Zoom launch new $100 million venture fund

Zoom has announced the new Zoom Apps Fund, a $100 million venture fund created to stimulate growth of Zoom’s ecosystem of Zoom Apps, integrations, developer platform, and hardware.

Portfolio companies will receive initial investments between $250,000 and $2.5 million to build solutions that will become core to how Zoom customers meet, communicate, and collaborate, the company said in a statement.

Announced at Zoomtopia 2020, Zoom Apps are leading applications that will bring productivity and engaging experiences directly into the Zoom platform.

Dozens of Zoom Apps are currently in development and are an important component in building the future of video communications, says the company. The Zoom Apps Fund will invest in developer partners with viable products and early market traction that will provide valuable and engaging experiences to our customers.

“I founded Zoom in 2011, nearly ten years ago. Without the support of early investors, Zoom would not be what it is today,” said Eric S. Yuan, Founder and CEO of Zoom.

“What I’ve learned over the past year is that we need to keep meetings productive and fun. My hope is that the Zoom Apps Fund will help our customers meet happier and collaborate even more seamlessly, and at the same time help entrepreneurs build new businesses as our platform evolves.”

The rise of Zoom

In 2020 Zoom became a household name with the pandemic causing a shift to remote working and remote schooling. Revolutionising the workplace, it allowed people to stay in touch and have virtual meetings. Not only was it used for work, but people also used it to stay in touch with family and friends, with a lot of online quizzes taking place. 

According to the BBC the video conferencing company expects sales to rise more than 40 per cent this year, reaching more than $3.7bn (£2.66bn). 

Even though we now have COVID-19 vaccines and the rollout is at global scale, the work-life balance might not be the same as it used to be in the pre-COVID-19 world. In the post-pandemic world, it looks like businesses could favor cost-effective hybrid and virtual workspaces over traditional face-to-face and physical work places.

(Image: Zoom)