Zach Ellis

Zach earned a bachelors degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, an MBA from Pepperdine University and a master's degree in biotechnology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. 

Zach Ellis, Jr. is the Founder and Managing Director of South Loop Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund backing transformative technology companies led by diverse founding teams. His investment focus spans healthtech, climate tech, fintech, and sportstech—sectors where he leverages deep experience across venture capital, corporate innovation, and university tech transfer.

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Zach previously served as Managing Director at Rev1 Ventures, led investments on the corporate venture team at PepsiCo, and supported the commercialization of early-stage research at both The Ohio State University and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.

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He is a Lecturer in Venture Capital at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business and actively contributes to the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem as a board member of Lemonade Day and an advisor to the Weinert Applied Ventures in Entrepreneurship (WAVE) program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Zach began his career as an active duty, Surface Warfare Officer in the US Navy.