Welcome to the Draper Venture Network!

Nearly 20 years ago when I established a network to connect independent VC firms to Silicon Valley, I could not have imagined the life-changing outcomes that would result. I’ve met talented investors and entrepreneurs and been involved in groundbreaking investments — Baidu and Skype to name a few. From a collection of small US funds in the 1990s, the Network expanded internationally with member funds today operating in 30 cities across 4 continents. More than 600 portfolio companies have been funded by Network funds and there have been over 200 successful outcomes with more to come. Most importantly, members have formed valuable relationships, not only with our core team in Silicon Valley but also with one another. In our ever-globalized industry, this has proven to be of tremendous benefit to the funds and their portfolio companies.

While the Network has grown and undergone changes over time, the original intent of bringing together the world’s best innovators and investors remains. As we embark on our next evolution as the Draper Venture Network, we will continue to recruit top-tier VC funds and empower them by providing access, insight and scale.

The current management team, under the guidance of Gabe Turner, the director of the Draper Venture Network, and our Board of Directors that includes myself and other Partners from the Network’s member funds, will build on the great momentum gathered during the past two years of independent operation. The Network’s Operations team will continue to deliver the enhanced service offerings: syndication, diligence, business and corporate development support, and the newly launched private web portal. We will also continue to produce great events such as our annual CEO Summit that brings our portfolio company CEOs and corporate partners together.

This year we will launch a new micro Network (“DVN Beta”) for seed and first-time VCs. It will be run alongside the main Network and serve as a source of early-stage deal flow for our funds as well as a testing ground for potential future members. Finally, we are thrilled to be adding several new member funds to the Draper Venture Network (to be announced in the coming weeks) including my early-stage fund Draper Associates.

The Draper Venture Network and DVN Beta will be part of an ecosystem that includes Draper University and its graduates worldwide, Boost accelerator and the startups at HeroCity, plus executive education and VCx for LPs and aspiring VCs. The power of this ecosystem, coupled with 60 years of VC know-how from the Draper family legacy, will ensure that our entity moves forward successfully and continues to charter a path for collaboration in venture capital.

I look forward to continuing to build this community, and encourage investors here in the Silicon Valley and from around the world to join us.

Sincerely,

Timothy Draper

For more information visit www.drapernetwork.com and for inquiries or press contact gturner@drapernetwork.com