New York--Calling all entrepreneurs with a penchant for starting businesses around Apple’s (AAPL) iPod Touch or iPhone. Famed venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers wants you.

Last week, the Menlo Park, Calif., VC firm -- an early investor in Google (GOOG) and a slew of dotcoms -- announced a new $100 million fund called the iFund. The fund, a collaboration with Apple, is designed to drive businesses focused on the mobile Internet and Apple’s widely popular iPod touch music player and iPhone mobile phone. 

“We’re big believers in the mobile Internet and feel it has the potential to be as big as or larger than the regular Internet,” said Matt Murphy, a partner at KPCB and manager of the iFund. KPCB partners Chi-Hua Chien, John Doerr, Bill Joy, Randy Komisar, Ellen Pao and Ted Schlein will also participate in the fund. “The purpose is to collaborate with Apple to help find and fund entrepreneurs who are developing applications around the mobile Internet, and we believe the iPhone is the best platform to do that on,” Murphy said.

While the mobile Internet is a burgeoning means of communications, use by consumers is growing thanks to mobile devices like the iPhone and Research In Motion’s (RIMM) Blackberry that make it easy to search on the go. According to Nielsen Mobile, in the fourth quarter 13.7% of U.S. wireless subscribers used the mobile internet. Last month, AppleInsider cited Google as saying it’s seen 50 times more search requests coming from Apple iPhones than any other mobile device.

Apple’s success in the digital music and now mobile market has spawned a $1 billion plus ecosystem of companies making gadgets for the iPod and iPhone. And interest doesn’t appear to be waning. According to Murphy at KCPB, since announcing the fund last week, business plans from entrepreneurs have been pouring in. 

“We bet inside how many plans we would see on the first 30 days…and that number was exceeded within 36 hours,’’ said Murphy. He noted the VC firm isn’t looking for “any and all companies” but ones  focused on the mobile Internet and that have the potential to go public. Murphy said the VC firm is aiming for a class of companies like Amazon.com (AMZN), Google and Netscape, each of them famous first-generation Internet companies.

The iFund will invest anywhere from $100,000 in seed money to $15 million in expansion capital, and will focus its efforts both in the US and internationally. The fund is focused on location based services, social networking, mCommerce, communications and entertainment.

Although companies making products to support the iPod and iPhone have complained in the past of difficulties working with Apple, largely because of its secrecy with upcoming products, Murphy said the fund is a joint effort and something Apple is very receptive to.

“There’s a tremendous amount of enthusiasm. [Apple] realizes this a good thing for them, start up companies and for us,” said Murphy. “They’ve been great and cooperative partners.”

This isn’t the first time KCPB launched a fund to drive adoption of a technology. About 10 years ago, the VC firm launched a fund centered on the Java software code, but included a host of other companies. The iFund marks the first time KCPB has hooked up with a single company.

“We don’t do things like this often at all. The reason why we are doing it here is because the mobile Internet is a huge platform that’s going to become much more pervasive in our lives over the next ten years," said Murphy.

So think you have a business plan that deserves funding from KCPB? If so you can submit it via email at ifund@kpcb.com. KPCB said it will respond in two weeks.