Ratmir Timashev to invest $100M building Columbus, Ohio into an AI hub via OH.io

Billionaire software entrepreneur Ratmir Timashev plans to invest $100 million over five years to turn Columbus, Ohio into what he calls America's next AI boomtown. In February 2026 he launched OH.io, a venture capital firm headquartered in Columbus, Ohio that aims to bring 100 AI startups to the city.

Rather than simply writing a cheque, OH.io — which Timashev prefers to call a "performance venture platform" — hires and pays for entire sales and marketing teams for participating startups for 18 to 24 months, provided they establish a base in Columbus, in return for the option to invest at a lower valuation. The firm targets growth-stage startups with $1–5 million in revenue from across the US, Europe and Israel; companies may keep management elsewhere, but their North American sales and marketing operations are headquartered in Columbus. Eight startups have signed up so far, including New York-based TestkubeDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, San Francisco-based AI receptionist startup Newo (which raised a $25 million Series A in February 2026 led by Timashev) and Swiss identity-security firm Saporo.

Timashev, worth an estimated $5.4 billion, first moved to Columbus in 1992 to study at Ohio State University. He co-founded data-management company VeeamDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → with Andrei Baronov, selling it to Insight Partners for $5 billion in 2020. He has pledged some $150 million to Ohio State, including a $110 million gift in 2023 to establish a Center for Software Innovation. He is also working with the Columbus Partnership, a group of around 80 local CEOs focused on economic development.

The venture has already hit a snag: three former leaders — ex-CEO Jeff Schumann and executives Kevin Colón and Seth Metcalf — alleged in April 2026 that they were fired and sued Timashev and OH.io for fraud, breach of contract and civil conspiracy; Timashev and OH.io have countersued and say they expect to be vindicated.

Read more: Forbes