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Menlo Ventures

infrastructure, big data, mobile, ecommerce, social web

San Francisco, United StatesEst. 1976130menlovc.com
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Location
San Francisco, United States
Founded
1976
Team size
130
Focus
Venture Capital & Private Equity
Revenue
$25M
Raised
$3.1B
People
2 listed

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About Menlo Ventures

Menlo Ventures is a venerable venture capital firm with a rich history, established in 1976 by H. Dubose Montgomery in Silicon Valley. From its origins, it has consistently focused on identifying and nurturing transformative technology companies across various stages, from seed to late-stage growth. The firm's enduring presence in the venture capital landscape is underscored by its commitment to a founder-first approach and hands-on partnership.

With dual headquarters in Menlo Park and San Francisco, California, Menlo Ventures has cultivated a formidable portfolio over nearly five decades. The firm's investment philosophy centres on deep operational expertise and a proprietary, data-driven methodology that continuously refines its investment strategy. This approach has led to early bets on numerous companies that have become household names, including Uber, Roku, and Siri, alongside significant investments in biotech pioneers like Gilead Sciences. Menlo Ventures actively supports its portfolio companies through its extensive network of advisors and entrepreneurs, providing crucial guidance beyond just capital.

Menlo Ventures is renowned for its diversified investment portfolio, spanning critical technology sectors such as artificial intelligence (AI), consumer internet, enterprise software, cybersecurity, fintech, and healthcare. The firm's active engagement across these areas is further exemplified by specialised initiatives like the Inception Fund, dedicated to pre-seed ventures, and the Anthology Fund, a $100 million partnership with Anthropic focused on fostering the next generation of AI startups. These strategic vehicles underscore Menlo's adaptive and forward-thinking investment model, aiming to drive disruptive innovation and scalable business models.

The firm's impressive track record includes investments in more than 400 companies, resulting in over 70 public exits and more than 100 mergers and acquisitions. Key achievements also encompass significant liquidity events, returning billions to its limited partners. Under its current leadership, Menlo Ventures boasts an experienced team of partners such as Shawn Carolan, Venky Ganesan, Matt Murphy, Naomi Pilosof Ionita, Tyler Sosin, Greg Yap, Deedy Das, Tim Tully, and Matt Kraning, many of whom bring extensive operating and technical backgrounds to their investment roles. This collective expertise allows Menlo Ventures to offer unparalleled support and strategic insight to its founders.

Menlo Ventures differentiates itself through its deep technical understanding, evidenced by partners with backgrounds in engineering, product leadership, and even national defense. They look for visionary teams and embrace a culture of rolling up their sleeves to work alongside entrepreneurs. This hands-on collaboration, combined with patient, long-term capital, positions Menlo Ventures as a crucial partner for companies seeking to redefine their industries and create lasting impact in the global technology landscape.

Menlo Ventures at a glance

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Stage
Pre-seed (Inception Fund), Seed, Series A, Series B, Early Growth (Inflection Fund), and selectively later-stage investments.
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Focus
$139K - $27.8M
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Decision process
Investment decisions at Menlo Ventures are driven by a structured, founder-first approach that prioritises sector focus, early involvement, and strong founder relationships, coupled with a keen eye on market opportunity. The firm employs both quantitative metrics and qualitative judgment, with individual partners taking lead roles, actively participating on boards, and providing hands-on support for rapid decision-making.
🏦
Fund structure
Menlo Ventures operates with a diversified fund structure, including a flagship 'Main Fund', a 'Focus Opportunity' or 'Inflection Fund' for early growth and later-stage companies, and the 'Inception Fund' dedicated to pre-seed investments. Additionally, they co-manage the 'Anthology Fund', a US$100 million partnership with Anthropic, specifically for AI startups, and 'Menlo Labs' for pre-seed ideation and validation support.
πŸ”¬
Sector focus
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Bio + Healthcare (digital health, healthcare SaaS, therapeutic platforms), Consumer (internet, mobile, social web), Cybersecurity, Enterprise Software (SaaS, developer tools & infrastructure), Fintech (embedded finance, modern fintech infrastructure, marketplaces), Robotics + Hardware, Supply Chain + Automation, Big Data, Communications Infrastructure, Security, Storage, E-commerce, Marketplaces.
πŸ’°
AUM
US$5.8 billion (approximately A$8.06 billion), with a recent raise of an additional US$1.35 billion in new funds.
🧭

Investment thesis

Menlo Ventures is committed to backing transformative, early-stage technology companies with visionary teams and scalable business models. Their core thesis focuses on supporting innovation across key sectors, especially leveraging the power of AI to reshape consumer experiences, enterprise solutions, and healthcare, through a hands-on partnership model.

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Key partners

S
Shawn Carolan
Partner

Focuses on 'utilitarian consumer' companies that provide better, faster, and cheaper ways to improve daily life through technology, often spanning into cutting-edge enterprise investments. He also launched Menlo Labs, the firm's startup incubator.

V
Venky Ganesan
Partner

Invests in consumer and enterprise sectors, with a strong focus on AI, cybersecurity, and infrastructure. Believes in backing founders who build sustainable companies in large markets with clear roadmaps.

M
Matt Murphy
Partner

Invests multi-stage across AI infrastructure (DevOps, data stack, middleware, API platforms) and AI-native software (vertical and horizontal). Focuses on companies with strong product-market fit and high growth potential.

N
Naomi Pilosof Ionita
Board Partner

Focuses on early-stage B2B SaaS companies, particularly those that are AI-enabled, innovating across workflow automation, data/developer-first tooling, and productivity. Seeks platforms leveraging AI to bring efficiency to businesses, often referring to 'Modern Growth Stack' products.

D
Deedy Das
Partner

Focuses on early-stage investments in AI/ML, next-generation infrastructure, and enterprise software, with a particular emphasis on technical founders. Involved with the Anthology Fund for AI startups.

T
Tim Tully
Partner

Focuses on early-stage investments in AI/ML, the new data stack, and the next-generation cloud infrastructure, leveraging his background as a technology builder, buyer, and seller. Also advises on early-growth investments through the Inflection Fund.

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Portfolio companies

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Anthropic
An AI safety and research company that develops reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems, including large language models.
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Uber
A technology company offering ride-sharing services, food delivery (Uber Eats), and freight transportation globally.
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Roku
A company that manufactures a line of digital media players and provides a platform for streaming content.
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Siri
A virtual assistant integrated into Apple Inc.'s operating systems, acquired by Apple.
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Gilead Sciences
A biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, and commercialises medicines for unmet medical needs.
πŸ’³
Chime
A financial technology company offering mobile-first banking services with no monthly fees, focusing on financial inclusivity.
🚚
Harness
A software delivery platform that automates software deployments, enabling developers to release code faster and more reliably.
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Pinecone
A vector database for building high-performance AI applications, enabling fast and scalable similarity search.
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Abnormal Security
An AI-native human behavior security platform that protects organisations from email and other advanced cyber attacks.
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Benchling
A life sciences R&D cloud platform that helps scientists manage and accelerate their biotechnology research and development.
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Carta
A technology company that specialises in cap table management and valuation software for private companies and investors.

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