to identifying and supporting visionary founders working on breakthrough spatial computing applications.
Maket
Maket (also referred to as Maket.AI) received investment from Spatial Capital around January 2025, though specific funding details remain undisclosed in public sources. Founded by Jessen Gibbs, Patrick Murphy, and Stéphane Turbide, Maket Technologies Inc. appears to offer AI-powered solutions potentially related to spatial design, 3D visualization, or architectural technologies. The company likely leverages artificial intelligence and spatial computing to transform traditional workflows in design, construction, or related fields, aligning with Spatial Capital's focus on technologies that bridge physical and digital environments. Maket's selection for Spatial Capital's portfolio suggests the company offers distinctive technology addressing significant market opportunities within the broader spatial computing ecosystem. While public information about Maket's specific products remains limited, their inclusion in Spatial Capital's selective investment approach indicates promising innovation and growth potential.
MoveAI
MoveAI received investment from Spatial Capital at an undisclosed date and amount, with the company led by CEO Tino Millar who has provided notable testimonials about Spatial Capital's value as an investor. The company appears to operate in the motion capture or movement analysis space, likely using computer vision and AI to track, analyze, and reproduce human movement for applications in animation, film, gaming, or potentially healthcare and sports. MoveAI's technology likely offers significant advantages over traditional motion capture methods, possibly enabling more accessible, accurate, or flexible movement data capture and processing. According to Tino Millar, Spatial Capital provided exceptional value beyond mere funding: "With Spatial Capital, we found more than an investor - we found a partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry... Their contribution extends far beyond funding, it's about real domain expertise." The company's animation capabilities have been highlighted on Spatial Capital's LinkedIn, which showcased how MoveAI's "Move One" software can create sophisticated animations using just an iPhone and their proprietary technology.
Blockade Labs
Blockade Labs, led by CEO Marguerite deCourcelle, received investment from Spatial Capital at an undisclosed date and amount based on available public sources. The company likely operates in the spatial computing and extended reality space, potentially focusing on 3D content creation, virtual environments, or immersive technology platforms. Blockade Labs appears to offer innovative tools or infrastructure that support the development or deployment of spatial computing applications, aligning with Spatial Capital's investment thesis around technologies merging physical and digital worlds. Marguerite deCourcelle has provided strong testimonials about Spatial Capital's management team, stating, "Doug, Steve, and Michel are great... We're lucky to have this world-class team behind us," suggesting meaningful strategic support beyond financing. While specific product details remain limited in public sources, Blockade Labs' selection for Spatial Capital's portfolio indicates promising technology addressing significant market opportunities within the expanding spatial computing ecosystem.
Strengths
Spatial Capital's primary strength lies in its specialized domain expertise, with the investment team averaging 25 years of hands-on experience in computer graphics, computer vision, and AI technologies directly relevant to the spatial computing ecosystem. This technical foundation provides the firm with advanced pattern recognition capabilities for identifying promising spatial computing innovations, evaluating their technical feasibility, and understanding their potential impact on enterprise and consumer applications across industries. The firm's focused investment thesis centered specifically on spatial computing differentiates it from generalist venture capital firms, potentially enabling more nuanced evaluation of opportunities within this complex technological domain and more valuable strategic contributions to portfolio companies beyond mere capital provision. Portfolio company testimonials consistently highlight the value of Spatial Capital's industry connections and strategic guidance, with Tino Millar, CEO of MoveAI, emphasizing that "Their contribution extends far beyond funding, it's about real domain expertise" and Gary Palmer, CEO of Electric Sheep, noting "With Spatial Capital, we found more than an investor - we found a partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry." The team's entrepreneurial background having "built startups from the ground up" while also managing "the intricacies of public companies" suggests balanced perspective on growth strategies across organizational maturity stages. Marguerite deCourcelle, CEO of Blockade Labs, offers additional perspective on the management team's collaborative approach: "Doug, Steve, and Michel are great," adding "We're lucky to have this world-class team behind us," indicating strong partnership dynamics with portfolio companies. Spatial Capital's timing also represents a strategic strength, as the firm's 2021 founding coincides with accelerating momentum in the spatial computing market, positioning them to potentially benefit from increasing enterprise adoption and expanding use cases at a time when spatial computing is evolving from experimental technology to mainstream business application.
Weaknesses
Spatial Capital's status as a relatively new venture firm founded in 2021 means it lacks the extended track record and proven investment methodology of more established venture capital players in the technology sector. This limited operating history provides minimal evidence of successful investment returns or exit strategies specifically within the spatial computing domain, creating uncertainty around long-term performance potential that may concern more risk-averse limited partners or co-investors seeking established patterns of success. The firm's specialized focus, while providing depth of expertise, may also create portfolio concentration risk if the spatial computing market experiences sector-specific challenges or development timeline extensions beyond investor expectations. Available information suggests Spatial Capital maintains a relatively small portfolio of approximately 6-11 companies according to different reporting sources, potentially limiting diversification compared to larger venture funds with broader investment mandates and potentially constraining the statistical probability of achieving outlier returns that drive venture portfolio performance. Given the nature of early-stage technology investing, particularly in hardware-dependent categories like spatial computing, the firm may face extended holding periods for investments as portfolio companies navigate technical development challenges, market education requirements, and potential delays in mainstream adoption of spatial computing applications. Without public information regarding Spatial Capital's total assets under management, fund size, or capital reserves, it's difficult to assess whether they have sufficient resources to support portfolio companies through potentially extended development cycles characteristic of spatial computing ventures or to participate in follow-on funding rounds to maintain ownership positions as successful companies raise additional capital. Additionally, the spatial computing market itself faces inherent challenges that could impact Spatial Capital's investment performance, including high development costs limiting adoption particularly for new companies, technological limitations in areas like visual fidelity and battery life, and significant privacy and security considerations that could delay enterprise adoption and consumer acceptance.
Client Voice
Portfolio company executives consistently emphasize Spatial Capital's contributions beyond financial investment, highlighting the firm's strategic guidance and industry connections as particularly valuable. Tino Millar, CEO of MoveAI, characterizes Spatial Capital as "more than an investor" and a "partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry," specifically noting that their "contribution extends far beyond funding" through application of "real domain expertise." Gary Palmer, CEO of Electric Sheep, reinforces this sentiment, stating "With Spatial Capital, we found more than an investor - we found a partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry," underscoring the consistent theme of domain knowledge as a differentiating factor. Marguerite deCourcelle, CEO of Blockade Labs, expresses appreciation for the management team specifically, noting "Doug, Steve, and Michel are great" and adding "We're lucky to have this world-class team behind us," suggesting recognition of the investment team's capabilities and reputation within the industry. The Electric Sheep announcement further detailed the value of this specialized backing, noting the company "is thrilled to announce the close of an oversubscribed pre-seed funding round of half a million dollars" led by Dasein Capital and backed by Spatial Capital and Look AI Ventures, with the company "designing a solution to automate rotoscoping for film and TV" - demonstrating Spatial Capital's focus on specific technical niches within the broader spatial computing landscape. Gary Palmer of Electric Sheep specifically highlights Spatial Capital's network orchestration capabilities, noting they "deeply appreciate Spatial's extensive connections within the creative industry" and their ability to "open doors to introduce the perfect people at the perfect time," suggesting the firm actively leverages its industry relationships to create strategic opportunities for portfolio companies. The consistent theme across these testimonials focuses on Spatial Capital's active involvement and value-added approach rather than passive capital provision, positioning the firm as a collaborative partner in company development rather than merely a financial stakeholder.
Bottom Line
Spatial Capital represents a specialized venture investment opportunity for organizations seeking exposure to the rapidly evolving spatial computing market through a team with deep domain expertise in computer graphics, computer vision, and AI technologies. The firm's targeted focus on seed-stage companies developing technologies at the intersection of physical and digital worlds aligns with broader industry trends projecting substantial growth in spatial computing adoption over the coming decade, with market research firms estimating expansion from $100-145 billion currently to $600-945 billion by 2030-2033. Founded in 2021 and based in Mill Valley, California, Spatial Capital has invested in companies including EyePop.ai, Vizonare, Maket, Electric Sheep, MoveAI, and Blockade Labs, with portfolio firms consistently highlighting the team's value-add beyond mere funding. Gary Palmer, CEO of Electric Sheep, summarizes this distinctive approach: "With Spatial Capital, we found more than an investor - we found a partner deeply versed in the intricacies of our industry," while Marguerite deCourcelle of Blockade Labs notes "We're lucky to have this world-class team behind us." Led by Managing Partner Doug Griffin, who brings experience from exits to Apple and Roblox, the firm's management team combines entrepreneurial knowledge with technical expertise in the very domains their portfolio companies are developing, potentially providing valuable insights and connections unavailable from generalist investors.