College app Fizz accuses VC of sharing secrets with rival Sidechat
7 reported
A new court filing in a long-running lawsuit between college social apps Fizz and Sidechat accuses venture capitalist Jerry Lu of Maveron of sharing Fizz’s confidential business information with its rival. According to the filing, Lu met with Fizz under the guise of exploring an investment but then passed non-public details to Sidechat’s owner, Flower Ave Inc. Fizz says it only learned of Lu’s involvement through the legal discovery process. The filing alleges Lu continued to funnel information about Fizz’s fundraising and other matters to Sidechat. A screenshot of a text attached to the filing shows Lu sharing notes with Flower after a March 2022 meeting with Fizz founders Teddy Solomon and Ashton Cofer, during which they shared business strategy, growth plans, user metrics, and other proprietary data. Lu later invested in Sidechat’s second seed round in October 2023, though Fizz claims he had been in discussions with Sidechat as early as 2022. Sidechat CEO Kyle Venn stated the allegations are not court findings and denied wrongdoing, noting the alleged events occurred before the current team acquired the business in 2025.
What’s reported
Fizz accuses investor Jerry Lu of Maveron of sharing Fizz’s non-public information with rival Sidechat.
Lu met with Fizz under the guise of exploring an investment, then passed confidential details to Sidechat’s owner Flower Ave Inc.
Fizz learned of Lu’s involvement through the legal discovery process.
A text screenshot shows Lu sharing notes with Flower after a March 2022 meeting with Fizz founders.
Lu invested in Sidechat’s second seed round in October 2023; Fizz claims discussions began as early as 2022.
Fizz also claims acquaintance Jack Burlinson shared Fizz’s investor deck and fall summary with Lu, who passed it to Sidechat.
Sidechat CEO Kyle Venn denied wrongdoing, stating the alleged events happened before the current team acquired the business in 2025.
Key figures
Jerry Lu, investor at venture capital firm Maveron
Teddy Solomon, Fizz co-founder
Ashton Cofer, Fizz co-founder
Jack Burlinson, acquaintance of Fizz founders and Lu
Kyle Venn, CEO of Yik Yak and Sidechat
Flower Ave Inc., owner of Sidechat
Sources: TechCrunch
