About
Founder & Principal
Erick Watson is the founder and principal of SproutVest, a consultancy that helps founders, funds, and family offices commercialize emerging technologies in AI, blockchain, and enterprise SaaS. Across 15+ years at Google, Microsoft, Protocol Labs, and high-growth startups, he has contributed to $1.33B+ in documented revenue impact and participated in two acquisitions, raising $54.3M across ventures. He is a member of the Toptal network (top 3% of freelance product managers). His academic roots are in Louisiana: he studied at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette) and completed his BA in German Languages, Literature & Linguistics at Louisiana State University. Alongside client engagements, Erick coaches founder-CEOs and first-time product executives through SproutVest's Operator Coaching practice.
Full career history, speaking record, and press at erickwatson.com/Bio.
Philosophy
"Equitable Corporate Development means building companies where technical excellence, commercial sustainability, and ethical stewardship reinforce one another."
The best products emerge when deep technical insight meets disciplined go-to-market execution. We do not just optimize for growth; we help teams build infrastructure that earns trust and compounds value over time, and we transfer the knowledge so your team can operate without us.
Mentorship & Teaching
Coaching at SproutVest is new as an offer and old as a practice: over a decade of continuous mentorship, spanning first-generation college students, graduate engineers, and angel-backed founders. This record is where the Trellis Method was built.
Watson Institute · Preceptor
From fall 2026, Erick teaches the Product-Market Fit module for the Enlight Foundation cohort at the Watson Institute, a Boulder-based organization whose fellowships back entrepreneurs and leaders drawn primarily from historically disenfranchised backgrounds. The module works the Trellis Method's segmentation and hypothesis discipline against the Fellows' own ventures.
Global Innovation Exchange (GIX) · Student Mentor
Seven years mentoring graduate students in the Master of Science in Technology Innovation, a collaboration between the University of Washington, Tsinghua University, and Microsoft.
Seattle Angel Conference · Mentor, Fund Manager & Investor
Four years inside a semiannual conference that runs due diligence on 50+ startups per cycle. Angel investor in SAC XVI (awarded to Xemelgo), pro bono diligence lead for SAC XVII (awarded to Tribute and PDM Automotive), and pro bono fund manager and managing partner for SAC XVIII and three sidecar funds (awarded to Advice Analytics, AgTools, Advocat, and Kachinga).
Plato · Business Mentor
Mentored engineers making the jump to engineering leadership.
Global Mentorship Initiative · Mentor
Coached underserved college students worldwide on career planning, professional communication, and landing a first career job.
Washington Technology Industry Association
Member and volunteer since 2011.
What Sets Us Apart
Operator Depth
Two acquisitions and $1.22B in incremental ARR at Google Search Ads. Every recommendation traces back to work Erick has done himself as a founder, executive, or board advisor.
Full-Stack Range
Equally at home discussing cryptographic primitives with your engineering team and unit economics with your board. One person carries the full context, from architecture reviews to pricing decisions.
Engagement Structure
SproutVest takes on 2 to 3 parallel clients at most. Engagements are milestone-based and outcome-aligned, so you pay for results rather than billable hours.
Ready to Work Together?
Whether you're evaluating a deep tech investment or building AI/blockchain infrastructure, let's explore how SproutVest can help you move faster and smarter.
30-min call · No commitment · Or send a brief →