Investor profile
Cowtown Angels
Angel syndicate
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Cowtown Angels is Fort Worth's premier angel investor network, operating as a program of TechFW (a non-profit supporting the regional tech ecosystem), connecting 150+ accredited investors with innovative early-stage startups. The group deploys capital collectively—$27M+ across 46+ companies since 2012—while providing knowledge, mentoring, and advising opportunities alongside funding. Members collaborate on due diligence and leverage diverse industry expertise spanning biotechnology, life sciences, SaaS, fintech, agritech, medical devices, advanced materials, and consumer products. As Jorge Varela, an early leader, put it: 'We are truly mavericks and have no fear of interesting deals.' The network also co-invests and syndicates deals with other Texas angel groups through the Alliance of Texas Angel Networks (ATAN), aiming to keep high-quality Texas startups in Texas while building a job-creating entrepreneurial infrastructure in Fort Worth.
Notable quotes
“It is, in my opinion, an exercise in collective capitalism.”
“We are truly mavericks and have no fear of interesting deals. Although most of our investments are in life sciences and high technology, including cloud based solutions to enterprise solutions, we are also in consumer deals including a children's game and health food.”
“The Cowtown Angels recognized early that STL's chip cooling technology would be essential to the next generation of data center infrastructure, and the acquisition by Vertiv validates their vision.”
Team
Bill Buechele
Chairman
Caitlin McMinn
Executive Director, TechFW
Kaison Giles
Investment Team Member
Ryan Brown
Investment Team Member
Les Kreis
Founding Member / Steering Council
Recent investments
| Company | Round | Size | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Klinrisk | Seed | — | 2025 |
| Glidance Inc. | Seed | $100k | 2025 |
| Tympanogen | Seed | — | 2025 |
| Strategic Thermal Labs | Seed | — | 2024-04 |
| Green Steel Environmental | Seed | $115k | 2025 |
| VenoStent | Series A | $20m | 2023-07-19 |
| Zyl Therapeutics | Series B | — | 2022-06-03 |
| Encore Vision | Seed | $750k | 2014-01 |
| E-Mist Innovations | Seed | — | — |
| Cognition Therapeutics | Series B | — | 2015-07-22 |
Frequent co-investors
| VC firm | Deals together |
|---|---|
| North Texas Angel Network (NTAN) | 3 |
| Good Growth Capital | 2 |
| Carrier Ventures | 2 |
| Central Texas Angel Network | 2 |
| VentureSouth | 1 |
| Creative Ventures | 1 |
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