Adrian Fortino leads Mercury’s Midwest office in Ann Arbor, MI. Adrian focuses on developing and originating industrial investment themes and startup opportunities. Prior to joining Mercury, Adrian was the Managing Director of Detroit Innovate, a seed stage investment fund targeting seed investments in enabling technologies in healthcare, transportation and industrial applications. During this time, Adrian was also the Managing Director of the First Step Fund, a micro-investment, industry agnostic fund focused on seed-stage companies in Southeast Michigan. Prior to Detroit Innovate and the First Step Fund, Adrian co-founded three software companies: ShepherdIS, Sidecar and FlockTAG. ShepherdIS is a fleet management software platform for the livery industry. Sidecar is an instant rideshare marketplace connecting drivers and riders in metropolitan areas. FlockTAG provides consumer behavior prediction tools to independent small businesses through a novel analytics platform. Prior to founding startup companies, Adrian was the Manager of Powertrain Development with Ricardo, a global engineering consultancy focusing on the automotive, cleantech, military and industrial sectors.
Adrian received his BSE in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan and an MBA with High Distinction from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. Outside of Mercury, Adrian serves on the advisory board of the First Step Fund, lead faculty for the University of Michigan Law School Venture Capital Fellows Program, and leads the Community Foundation of Southeast Michigan-sponsored Catapult program, which influences high potential entrepreneurs across the region to give grants to unique socially minded projects.
