Salesforce.com launches $100 million fund for mobile startups

Salesforce.com has established a dedicated fund for startups building mobile apps. The company said its corporate investment arm Salesforce Ventures has launched the $100 million 'Salesforce1 Fund' to fuel mobile innovation for the Internet of Customers.

With its first dedicated fund, Salesforce Ventures will invest in companies building innovative mobile apps and connected products that extend the power of the Salesforce1 Platform.

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As part of announcement, the company revealed that the first four companies to receive support from the new fund include DocuSign, InsideSales.com, i.am+, and Skuid.

"The Salesforce1 Fund will empower the most innovative startups in the industry to develop transformative technologies for salesforce.com's customer platform," said John Somorjai, EVP of corporate development and strategy, salesforce.com.

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Salesforce Ventures has already invested in 100 enterprise cloud startups since 2009. As part of the program, startups gain a competitive edge through access to the cloud ecosystem and the guidance of salesforce.com's executives.

"Salesforce Ventures gives us more than just funding-we've got an inside track to the Salesforce ecosystem," said Keith Krach, CEO, DocuSign. "Partnering with salesforce.com early on gave us the ability to bring the global standard for Digital Transaction Management to more enterprise customers around the globe to help them keep their business 100 percent digital."

"Salesforce.com comes with an operational perspective and a level of access and credibility that is different from what any single venture firm can provide," said Byron Deeter, partner, Bessemer Venture Partners. "We look forward to partnering with Salesforce Ventures to identify new opportunities to invest in the future of cloud, social and mobile technology."