CRV

We invest in people before ideas. We know the types of people we are looking for. We invest in experts — authentic founders who are the best at what they do. Having a big idea matters, but being the person who can make it a reality matters even more. The journey is just as important as the destination. Yes, the destination is critical: we are in the business of helping build world-changing companies that create tremendous value. That said, we recognize that it will not always be smooth sailing. We want to be there for every part of the ride. We strive to be the investor you want to call, not the one you have to. We invest as a team. We are an equal partnership – figuratively and economically. For the past twenty years we have built our partnership with equal title, equal pay, equal carry, and equal votes in every investment. We are not political and we have tremendous trust in one another. We choose to spend time with each other and our families outside of work. While one of us may sit on your board, each one of us is a resource at your disposal. Integrity matters. Open, honest and direct communication is important. We believe in respect first and foremost. You’ll never see us pull out our phones in meetings. No kidding — at CRV, there’s a fine for doing that — something we’ve never had to collect. We act fast and with deep conviction. We are an investor team that works together every day. We make decisions quickly, often going from first meeting to a funding decision in a week. We hold ourselves to a high bar of being available. We know entrepreneurs work around the clock and we’re there whenever they need us. Work hard. Big ideas change the world. Building a business on top of a big idea takes hard work and sacrifice. Our founders work hard and we work to give them an unfair advantage by being a multiplier on their efforts. But, also play hard. We are kite boarders, rally car racers, skydivers, bungee jumpers, fly fishers, downhill skiers, competitive sandwich eaters. We believe that extreme sports are like starting companies – you have to be all-in and you have to be focused. This is in our DNA. We invest early as a lead investor. Series A investing is our focus, with an occasional Seed or Series B investment. Our investments are focused and high touch. The relationships we build with founders last years, not months, often through pivots and growing pains. We are true partners who are patient and steadfast when things skew from plan. This is not our first rodeo. Or our second, or our third. CRV is one of the most experienced venture capital firms in the world. Our team is made up of entrepreneurs and operators who have worked at companies big and small. We have been investing for more than 40 years in everything from cell towers to mobile apps that touch the lives of millions everyday. Currently, we are actively investing out of our 16th Fund, raised in 2014.