Aaron Ishikawa, WG’21, discovered a passion for entrepreneurship while working on special technology development projects at a leading consulting firm. Coming to Wharton’s MBA Program for Executives, his goal was to transition from the corporate world into full-time entrepreneurship. Similarly, Kyle Mounts, WG’21, entered Wharton’s EMBA program to pivot from a corporate role into entrepreneurship.
Although they were in different cohorts, the Wharton program brought them together. At the time, EMBA students from the Philadelphia and San Francisco cohorts were organizing in-person meetups across the country to facilitate collaboration due to COVID restrictions on campus. It was at a meetup in Salt Lake City, UT, where Kyle and Aaron met.
At the time, Kyle was building a Single Family Office and Private Equity Firm, iGnosis Capital, which had begun to invest heavily in the progress of Advanced Air Mobility and commercial drones across the state of NC. Aaron, with his prior experience in aerospace and defense, found common ground with Kyle. As they got to know each other better, they realized there was an opportunity to build something meaningful together.
After graduating, Kyle launched Aero X Ventures, aventure firm focused on deep tech within the Aerospace and Defense industry and invited Aaron to join as a full-time partner leading the Investment Team.
“Initially, I brought Aaron on as an advisor, but I quickly realized that I couldn’t build the brand without him,” says Kyle. “He became an integral part of the team, which is composed of several Wharton alumni, including my father, David Mounts Gonzalez, WG’04, as well as classmates Andrew Anton, WG’21, and Andre Illias, WG’21.”
The firm has also brought on several Wharton undergraduate students as interns.
So far, the firm has made 12 investments out of its first fund and is leveraging their momentum and early success to raise a $100 million second fund.
Building on their achievements with Aero X Ventures, Kyle and Aaron recently launched Singularity Capital Advisors, an M&A advisory firm that leverages the extensive network and expertise of their collective industry experience. The firm focuses on providing insights into market opportunities and potential exits for clients in Defense and National Security. In addition to Aaron and Kyle, Sachin Agarwal, WG’21, joined as partner, and Wharton alumni Dan Edwards, WG’13, Sarah Anderson, WG’21, Anton, and Illias are on the advising team.
Kyle points out that Singularity Capital Advisors actually started as an investment and advisory practice for early-stage companies, which was created out of Prof. Robert Chalfin’s class on Entrepreneurship through Acquisition.
“We used our classes to learn the knowledge and skills needed to succeed as well as make meaningful connections with classmates who have been valuable collaborators,” he says.
Aaron agrees that the fund and advisory firm are a testament to the strength of Wharton relationships and using what they learned in class to build financial businesses that are thriving.
By Meghan Laska
Posted: February 10, 2025
