Monique Villa recently joined Launch Tennessee as the organization’s first Chief Investment Officer, leading a new $70M fund backing early-stage companies in Tennessee. She is also the Co-Founder of Build In SE, a network of ecosystem builders committed to supporting entrepreneurs in the Southeast. Prior to joining Launch Tennessee, she was an Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) with Mucker Capital. In 2018, she joined Mucker’s investment team and opened the firm’s first satellite office in Nashville to lead investments into early-stage startups across the Southeast and North America. A native of Los Angeles, Monique’s career in early-stage venture capital began in 2013 as Head of Investor Relations for Velos Partners, a fund based in Los Angeles and Singapore focused on emerging markets. She also served as Chief of Staff to the founding partner of Core Innovation Capital, a fintech-focused fund based in LA and San Francisco. Earlier in her career, Monique advised digital entertainment startups on business development and strategic partnerships and later went on to lead a startup accelerator for students in the Greater Los Angeles area. Her startup career began in 2008 while interning for TOMS, where she supported finance and inventory management projects for several nationwide launches.