Founders Fund

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This article or section needs to be revised: Article has been updated from early 2012. There are now 10 funds, something has also changed in the team and portfolio.
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Founders Fund is a US venture capital company based in San Francisco , California .

history

Fund I

The fund was set up in 2005 by Peter Thiel with the participation of Ken Howery and Luke Nosek (all three co-founders of PayPal ). With a volume of 50 million US dollars , the focus was initially on start-up and early-stage financing for Internet companies. In 2006, Thiel brought the Napster co-founder and founding president of Facebook , Sean Parker, on board as the fourth partner. At that time, the company had invested in around a dozen startups .

Fund II

The following year, Founders Fund announced that it would set up a second fund, this time with a volume of $ 220 million. While the first round was still supported by private investors, this time Thiel and his partners also aimed at deposits from institutions such as universities and foundations.

Fund III

In 2010, the company opened a third fund for $ 250 million with the aim of adding companies working on solutions to major scientific and technical problems to its portfolio.

Fund IV

The company closed the fourth round in 2011 with 625 million US dollars in order to invest primarily in long-term and sustainable ideas from now on.

team

At the beginning of 2012 the company consists of the following six partners:

  • Peter Thiel - Co-Founder of PayPal (1998), Founder of Clarium Capital Management (2002) and Chairman of Palantir Technologies (2004)
  • Ken Howery - Co-Founder of PayPal
  • Luke Nosek - Co-Founder of PayPal
  • Bruce Gibney
  • Brian Singerman - Founder of the iGoogle Team (2004)
  • Sean Parker - Co-Founder of Napster (1999), Co-Founder of Plaxo (2001), Founding President of Facebook (2004), Co-Founder of Causes (2007) and Co-Founder of Airtime (2010)

Portfolio companies

Founders Fund divides its investments into five categories:

Advanced Machines & Intelligence

  • RoboteX
  • Vicarious Systems

Aerospace & Transportation

Analytics & software

Biotechnology & Health

  • Azumio
  • CDD
  • Halcyon Molecular
  • ImmunePath
  • Natera
  • Pathway Genomics
  • PharmacoFore
  • Practice fusion
  • ZocDoc

Consumer Internet & Media

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ PayPal founders launch $ 50 million VC fund , Süddeutsche Zeitung, July 13, 2005
  2. ^ Sean Parker Joins The Founders Fund , Silicontap, December 14, 2006
  3. ^ Founders Fund Closes $ 220 Million Second Fund , TechCrunch, December 17, 2007
  4. ^ The Founders Fund emerges as venture capital 2.0 - How entrepreneurs get money, and time, for startups is changing , San Francisco Chronicle, December 13, 2006
  5. ^ Founders Fund Raises $ 250 Million for Third Venture Fund , PR Newswire, July 19, 2010
  6. ↑ Want A Piece Of Founders Fund's Latest $ 625M Fund? Start By Trying To Change The World , TechCrunch, December 15, 2011