Professional background
Andrew Cove
Investor, founder, and technical advisor. Two decades spanning video games, venture capital, mobile payments, and restaurant tech — these days mostly building with AI.
Looking for a more personal perspective? Check out my About page for a less formal look at my current adventures.
What I’m doing now
Building AI tools. Most of my working time goes to building with AI — lately a family of small, open-source tools for working with coding agents: surface (agents build live web pages to collect your input), act and ask (a task tracker agents run themselves, and a queue for the things they need from you), and reach (agents contact you on the channels you actually use).
Investing. Angel checks in friends and interesting founders, and LP positions in a handful of venture funds. Lots of AI applications lately, but the founder matters more than the category.
Advising. Product and technology strategy, applied AI, fundraising, and M&A — mostly for early-stage companies and emerging fund managers.
How I can help
AI & Agent Engineering
Hands-on help putting LLMs and coding agents to work — agentic workflows, internal tools, and honest judgment about what’s real versus hype. I build with this daily.
Venture Capital Technology
Building internal platforms, deal management systems, portfolio analytics, and AI‑powered tools for investment teams.
Startup Advising & Investment
Tech and product strategy, team building, fundraising, M&A, and small check investments for interesting founders, companies, and emerging managers.
Career timeline
2023 — Present
Angel investor and startup advisor. LP in multiple venture funds. Building open-source tools for AI agents, making music (debut EP, April 2026), and teaching snowboarding at Breckenridge.
2020 — 2022
Technology Lead at Ridge Ventures. Built internal dealflow management and AI/ML systems.
2016 — 2020
Technical consulting and advising for startups. EIR for Techstars Comcast in 2018.
2012 — 2015
Founder & CEO, Cover. Built mobile payments platform deployed to 300+ restaurants. Raised $7M in venture funding from Spark Capital, OATV, Lerer Hippeau, and others. Acquired in 2015.
2011
Summer Associate at IA Ventures. Ran dealflow for AngelList.
2009 — 2011
Deep dive into startups and web development.
2006 — 2009
Programmer at Naughty Dog on the ICE Team. Credit on Uncharted franchise, God of War III, and Assassin's Creed (more). Specialized in PlayStation 3 SPU optimization. Brief stint at Sanzaru.
2001 — 2006
BS and MS in Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University. Internships at Z‑Axis.
Media & press
Cover
- An App for Diners to Pay Their Bill — The New York Times, Feb 2014
- The Days of Asking for the Check Are Over — The Atlantic, Oct 2013
- The Customer Trackers — Inc., May 2015
- Exclusive: Restaurant payments app Cover sells to Velocity — Fortune, Sep 2015
- Meet Cover, the app that’s determined to reinvent the restaurant experience — Washington Post, May 2014
- Dine and Dash 2.0: How Tech is Changing Eating Out — NBC News, Mar 2014
- Leave Your Wallet Behind: Dining App Has You Covered — Fox Business, Nov 2013
- Cover Raises $1.5M From OATV And Others To Bring Uber-Like Payments To Restaurants — TechCrunch, May 2013
- Restaurant Payments App Cover Raises $5.5 Million From Spark Capital — TechCrunch, Jul 2014
- At Lunch With Restaurant Payment Startup Cover, Which Just Raised $5.5 Million — Recode, Jul 2014
- New App, Cover, Pays Restaurant Checks Via Smartphone — Eater, Oct 2013
- Cover App Discontinued After Velocity Acquisition — Eater, May 2016
Other
- How to Keep Your Ex from Popping Up All Over Facebook — Lifehacker, 2011
- Alumni Snapshot: Andrew Cove — Carnegie Mellon SCS
- Game credits on MobyGames
Contact
For professional inquiries, collaboration opportunities, or investment discussions, email [email protected].