Our Story
Bruin Angels was born out of a shared belief that UCLA’s entrepreneurial ecosystem would benefit from an engaged alumni investment network focused on access to early-stage capital. But before it was a formal network, it started with a much simpler idea: finding a place to gather.
Bridging a Fragmented Ecosystem
In 2018, co-founders Matthew Sferrazza and Rod Ponce set out to solve a visible paradox within the Bruin network. They originally envisioned creating a signature event for alumni who were actively investing in, advising, and building high-growth startups—a space that would combine expert panels, live pitches, and networking over drinks. As they scouted venues across Santa Monica, Century City, and Downtown Los Angeles, one non-negotiable criterion emerged: the platform had to be anchored directly in the UCLA community.
Digging into the university’s landscape, Matt and Rod discovered an impressive volume of cutting-edge research, brilliant student and alumni founders, and robust entrepreneurial programs. However, the ecosystem was highly fragmented. These incredible assets operated in distinct silos with varying degrees of alumni connectivity, and simply finding the right point of contact wasn’t always straightforward.
Relying on their own networks to map out the campus, the co-founders eventually connected with Trish Halamandaris, Executive Director of the Venture Accelerator at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Trish championed the initiative, welcoming their enthusiastic alumni support and immediately opening doors to fellow campus leaders. Through Trish, Matt and Rod were introduced to Nikki Lin, Director of Entrepreneurship & Innovation at the Magnify Incubator within the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI), bringing deep tech and hard-science ventures into the conversation. Add UCLA TDG and other groups within the UCLA emerging tech ecosystem?
Meeting with department heads across the university revealed a shared aspiration. UCLA had all the raw ingredients to produce generational, world-changing companies, but the community needed a cohesive early-stage alumni infrastructure to systematically cultivate more Bruin unicorns.
This momentum culminated in strategic meetings with Julie Sina, who was then serving as both the Associate Vice Chancellor of Alumni Affairs (leading the UCLA Alumni Association) and CFO of the UCLA Investment Company, which manages roughly $5 billion for the UCLA Foundation. Recognizing the immense mutual benefit to both the university and its graduates, Julie encouraged Matt and Rod to form a working group with two clear mandates: coalesce the entrepreneurial ecosystem, and build reliable deal-flow pipelines capable of sustaining a dedicated investor network.
Closing the Early-Stage Capital Gap
Over roughly two years of structured engagement with university incubators, academic leadership, and alumni stakeholders, the working group examined where capital was most urgently needed.
While several venture capital funds operated in close proximity to the university, early-stage Bruin founders faced a significant funding gap at the pre-seed and seed stages—long before traditional venture firms typically step in. An affinity angel network emerged as the natural, high-impact answer. Officially affiliated with the UCLA Alumni Association, Bruin Angels was established to fill that critical early void.
How the Network Fits Together
As detailed across our platform, Bruin Angels operates strictly as an affinity angel network, not a venture fund.
- Direct Alumni Participation: Bruin Angels as an entity does not invest capital or manage a pooled fund. Instead, our role is curatorial: introducing accredited UCLA alumni investors—including individuals, family offices, trusts, and qualified entities—directly to vetted, Bruin-led startups.
- Private, Independent Investing: Members independently decide whether an opportunity aligns with their investment strategy. They engage directly with founders to invest individually or syndicate alongside fellow Bruins.
By pairing early-stage capital with experienced alumni mentorship, we help Bruin-founded companies cross the chasm from initial concept to scalable enterprise.
Leadership
- Matthew Sferrazza | Co-Founder & President
- Rod Ponce | Co-Founder & Vice President
Bruin Angels operates in partnership with the UCLA Alumni Association to empower founders, connect alumni capital, and expand UCLA’s footprint across the global innovation economy.