Inside the Primordial Summer Venture Fellowship: Shirley Tian

Hey! I’m Shirley. Currently a student at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and an alum of the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics!

This summer, I had the privilege of working with Jenn and Joe at Primordial Ventures, and I’m leaving these ten weeks feeling incredibly grateful for the people I met and the work I got to do.

We started off by getting ramped up. Jenn taught me everything I needed to know about our portfolio companies, the ecosystem, and our CRM/data. We then dove right into Grep-a-Palooza, which was the perfect introduction to Primordial, GrepBeat, and the NC startup ecosystem!

Over the course of the summer, I screened 200+ opportunities, joined 50+ founder calls, learned how to read term sheets and build financial models, contributed to investment committee conversations, and spent a lot of time in the numbers: analyzing Primordial’s portfolio metrics and translating the data into fundraising and positioning materials.

I also got to work through FirmPro’s investment process from screening to diligence to investment committee to onboarding, which made the full process feel so much more tangible! I was especially struck by how quickly Primordial can move from a first conversation to real conviction without making the process feel rushed. Seeing the Discovery model in action helped me understand Primordial’s edge: building relationships early to make de-risked, data-driven follow-on investments when the right opportunity arises.

Alongside the investing work, I helped support a major pivot in Primordial’s internal operations: making the firm more AI-native. Drawing on what we were learning from our portfolio companies, I helped turn scattered CRM records and messy historical data into a single source of truth, then built tools on top of it, including an automated portfolio dashboard, a dealflow screener, and a second brain for firm knowledge.

Outside of the day-to-day, I’m grateful for how open the Triangle startup ecosystem felt. Through portfolio update calls, our Founder Lunches, and events with LiLa, UNC LAUNCH, and others, I quickly felt plugged into a community of founders, investors, and students who are generous with their time, ideas, and support.

What made this fellowship special was that I was treated like a real part of the organization from day one. I learned through doing, and was always encouraged to give my opinions on founders, markets, and what makes a company worth betting on. If you’re thinking about finance, venture, or startups, Primordial is a rare opportunity to contribute so meaningfully from day one.

It’s only been ten weeks, but I already feel like part of the family. I’ll miss laughing with the GrepBeat team, Thaiangle runs, and eating all the office Chomps. 

Thank you to Jenn, Joe, and everyone in the community for such a meaningful summer.

~ Shirley