TIME Ventures

About

TIME Ventures is the personal investment vehicle of Marc Benioff, founder, chairman, and CEO of Salesforce ¹². Founded in 2019, the firm is based in San Francisco, California ¹³. TIME Ventures operates as a venture capital fund and family office with over 200 investments since its founding ²⁴.

Benioff purchased TIME magazine with his wife Lynne in 2018 for $190 million from Meredith Corporation as a personal investment separate from Salesforce ⁵. The name “TIME Ventures” reflects this connection to the TIME brand.

In October 2021, Marc and Lynne Benioff announced $200 million in climate-focused commitments through TIME Ventures: $100 million for the Benioff TIME Tree Fund (focused on indigenous and community-based forest management) and $100 million from TIME Ventures to back climate entrepreneurs, or “ecopreneurs” ⁶⁷. Since 2014, the Benioffs have invested $100 million in ecopreneurs prior to this additional commitment ⁶.

TIME Ventures has produced notable exits, including Planet Labs and IonQ, both of which went public via SPAC mergers in 2021 ²⁸. In 2025, Salesforce Ventures (a related but distinct entity also led by Benioff) realized approximately $600 million from Google’s $32 billion acquisition of Wiz ⁹.

Stated Thesis

TIME Ventures does not maintain a public website with a formal investment thesis. Based on Benioff’s public statements, the firm’s stated focus centers on three interconnected themes ¹⁰:

1. Climate and energy transition: Benioff has stated, “We’re in a planetary emergency — a climate crisis that impacts everyone, especially for the most vulnerable among us” ⁶. He has described the mission as backing “ecopreneurs” who develop technologies to reduce emissions, sequester carbon, and protect natural resources ⁶⁷.

2. Enterprise transformation and AI: Benioff has stated that he prioritizes companies with “real revenue lines and real customers and real products that are offering real value” ⁹. He emphasizes “platform thinking” — backing companies that can become foundational layers for entire ecosystems ¹⁰.

3. Stakeholder capitalism: Benioff has publicly declared, “Capitalism, as we know it, is dead. And that businesses have to move to a new capitalism: a more equal, fair, and sustainable way of doing business — one that values all stakeholders as well as shareholders” ¹¹. This philosophy informs both his Salesforce leadership and TIME Ventures investments.

Benioff has also stated regarding climate investment: “Removing carbon from our atmosphere is one of the most effective and important ways to fight climate change” ¹².

Inferred Thesis

Based on 25 verified investments, TIME Ventures’ actual portfolio reveals a strong tilt toward climate technology and sustainability, with a secondary focus on enterprise software and emerging technology platforms.

Sector breakdown (based on 25 verified investments): - Climate/sustainability: 12 of 25 (48%) — including NCX, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, DroneSeed/Mast, Loam Bio, Regrow, Cloud Paper, CarbonCapture, Terraformation, Mango Materials, Novoloop, Planet Labs, Universal Hydrogen - Enterprise software/AI: 6 of 25 (24%) — including You.com, Laurel, OpenComp, webAI, Warp - Space/aerospace: 3 of 25 (12%) — SpaceX, Planet Labs (also counted in climate), Astra, Swarm - Quantum computing: 1 of 25 (4%) — IonQ - Health/neurotech: 1 of 25 (4%) — Somnee/StimScience - Other: 2 of 25 (8%)

Note: Some companies span categories (e.g., Planet Labs serves both space and climate use cases). Percentages are approximate and total exceeds 100% due to overlap.

Stage distribution: TIME Ventures invests across a wide range of stages, from seed (OpenComp $4.6M seed, Somnee seed) through growth rounds (Commonwealth Fusion Systems $1.8B Series B, Laurel $100M Series C). The portfolio skews toward earlier stages with selective participation in large later-stage rounds.

Geographic focus: Portfolio companies are predominantly U.S.-based, with Loam Bio (Australia) as a notable exception ¹³.

Co-investor patterns: TIME Ventures frequently co-invests alongside impact-oriented and climate-focused funds including Prelude Ventures, Obvious Ventures, Congruent Ventures, and Galvanize Climate Solutions. In enterprise/AI deals, co-investors include Khosla Ventures, Breyer Capital, and Salesforce Ventures.

Notable pattern — Salesforce network: Several portfolio companies have direct ties to the Salesforce ecosystem. You.com was founded by Richard Socher, Salesforce’s former Chief Scientist ¹⁴. Warp was founded by Zach Lloyd, who is Benioff’s second cousin ⁹. Benioff also transferred the You.com domain (which he purchased in the 1990s) to the company ¹⁴.

Notable gap: Despite claims of broad “B2B, hospitality, non-financial services” focus noted on aggregator sites ¹, the verifiable portfolio is overwhelmingly concentrated in climate tech and enterprise software. No hospitality investments could be independently confirmed.

Portfolio

This table represents a subset of TIME Ventures’ claimed 200+ investments. Only investments with independent source verification are included. Many investments, particularly smaller angel checks, are not publicly disclosed.

In Their Own Words

“We’re in a planetary emergency — a climate crisis that impacts everyone, especially for the most vulnerable among us. Every country, company, community, and person has a responsibility to act now — the cost of failing to address this global threat will be catastrophic.” — Marc Benioff, Salesforce press release announcing $300 million climate commitment, October 2021 ⁶

“Removing carbon from our atmosphere is one of the most effective and important ways to fight climate change. Carbon Capture Inc. represents the spirit of innovation we need to solve our climate crisis.” — Marc Benioff, on the CarbonCapture Series A investment, October 2021 ¹²

“We’re at a critical inflection point in the internet’s history, and we must take steps to restore trust online.” — Marc Benioff, on investing in You.com, November 2021 ¹⁴

“I can offer way more value to these entrepreneurs than any venture capitalist.” — Marc Benioff, on his approach to founder mentorship, 2025 ⁹

“Capitalism, as we know it, is dead. And that businesses have to move to a new capitalism: a more equal, fair, and sustainable way of doing business — one that values all stakeholders as well as shareholders.” — Marc Benioff, CNBC interview, October 2019 ¹¹

“This is a moment where we need to empower, enable, and energize ecopreneurs who are going to get us to where we want to go.” — Marc Benioff, on climate entrepreneurs ⁷

What Founders Say

Justin Vandehey, founder of Growbot, described his experience pitching Benioff at Salesforce’s Dreamforce conference: after an initial cold approach in 2014, Salesforce Ventures declined to invest, but “Two years later, we had a term sheet from Benioff as our first and only angel investor in Growbot” ²⁷. Vandehey noted that Salesforce’s feedback during the initial pitch “helped [him] think critically about the business being built, as well as how to approach different profiles of investors and venture firms” ²⁷.

No additional independently sourced founder testimonials from TIME Ventures portfolio company founders were found. Benioff’s portfolio companies have not extensively shared public testimonials about working with TIME Ventures specifically, as distinct from Salesforce Ventures.

Sources