About Knight Ventures
A professional venture studio built on decades of experience in engineering, entrepreneurship, and strategic investing.
Leonard Knight
Founder & Managing Partner
Leonard brings over 25 years of experience across engineering, real estate, and venture investing. With a degree in Electrical Engineering, he spent a decade at Allen Bradley specializing in industrial automation systems.
Since 1995, Leonard has been actively investing in real estate, building a diverse portfolio of buy-and-hold rental properties. His venture investing journey began in 2000, supporting entrepreneurs and startups from concept to company.
As a serial entrepreneur, Leonard founded his engineering company in 2000, co-founded Entrepreneurs with Knoxville in 2008, and launched Neighborhood Nerds in 2011. He has successfully built, grown, and exited multiple companies while maintaining an active real estate investment portfolio.
Our Journey
Started real estate investing
Founded engineering company & began venture investing
Leonard Knight founded Entrepreneurs of Knoxville
Launched Neighborhood Nerds
Established Knight Ventures venture studio
Our Mission
Knight Ventures exists to bridge the gap between innovative ideas and successful companies. We combine deep technical expertise with proven business acumen to help entrepreneurs and businesses achieve their goals.
Build
Creating robust solutions through engineering excellence and innovative technology.
Invest
Strategic capital deployment in real estate and high-potential ventures.
Automate
Streamlining operations through industrial automation and process optimization.