Kyber Knight Capital, a newly established venture capital firm headquartered in San Francisco, California, has officially launched its operations with an impressive inaugural fund of $120 million. The firm’s investment pool attracted notable investors, including influential figures such as John Hennessy, Chairman of Alphabet, Inc.; Manny Maceda, Global Head of Bain Consulting; Chris DeFaria, former President of Dreamworks Animation; Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay and Hewlett Packard; Gary Barber, former Chairman and CEO of MGM; Kevin Tsujihara, previous Chairman and CEO of Warner Brothers; Michael Eisner, former Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company; Joe Gebbia of Airbnb; Michael Mente of Revolve; David Sacks of PayPal, and Mark Pincus of Zynga. Furthermore, Kyber Knight Capital also enjoys the support of prominent institutional investors, including McKinsey, the Smithsonian Museum Endowment, and a major California pension fund.
Founded by Sunny Dhillon and Linus Liang, Kyber Knight Capital specializes in pre-seed and seed investments in early-stage technology startups. The firm’s investment focus revolves around companies operating in the domains of commerce, artificial intelligence (AI), and labor. By providing capital and strategic guidance, Kyber Knight aims to empower these companies and their founders to establish a scalable framework for success. The firm’s experienced team includes David Bloom, who has collaborated with the co-founders for five years and leads the built world and labor automation efforts, and Ary Vaidya, who spearheads the AI and commerce initiatives at the fund.
With a strong commitment to fostering innovation, Kyber Knight Capital has already made investments in 12 promising companies that are on the verge of launching their products or services. These investments span a diverse range of sectors, including robotics and automation in traditional manufacturing and construction, sales enablement, e-commerce, and AI technology.
Looking ahead, Kyber Knight Capital has ambitious plans to invest in approximately 40 to 50 companies using its debut fund. By leveraging their expertise, network, and financial resources, the firm aims to drive the growth and success of early-stage tech startups, contributing to the advancement of innovation and technology in the commerce, AI, and labor sectors.
