Yamaha fund

Photo Credit: Nadine E

Yamaha announces the Yamaha Music Innovations Fund to begin investing in music and media startups with a dedicated $50 million fund.

Yamaha has announced that its corporate venture capital fund, Yamaha Music Innovations Fund (YMIF), will begin to invest out of a dedicated $50 million fund this month. The conglomerate set up the VC fund last year to secure the company’s “leadership position as an innovator in the fields of sound and music,” and will invest in music and media startups in Silicon Valley.

“Since establishing our base in Silicon Valley in April 2024, we have collaborated with six startups by leveraging our group’s assets as the leading comprehensive musical instrument manufacturer with the No. 1 market share,” said Yamaha Music Innovations President and CEO Yusuke “Scott” Sugino.

“Through our investment activities via YMIF and business collaborations utilizing our assets, we are bringing our mechanisms for creating new value and new businesses to the next stage.”

The fund will be headed up by Managing Partner Andrew Kahn, a veteran in the music innovation space and a former Live Nation alum. Billboard named Kahn one of Music’s Top Investors in Tech of The Future in 2023, and he has been widely recognized by other publications for his efforts in the field.

“With this fund, we’ll be backing early-stage, visionary founders at the intersection of culture, creativity, and technology—from next-gen creative tools and AI to interactive media, immersive music experiences, learning platforms, and new models for collaborations and creator empowerment,” said Kahn.

Most recently, Kahn was a partner for six years at Crush Ventures, whose talent management firm boasts a roster including Fall Out Boy, Lil Nas X, Lorde, Miley Cyrus, Green Day, and Weezer.

Sugino concluded: “Through the dual approach of investment and collaboration, we aim to foster the development of the music entertainment industry in a manner distinctive of Yamaha, support the growth of startups, and realize our mission, ‘The Well-Being of People Around the World.’”