Built & Backed, Episode 9: Andrew Ackerman

Andrew Ackerman is a VC, angel investor, SPV syndicate sponsor, and former entrepreneur with over a decade of startup investing experience and 70+ early-stage deals. A former generalist who later specialized in EdTech and now focuses on PropTech and Construction Tech, Andrew has built a reputation for turning networks into true platforms.

At Dreamit, he launched industry verticals and co-created the Customer Sprint and Investor Sprint programs, connecting founders with hundreds of investors and enterprise partners — and helping them raise capital and close deals faster through structured processes instead of one-off introductions.

Beyond venture, Andrew advises corporate innovation teams, CVCs, developers, general contractors, and landlords on designing high-impact venture structures. He’s also a prolific contributor with 60+ published articles in outlets like Fortune, Forbes, Propmodo, BUILDER Online, and Edsurge, and is a frequent speaker and panelist at conferences across the U.S. and globally.

During this episode, we discuss:

How Andrew did consulting for a few years before spending 8 years building a startup
Why the best startups want to be with the best investors and vice versa
How he got started as an angel investor
What it was like to jump from small angel investing to large amount of applicants for accelerator
Investing in husband and wife teams before and why many VCs don’t do it
What made him want to specialize in ed tech then later proptech and construction tech
How he got the inspiration to write his book

And more. Tune into this episode as we dive into all things investing!