Former a16z partner Michele Griffin to run Lightning Capital’s $100M knock-on AI fund directly
Michele Griffin, formerly a partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), has joined Lightning Capital as general partner and chief operating officer to spearhead a new $100 million early-stage fund focused on what the firm calls “AI ripple effects.”
The fund, Venture Fund II, will target Seed and Series A rounds, writing cheques of between $1 million and $5 million across roughly ten to 15 portfolio companies. Griffin arrives at Lightning via a merger with Premier GTM, the go-to-market advisory firm she founded after leaving a16z, where she helped build the mega-firm’s operating platform — essentially its portfolio support functions. Premier GTM has previously advised venture firms including Craft Ventures and Norwest Venture Partners.
Griffin told Tech Funding News that she “definitely didn’t have to” merge her thriving advisory business but saw “a massive opportunity” to combine her skill set with Lightning’s and finally move into investing. She noted that it is uncommon for operating partners at large firms to transition into investment roles, “even though we’re so hands-on and have such a great lens.” Her remit at Lightning will span both Fund II and broader operations, including bringing in top advisors from her network to support portfolio companies through their growth.
What ‘AI ripple effects’ means for portfolio strategy
Lightning Capital describes “AI ripple effects” as the second-order consequences of artificial intelligence as it shifts from experimentation into widespread deployment — reshaping industries, infrastructure, and work. The fund intends to back startups that are building for these knock-on changes, with a particular emphasis on companies that help the workforce feel “excited and prepared” for future disruption rather than displaced. Griffin, who says she sits on “both sides of the equation” when it comes to go-to-market strategy, added that she can “see whether a company can actually sell, and I know the enterprise landscape well enough to spot gaps they don’t even know they have yet, but will.”
The rationale behind the ripple-effects thesis is tied to the broader venture capital environment. The asset class is currently grappling with a liquidity crisis, as a lack of exits — major IPOs and acquisitions — has hit capital returns for limited partners, making LPs more cautious. Yet AI remains a significant driver of dealmaking, with substantial investment flowing into the sector. Anticipated blockbuster IPOs from companies such as SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic, expected as early as 2026, could ease the liquidity crunch, though they also carry risks of market overvaluation. Lightning’s multi-fund structure is designed to offer LPs what CEO Jason Albanese calls “institutional light” exposure — flexible short-, medium-, and longer-term liquidity options via a combination of venture, secondaries, and treasury strategies.
Griffin’s own background gives her a distinctive lens on portfolio support. At mega firms such as a16z — which as of January 2026 had over $90 billion in assets under management and pioneered a large in-house operator team — she saw how staffing for every business-building question was the norm. “Emerging managers can’t afford that,” she said. “What I’ve built, and what I bring to Lightning, is a platform and network of ‘Avengers’ we can deploy into our companies – the best people, into the biggest gaps, very quickly.” Examples include bringing in a government contracts team at discounted cost and plugging in specialists to help talent leaders build sales teams.
Lightning Capital’s broader strategy and team
Lightning Capital was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Miami, Florida, with its three general partners split between San Francisco, Miami, and New York. The firm operates a global remit that includes Europe. Co-founding general partners are CEO Jason Albanese, a former CEO of Centric Digital with experience in venture capital and crypto asset management, and CFO Jock Percy, who has a background in finance and operations and has founded and led companies that were later acquired. Both come from operating backgrounds, having built and sold businesses themselves.
Albanese told Tech Funding News that execution is “80, 90% of the success of companies, as opposed to their ideas,” and that a key part of the firm’s model is coaching founders to stop being “jack of all trades” and instead build strong leadership teams — teaching them how to grow without burning out and to feel comfortable delegating. The now-three GPs intend to offer that founder coaching as part of the firm’s hands-on approach.
The new Venture Fund II sits within Lightning’s multi-fund structure, which also includes secondaries and treasury strategies tailored for family offices and corporates seeking venture exposure with more flexible liquidity than traditional VC. With venture capital facing a liquidity crisis, Lightning considers its ability to offer short-, medium-, and longer-term liquidity options a “very powerful option” for LPs, Albanese said. The partners did not disclose how much of the fund has been raised to date.
