Disclosure: There are hundreds of active angel investors and I know there are many worthy people I am leaving out of this list. Please email me your information if you feel like I should have mentioned you, for my future articles: investor@rockthepost.com.
Methodology: Our team at RockThePost, a startup investing marketplace that connects early-stage high-growth startups with accredited investors, compiled this list by evaluating the number of startups each angel investor funded to date according to publicly available data, in addition to their influence in the early-stage startup ecosystem. Sources used during research process were CrunchBase, RockThePost, Venture Deal, Forbes, BusinessInsider, BusinessWeek, and AngelList, among others.
With less than 3% of seed deals being funded by venture capitalists, seed funding has become more accessible thanks to the rise in angel investor activity in the past few years. Between friends & family financing, which is estimated to be a $100 billion industry and angel activity estimated at $20 billion, more than $120 billion dollars are invested in early-stage startups annually.
The following is a list of some of the most active and influential early-stage angel investors. Please note that the order is arbitrary.
1. Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos is the Founder, President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of the Board of Amazon.com. Under his leadership, Amazon.com became the largest retailer on the Web and the most widely adopted model for Internet sales.
In 1999, Time Magazine named him Person of the Year. In 2011, The Economist gave Bezos and Gregg Zehr an Innovation Award for the Amazon Kindle, and in 2012, Fortune magazine named Bezos Businessperson of the Year. Businessweek ranked him the no. 7 Top Angel in Tech in February 2010, and the Harvard Business Review also has listed Bezos as the second-best CEO in the world, after the late Steve Jobs of Apple.
Home: Seattle, Washington
Investments: 11, starting from $1.5m
Recent investments: Domo and Everfi (also The Washington Post) (as the chief investor in Bezos Expeditions: Rethink Robotics and Business Insider)
2. Paul Buchheit
Paul Buchheit is a partner at Y Combinator, a Silicon Valley-based seed accelerator that has funded more than 550 companies in more than 30 different markets. These companies include Reddit, Dropbox, and Airbnb. In 2012, Forbes named Y Combinator as a top startup incubator and accelerator.
He was the 23rd employee at Google, where he created Gmail and implemented many of its innovative features. He developed the original prototype of Google AdSense, and was responsible for Google’s famous “Don’t be evil” motto. In July 2012, Businessinsider.com included him in its list of Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley.
Twitter: @paultoo
Investments: 61, starting at $70k (as a partner at Y Combinator: more than 450)
Recent investments: Lob and URX (as a partner at Y Combinator: SimplyInsured and Goldbely)
Big exit: FriendFeed sells to Facebook for $47.5m
3. Jeff Clavier
Jean-François “Jeff” Clavier is the founder and managing partner of SoftTech VC, a venture capital firm in Silicon Valley that has closed more than 150 investments since its founding in 2004. Among the successful startups that SoftTech VC has backed are Mint (sold to Intuit for $170m), Kongregate (GameStop), Milo (eBay), Wildfire (Google), and Class Dojo.
Time Magazine named Clavier as one the top 25 most influential people on the web in 2008. In July 2012, Businessinsider.com named him as one of the Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley. In February 2010, Buinessweek.com ranked him 19th among their Top Angels in Tech.
Twitter: @jeff
Home: Silicon Valley
Interested in: Mobile/cloud saas, monetization infrastructure, marketplaces and e-commerce
Investments: 17, from $50k to $6m (as managing partner of SoftTech VC: 145, from $200k to $40m)
Recent investments: Ustream and Seesmic (as managing partner of SoftTech VC: August and BetterDoctor)
4. Paul Graham
Paul Graham is a partner at Y Combinator. In 1995, Graham and Robert Morris created Viaweb, the first ASP, which in 1998 became Yahoo! Store. In 2002 he devised a spam-filtering algorithm that has inspired the current generation of filters.
Businessinsider.com named him to their Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley in July 2012, and February 2010, Businessweek.com listed him as number 11 Top Angel in Tech.
Twitter: @paulg
Home: San Francisco, Bay Area
Investments: 8, from $100k to $1.6m (as a partner at Y Combinator: more than 450)
Recent investments: Watsi and ClassDojo (as a partner at Y Combinator: SimplyInsured and Goldbely)
Biggest exit: Viaweb sells to Yahoo! for $49m
5. David Lee
David Lee is Founder and Managing Member at SV Angel, LLC, an angel fund with investments in companies such as Twitter, Foursquare, Flipboard, Dropbox and Airbnb.
In July 2012, Businessinsider.com included him in its list of Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley.
Twitter: @davidlee
Home: Los Angeles
Interested in: Advertising, Analytics, Big Data, Bioinformatics, Bridging Online and Offline, Consumer Internet, E-Commerce, Fashion, Local, Marketplaces, Mobile, Mobile Advertising, SaaS, Small and Medium Businesses, Social Commerce, Social Media.
Investments: 101, $25k to $250k
Recent investments: DoorDash and Judicata
Biggest exit: StumbleUpon sells to eBay for $75m
6. Max Levchin
Max Levchin is President and CEO of HVF, LLC, an umbrella project for his ventures related to low-cost sensors of all types, near-ubiquitous wireless broadband, and advances in distributed computing and storage. Levchin believes that data is becoming our most plentiful and most under-exploited commodity. Levchin co-founded PayPal and was its CTO from founding through its acquisition by eBay. His contributions to PayPal’s antifraud efforts are well known, and he also was the co-creator of the Gausebeck-Levchin test, one of the first commercial implementations of a CAPTCHA.
In 2010, Businessweek .com ranked him 12th in its list of Top Angels in Tech. In May and July 2012, Businessinsider.com included him in its Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley.
Twitter: @mlevchin
Home: San Francisco, Bay Area
Interested in: Big Data, Bioinformatics, Consumer internet, education, infrastructure, marketplaces, mobile, payments, security, social media
Investments: 34 ,starting at $25K
Recent investments: Homejoy and Misfit Wearables
Biggest exit: PayPal sells to eBay for $1.5b
7. Benjamin Ling
Benjamin Ling is an entrepreneurial investor at Khosla Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on environmentally friendly technologies and traditional venture areas such as the Internet, Benjamin Lingcomputing, mobile and silicon technology arenas. Additionally, he has held senior positions at Facebook and Google.
In July 2012, Businessinsider.com named Ling to its list of Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley.
Twitter: @bling0
Home: San Francisco, Bay Area
Interested in: Big data, chat, consumer internet, digital edia, e-commerce, education, mobile, social commerce
Investments: 81, $50k to $250k (Khosla Ventures: more than 240, from $350k to $130m)
Recent investments: Keepy and Vamo (Khosla Ventures: Misfit Wearables and Grokker)
8. Marissa Mayer
Marissa Mayer is the President and CEO of Yahoo! Previously, she was at Google, where she was Vice President, Location & Local Services, and Vice President, Search Products & User Experience. Many publications have recognized Mayer’s accomplishments. These include the New York Times, Newsweek, and BusinessWeek. Fortune magazine has listed her for the past three years on its annual Most Powerful Women’s list, and she was the youngest ever to appear on the list. Businessinsider.com named her to its Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley in July 2012.
Twitter: @marissamayer
Home: San Francisco, Bay Area
Interested in: Analytics, automotive, B2B, big data, consumer electronics, consumer internet, deep information technology, digital media, email, energy, enterprise software, hardware, human resources, lifestyle businesses, maps, marketplaces, mobile, mobile games, mobile payments, online video advertising, recruiting, SaaS, search, social commerce, video
Investments: 12
Recent investments: Trainia Interactive and IfOnly
9. Dave McClure
Dave McClure is a Founding Partner at 500 Startups, a Silicon Valley seed fund and accelerator founded by former employees of PayPal, Google, YouTube, and Yahoo! The fund invests in internet startups on search, social, and mobile platforms. Its initial investment size is typically $25k to $250k. He was also among Businessinsider.com’s Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley in July 2012.
Twitter: @davemcclure
Home: San Francisco, Bay area
Interested in: Analytics, Big Data, Business Productivity, CRM, Cloud Computing, Consumer Internet, Crowdsourcing, Design, Developer Tools, Development Platforms, E-Commerce, Education, Email, Families, Fashion, Financial Services, Food and Beverages, Health Care, Infrastructure, Kids, lead generation, local, marketplaces, mobile, music, publishing, SaaS, social media, video, web development
Investments: 61, starting at $50k (500 Startups: more than 360, from $25k to $24m)
Recent investments: Goldbely and HAUL (500 Startups: View the Space, Colingo)
Biggest exit: PayPal sells to eBay for $1.5b
10. Dave Morin
Dave Morin is Co-Founder and CEO of Path, a mobile network. He also once ranked as one of the United States’ top downhill ski racers.
Businessinsider.com named him to its list of Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley in July 2012.
Twitter: @davemorin
Home: San Francisco, Bay Area
Interested in: Agriculture, biotechnology, Bitcoin, consumer goods, e-commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, food and beverages, hardware, health care, life sciences, lifestyle products, local, media, mobile, news, online travel, photography, platforms, productivity software, social media, sports
Investments: 67, $25k to $50k
Recent investments: SocialRadar and Crowdtilt
11. Matt Mullenweg
Houston native Matt Mullenweg is best known for developing the free and open source web software WordPress, the most popular publishing platform on the web. He is also an accomplished jazz saxophonist.
Twitter: @photomatt
Home: New York and San Francisco
Interested in: Consumer internet, content, e-commerce, food and beverages, marketplaces, media, music, musical instruments, open source, web development
Investments: 25, ranging from $50K and up
Recent investments: SmartThings and Tulip Retail
12. Keith Rabois
Keith Rabois is a member of the Khosla Ventures investing team.
He was among Businessinsider.com’s Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley in July 2012.
Twitter: @rabois
Home: San Francisco, Bay Area
Interested in: Big Data, Consumer Internet, Education, Information Technology, Loyalty Programs, Marketplaces, Mobile, Social Commerce, Sports
Investments: 51, starting at $250k (Khosla Ventures: more than 240, from $350k to $130m)
Recent investments: Hey and DoorDash (Khosla Ventures: Misfit Wearables and Grokker)
Biggest exit: Former executive at LinkedIn and PayPal
13. Kevin Rose
Kevin Rose is a general partner at Google Ventures venture capital firm. Businessinsider.com included him in its Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley in July 2012, and he placed 15th in Businessweek.com’s Top Angels in Tech in February 2010.
Twitter: @kevinrose
Home: San Francisco, Bay Area
Interested in: Consumer Internet, Location Based Services, Mobile, Social Media, Social Media Platforms, Social News
Investments: 15 (Google Ventures: more than 225, from $200k to $258m)
Recent investments: BufferBox and Treehouse (Google Ventures: Egnyte and The Orange Chef)
Biggest exit: Digg
14. Chris Sacca
Chris Sacca is Founder and Managing Director of Lowercase Capital, a venture capital firm that funds and provides advisory services to startups and late-stage companies. Sacca began attending the State University of New York at Buffalo when he was in the sixth grade, and took graduate-level math classes there for six years.
In 2013, Forbes.com ranked him no. 21 on its “Midas List” of Tech’s Top Investors. In July 2012, Businessinsider.com’s included him in its list of Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley and in February 2010, Businessweek.com ranked him eighth among its Top Angels in Tech.
Twitter: @sacca
Home: Truckee, CA
Interested in: Developer Tools, Information Technology, Location Based Services, Mobile
Investments: 85, $250k to $500k (Lowercase Capital: 39, from $250k to $9m)
Recent investments: Chewse and Streak (Lowercase Capital: Liftopia and MakeSpace)
Biggest exit: Speedera sells to Akamai for $130m
15. Aydin Senkut
Aydin Senkut is Founder and Managing Director of Felicis Ventures, a boutique venture fund focusing on mobile, e-commerce, consumer enterprise, education and health. He was also Google’s first Product Manager and later ran Google’s Strategic Partner Development in Asia.
In July 2012, Businessinsider.com named him to its list of Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley and Businessweek.com ranked him 15th among its February 2010 list of Top Angels in Tech.
Twitter: @asenkut
Home: Palo Alto
Interested in: 3D Printing, Consumer Internet, Deep Information Technology, E-Commerce, Education, Enterprise 2.0, Health Care, Mobile, Mobile Commerce, Mobile Payments, Mobile Security, Personal Health, SaaS
Investments: 78, $250k to $5m (Felicis Ventures: more than 150, from $100k to $70m)
Recent investments: NOWBOX and Worldly Developments (Felicis Ventures: CyPhy Works and and Smartling)
Biggest exit: In the last 5 years, more than 44 Felicis-backed startups have been acquired by firms such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Groupon, Microsoft, AT&T, Disney, Ebay and Intuit.
16. Jason Calacanis
Jason is the Founder and CEO of Inside.com. In 2009, he founded the Open Angel Forum, an event that connects early stage startups with angel investors.
Twitter: @jason
Home: Los Angeles
Interested in: Advertising, Analytics, B2B, Big Data, Blogging Platforms, Casual Games, Cloud Computing, Consumer Internet, Coupons, E-Commerce, Education, Enterprise Software, Fashion, Financial Services, Games, Health Care, Internet, Location-based services, Marketplaces, Mobile, Music, Online Dating, Retail, SaaS, Sales and Marketing, Search, Small and Medium Businesses, Social Media, Sports, Ventures for Good
Investments: 42, $1k to $25k
Recent investments: AdStage and Skift
Biggest exit: Weblogs, Inc. sells to America Online, Inc. for $25m
17. Ron Conway
Ron Conway is a founder and Managing Partner of the Angel Investors LP funds, and was an early stage investor in Google, Ask Jeeves, and PayPal. He began investing independently in 2005, and by 2006 Forbes Magazine ranked him sixth in its list of top “dealmakers.”
In 2013, Forbes.com ranked him no. 41 on its “Midas List” of Tech’s Top Investors.
Twitter: @ronconway
Home: Silicon Valley
Investments: 118, from $50k and up
Recent Investments: Grokker and Data Elite
18. Fabrice Grinda
Fabrice Grinda is a prolific angel investor with more than 128 active investments in various companies, including Viajanet, Peopleperhour, and Brightroll.
Prior to co-founding the online classified marketplace OLX in 2006, Grinda was the founder and CEO of Zingy Inc., which he built into one of the largest wireless media companies in the Americas. Within four years, he grew the business to $200 million in content sales.
Twitter: @fabricegrinda
Home: Dominican Republic and New York
Interested in: Business productivity, consumer internet, crowdsourcing, e-commerce, email, health and wellness, location-based services, marketplaces, online travel, SaaS, social commerce
Investments: 128, between $10k and $300K
Recent investments: Beepi and Viajanet
Biggest exit: Zingy sells to For-Side for $80m
19. Chris Dixon
Chris Dixon is a Co-Founder of Hunch and SiteAdvisor, and is a Team Member at Andreessen Horowitz.
In February 2010, Businessweek.com ranked him first among its Top Angels in Tech.
Twitter: @cdixon
Home: New York City
Interested in: Consumer Internet, Deep Information Technology, Information Technology, Mobile
Investments: 25, from $50K and up
Recent investments: Handshake and PandoDaily
Biggest exit: Hunch sells to eBay for $80m
20. Joshua Schachter
Joshua Schachter is CEO at Tasty Labs.
In July 2012, Businessinsider.com included Schachter in its list of Top 50 Early-Stage Investors in Silicon Valley and in May 2012 Businessweek.com ranked him 15th of Top Angels in Tech in February 2010.
Twitter: @joshu
Home: Palo Alto
Interested in: Information Technology, Local, Location Based Services, Mobile, Small and Medium Businesses
Investments: 65, $10k and up
Recent investments: Shyp and Science Exchange
Biggest exit: Delicious sells to Yahoo!
See on www.forbes.com
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