Justin Strausbaugh
Managing Partner at Alumni Ventures
Greater Chicago Area
Overview
Work Experience
Managing Partner
2025 - Current
Tensility Ventures is a seed-stage venture capital fund that has been a thought leader and pioneer in Artificial Intelligence investing for over 10 years. The firm is a top-quartile performer and is led by a team that has made over 100 collective early-stage venture investments across the globe. Tensility's current fund focuses on investing in early-stage startups capitalizing on new technologies transforming the most important part of the U.S. economy: the services sector. Over the next ten years, the team believes AI first startups will reshape both skilled and unskilled labor in ways that will improve margins, generate better quality service, and even reshape entire business models.
Tensility Venture partners with founders of early-stage enterprise startups in security, digital health, and novel, vertical-applications.
Managing Partner
2021 - 2024
Alumni Ventures (AV) is a Top 20 Venture Capital Firm and one of the most active investors in the world. AV provides accredited investors and institutions with access to professionally-managed, diversified venture portfolios. The firm has over 1,400 portfolio companies and has raised more than $1.3BN in capital from investors.
Alumni Ventures Group is a venture capital investment firm that manages fund families that invest in a portfolio of companies.
Raised $500,000.00 from Michael Bunning.
Founder and Managing Partner Emeritus
2021 - 2024
Founder of Alumni Ventures first-ever venture fund for University of Chicago alumni (and friends of the community) called Lakeshore Ventures. Successfully raised three Lakeshore Venture funds, made over 40 investments in early to growth-stage companies and brought in over 100 new LPs to the fund. Responsible for all aspects of the funds' management including capital deployment, fundraising, marketing, and portfolio management.
Managing Director, Molex Ventures
2018 - 2020
Responsible for building and managing a portfolio of strategically relevant emerging technology investments for Molex. Including taking board positions, presenting ideas to the C-Suite/Investment Committee, investment sourcing (North America, Europe, Israel), leading deal negotiations, supporting commercial development within Molex, and the strategic direction of Molex Ventures investment thesis.
Molex is a supplier of electronic interconnects.
Board Experience
2017 - 2020
Board Observer Roles: Silentium - (Noise control – Automotive Tech) Tel Aviv, Israel Eideticom - (Computational Storage – Advanced Computing) Ontario, Canada Wickr - (Collaboration/messaging – Cybersecurity) San Francisco, CA Privitar - (Data Privacy – Analytics/Cybersecurity) London, UK Powerlytics - (Alternative Data Sets – Data Analytics) Philadelphia, PA Ripple - (Banking/Payments Blockchain and Digital Currency – FinTech) San Francisco, CA Spark Cognition - (Artificial Intelligence Platforms – Emerging Software) Austin, TX Crosslend - (Cross-border Fixed Income trading – FinTech) Berlin, Germany Fortscale - (User Behavior Analytics -Cybersecurity) Tel Aviv, Israel Filament - (Payments/Asset Tracking – FinTech) Reno, NV
Director, CME Ventures
2015 - 2018
Drove global deal sourcing, execution and portfolio management of early-stage technology investments for CME Group's venture capital group and managed a portfolio of 15 companies across five countries while serving as a Board Observer for eight of the companies
Manager, Business Line Strategy
2014 - 2015
Managed long-term strategy & planning for the firm’s Commodities portfolio (3 business lines) representing $1.2BN in revenue and shaped the strategic decision making process as an advisor to senior leadership
Senior Strategy Analyst
2012 - 2014
Drove long-term strategy creation for CME's key business units representing $3B in yearly revenue
CME Group is a diverse derivatives marketplace that manages risk and capture opportunities.
Raised $1,000,000,000.00 from Google.
Corporate Strategy, MBA Intern
2011 - 2011
Hyatt is a global hospitality company with widely recognized, industry leading brands and a tradition of innovation.
Raised $1,400,000,000.00.
Financial Planning & Analysis, MBA Intern
2010 - 2011
Co-Owner & Chief Technical Analyst
2007 - 2011
Founded subscriber-based business to educate retail and institutional subscribers about market trends and technical analysis
Global Macro Trader & Currency Strategist
2003 - 2008
Gelber Group: Developed, executed and analyzed trading strategies on major currency pairs as well as multi-asset class strategies on equity indexes, U.S. Treasuries, Gold, and Oil. Generated significant currency market revenue through development of technical analysis trading tools including an RSI price projection system. Gertsman Capital Management: Managed and executed firm’s positions in U.S. Treasuries, S&P futures, and Eurodollars. Generated consistent positive returns for the FX desk 11 out of 12 months before the firm closed. CMC Markets: Provided weekly currency analysis and represented firm at industry conferences. Goldenberg Hehmeyer & Co: Committed firm’s capital in the U.S Treasury futures market.