“I’m not a businessman, I’m a business, man!”
Jay-Z in Kanye West’s “Diamonds Are Forever: Re-Mix“
Hi and thanks for visiting my blog. I’m a Managing Director at Griffin Gaming Partners, located in San Francisco.
I started my investment career at Goldman Sachs and Robertson Stephens. After five years of Wall Street, I got an MBA from Harvard and then became a venture capitalist for 21 years and counting. I started at WaldenVC, then joined Ridge in 2006. I’m active in the Silicon Valley venture community and am co-chairman/founder of the VCNetwork, a non-profit comprising over 1,000 Silicon Valley General Partners.
I’ve always been a big fan of entrepreneurship. As a kid, I camped out at the local bank and pulled out thousands of silver coins from circulation. I sold them at bulk for 30x what I paid, profiting from the short-term run-up of silver prices from $10 to $50 per ounce. While a student at Hamilton College, I launched my first official business in athletic retail by silk screening running tights that grossed over $250K.
Some odds and ends about me:
– I’m an ultra marathoner and have completed more than 40 races over 50K, including seven 100-mile races. I regularly run the Marin trails, either with fellow VCs and tech execs or by myself and my playlists of modern rap and hip hop.
- Favorite race: Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run
– I love music, both as a fan and a tech investor.
- Favorite playlist artist: Nicki Minaj
- Favorite music investment: Pandora (first investor)
– I’ve been a gamer my entire life and have worked in game finance for 20 years.
- Favorite Game: “The Walking Dead”
– I’m a reader and mainly read nonfiction and business books.
- Favorite book: Atlas Shrugged
SFVC covers my thoughts on venture capital, startups, tech, gaming, sports and music. I invite you to share your thoughts and reactions to my articles, and I welcome article ideas and leads.
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