Garry Tan
Garry Tan (Chinese: 陳嘉興; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tân Ka-heng; born March 21, 1981) is an American venture capitalist, entrepreneur, and software engineer. He is the CEO of Y Combinator and a co-founder of Initialized Capital. Tan has also co-founded the blogging platforms Posterous and Posthaven. He was an early employee at Palantir Technologies and previously served as a partner at Y Combinator.
Early Life and Education
Garry Tan was born in Winnipeg, Canada to a Chinese Singaporean father and a Burmese-Chinese mother. The family moved to Fremont, California in 1991. Tan developed an interest in programming at the age of 14 and secured his first job by cold-calling businesses listed in the Yellow Pages. He graduated from American High School and later earned a degree in Computer Systems Engineering from Stanford University.
Career
Early Career
Tan began his professional journey at Microsoft before becoming the 10th employee at Palantir Technologies, where he contributed as a designer and engineering manager. He also designed the company's logo.
Posterous and Posthaven
In 2008, Tan co-founded Posterous, a blogging platform that gained significant traction and was eventually acquired by Twitter in 2012 for $20 million. Following the shutdown of Posterous, Tan co-founded Posthaven to provide a permanent blogging solution.
Y Combinator
Tan joined Y Combinator in 2011 as a designer in residence and partner. During his tenure, he played a crucial role in building key parts of the YC experience for founders, including the internal software platform Bookface and the Demo Day website. He also wrote the first seed round check for Coinbase in 2012.
Initialized Capital
In 2012, Tan co-founded Initialized Capital, a venture capital firm. The firm raised $7 million in its first funding round and subsequently raised $39 million in 2013 and $115 million in 2016. Initialized Capital has invested in over 200 startups, including Instacart and Coinbase.
Return to Y Combinator
In January 2023, Tan returned to Y Combinator as its President and CEO. Under his leadership, the accelerator aims to continue its legacy of supporting early-stage startups.
Personal Life
Garry Tan is married to Stephanie Lim, and they have two children, Garrison and Solomon Stephanson. The family resides in San Francisco, California. Tan is also a board member of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and a member of the Y Combinator Alumni Advisory Board.
Notable Investments
Tan is an active angel investor and has invested in companies such as Slack, Gusto, and Zenefits. His investments have significantly contributed to his estimated net worth of $200 million as of 2021.
Recognition
Garry Tan has been recognized in various lists, including the Silicon Valley Business Journal's "40 under 40" in 2013 and Forbes' Midas Brink List in 2018. He is known for his intuitive feel for user experience and design, making him a highly respected figure in the tech and venture capital communities.